Xbox One availability 'should feel a lot better than it did for 360'
Microsoft wants you to be able to walk into a store and find a console on launch day
Despite receiving record Xbox One pre-orders, Microsoft is aiming for consumers to be able to go into stores and find a console on launch day.
Speaking to Game Informer, Microsoft Game Studios vice president Phil Spencer said Xbox One availability "should feel a lot better than it did for 360" back in 2005.
"You want people to be able to walk in the store and buy one on day one, so you're trying to manage the inventory that isn't pre-sold," he said. "I want parents who don't think about pre-ordering electronics to be able to walk in and have a chance to find a box. There might be a line, but I don't want it to be that if you didn't pre-order in September, you can't get one. That doesn't feel like a great consumer experience.
"Availability should feel a lot better than it did for 360," he added. "If people want to pick up more controllers and games, they'll be there. We feel really good about our pre-order number, and we're managing it through allocation rather than demand. [Pre-order] isn't the business. It's way more important to me what happens when people walk in the store. The business is selling consoles."