'Xbox On' Voice Command Only in 5 Markets at Xbox One Launch

Update: Microsoft has clarified that the delay specifically affects the "Xbox On" voice command, which will only work in five markets at launch.

A spokesperson provided the following statement to Gamespot:

"Our vision is to bring conversational voice control and voice search to every country where we sell Xbox. At Xbox One launch, we will offer voice control in 10 of our 13 launch markets, with eight total languages: English US, English UK, French, Spanish MX, Spanish ES, Italian, German, and Portuguese. There will be some voice experience variations in different markets at launch; the 'Xbox On' voice command will only be available in five markets (United States, United Kingdom, Canada, France, and Germany) and will come to others in the near future.

There are many complexities associated with delivering a great voice experience around the world, and we're working hard to add more voice features and more countries; we'll share more details in the future."

Original story follows:

While we're still waiting on a firm release date for the Xbox One, we now know that the system's much-touted voice command capabilities will be limited to select markets at launch. Spotted by Gamespot, a listing on Xbox.com notes that the console's new Kinect-enabled voice commands will only be available in the US, UK, Canada, France, and Germany when it ships sometime in November. That leaves customers in the other 8 launch regions — including Australia, Mexico, Italy, and others — out of luck until an unspecified later date.

While the exact cause for the staggered rollout is not mentioned, earlier this week Microsoft head of product development Albert Penello discussed language localization as the primary cause for the system's delayed availability in select markets. With the aid of the new and improved Kinect sensor, many of the Xbox One's software can be controlled by simple voice commands, including the ability to power on the system, switch to different programs, and launch apps. In order to make the feature available in all available in the primary languages of each country, including the nuances of regional dialects.

We've reached out to Microsoft for comment.

Scott Lowe is IGN's resident tech expert and first-person shooter fanatic. You can follow him on Twitter at @ScottLowe and on MyIGN at Scott-IGN.

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