The eighth generation of gaming has officially kicked off and it's been in quite some style. While some have been predicting the end of consoles due to the encroachment of mobile devices, it seems that at least for now the market is good and healthy going into a brand new console cycle.

Last week, Sony had an incredibly successful launch by selling a staggering one million PlayStation 4s within the consoles first 24 hours on the shelf. That is a huge number for such an expensive gadget and it handed the company its biggest console launch ever. After tracking at significantly lower numbers and still recovering from a PR disaster at its reveal, many doubted the Xbox One's chances of matching the feat.

Well, it appears those critics were wrong as Xbox.com has confirmed that the Xbox One has matched the number within the same time frame. On their website, Microsoft confirmed that the figure was the biggest launch in Xbox's history surpassing the original Xbox and Xbox 360.

"Following a worldwide celebration, Xbox One launched in 13 markets yesterday to great fanfare. The team is excited to confirm the launch of Xbox One was the biggest launch in Xbox history, with more than one million consoles sold through worldwide in less than 24 hours — surpassing day one Xbox 360 sales and setting a new record for Microsoft. "

It is well worth noting that this number is certainly inflated when compared to Sony as the Xbox One released worldwide, where as the PlayStation 4 has only launched in the US and Canada so far, readying for a wider release next week. While it is nearly impossible to say, logic would dictate that for at least the moment the PlayStation 4 has outsold the Xbox One. Although, considering the console reveal and the once huge gap in demand for the consoles, the figure that Microsoft are reporting will be a huge sigh of relief for the corporation.

To go with the sales figure, Microsoft also revealed a myriad of other stats showing off gamer activity across Xbox Live.  The corporation has gathered together staggering numbers related to the Xbox One's major launch games.

• Over 60 million zombies have been killed in “Dead Rising 3”
• Over 3.6 million miles driven in “Forza Motorsport 5"
• Over 7.1 million combos in “Killer Instinct”
• Over 8.5 million enemies defeated in “Ryse: Son of Rome”
• Over 43.3 million Fit Points earned in "Xbox Fitness".

It is good to see that some gamers are getting exercise time in to supplement their hardcore gaming sessions.

The Xbox One seems to be off to a healthy launch, at least from where the numbers are concerned. Microsoft has been working hard to play catch up with Sony and it seems like its has clawed its way back into the market making sure that the PlayStation 4 has healthy competition which, at the end of the day, is always going to benefit the gamers.

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The Xbox One is now available.

Source: Xbox.com