PlayStation 5 to launch in gaming's biggest region in Q2 2021

Sony will introduce the PlayStation 5 to mainland China in Q2 2021, possibly coinciding with a new console stock refresh.

Today Sony Interactive Entertainment China announced it will launch the PS5 in the region sometime in the second quarter. No exact launch date was outlined, but Sony has been planning this rollout since December 2020.

Just like the Nintendo Switch, which launched in partnership with Tencent, the Chinese PS5 will be a special model made just for overseas consumers. As Niko Partners analyst Daniel Ahmad notes, the China-based PS5 should be region-locked with restrictions set in place that reflect the country's strict gaming laws. No information on launch games or services was made available by SIE China.

China represents one the world's most lucrative gaming region insofar as gaming, and routinely pulls in tens of billions of dollars every year.