Sony announces Arabic language support to PS4 consoles

The gaming industry in the Middle East and the UAE is fast catching upto global standards forcing developers to come out with local content.

The three day Games 14 Show started on Thursday at the World Trade Centre in Dubai where Sony announced that it will soon roll out Arabic language support into PS4 in the coming days.

“Our next firmware update 2.0 will include Arabic language support,” said Robert Fisser, general manager of PlayStation at Sony Middle East.

He said demand for Arabic language support was growing from fans in the region forcing the company to incorporate Arabic support.

“Earlier this week we announced that we have sold 1 million consoles in the UK. Can you imagine us achieving this number if the PS4 units there supported only French and German?” he wondered.

Fisser also added that the GCC sales numbers could soon cross one million mark.

The gaming industry in the UAE is fast catching up global levels.

According to Aman Sangar, Xbox MEA, gaming industry is expected to grow at around 15 to 20 per cent this year alone with the introduction of next generation consoles.

“Last year the segment achieved about 11 per cent growth. This year we expect it to grow further,” he said.

When asked if Xbox sales had suffered due to late introduction into the UAE, he said: “Although late we have still reached on time for the seasonal sales. We now have tie ups with both Etisalat and du. We even have a du app preinstalled. We are expecting sales to pick up during the coming months,” he said.

Microsoft launched Xbox One in UAE last week, months after the international launch and the introduction of rival PS4 in the local market.

In an effort to further boost sales, Microsoft has separated the Kinect from the bundle. Starting October users can opt to buy Kinect separately for $150.

In another significant development, as far as the gaming community is concerned, Destiny, one of the most anticipated games was launched last week. Sony is offering the game bundled with PS4 sales with Etisalat for four weeks. A two year commitment for Dh79 per month will enable you to opt for a PS4 console with white game controller and the Destiny game and 30 day membership of Playstation Plus.

A similar offer on Xbox One has also been launched. For Dh79 per month and a two-year commitment subscribers will get an Xbox One gaming console plus a one year Xbox Live subscription.

Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.