More than one million PlayStation 4 video game consoles were sold in its first 24 hours on sale but hundreds of gamers have reported problems which stop the machine from working.

PlayStation 4
Sony sells one million PS4 consoles in first 24 hours, but some users have reported problems. (IBTimes UK)

The Playstation 4 went on sale at midnight on 15 November, greeted by hundreds of fans queuing for hours to get their hands on the new console, which will launch in the UK on 29 November, a week after its rival, the Xbox One.

Shuhei Yoshida, president of worldwide studios at Sony Computer Entertainment, tweeted: "PS4 has sold through over 1 million units within 24 hours of the launch in North America".

The news was echoed by Sony's head of publishing and developer relations, Adam Boyes, who thanked gamers for getting the PS4 over the one million sales barrier on its first day.

For comparison, when the PlayStation 3 launched in the US in November, 2006, it was two months before one million consoles were sold. Sony had prepared to make 400,000 PS3 consoles available at launch, but a large number of these did not arrive at stores in time, slowing Sony's efforts to reach the millionth sale.

Aside from more stock being available from day one, the PS4's launch was helped by a lower price than its predecessor. Priced at $399 (£349 in the UK), the console is considerably cheaper than the PS3, which cost $499 / £429 when it went on sale. The PS4 is also cheaper than Microsoft's Xbox One.

Blue Light of Death

But the launch wasn't without its problems. Some users have reported receiving broken consoles, which either refused to work at all, or stopped working after the required version 1.50 software update was installed. Posts by customers on Amazon describe the problem as the "Pulsing Blue Light of Death", as their consoles do nothing more than display a blue light.

Before the console went on sale, some reviewers and competition winners who received their PS4s early reported a similar problem. However, Yoshida tweeted to say Sony is investigating the issue, and that the number of consoles affected it "very small...we believe they are isolated incidents."

UK launch

Although the PS4 does not go on sale in the UK until 29 November, Sony has already got to work on marketing the next-generation game console. The Japanese company took over the iconic Oxo Tower on London's South Bank, replacing the vertical Oxo sign with the console's familiar circle, cross, square and triangle icons from its controller.

The marketing campaign is the first time the 58m-tall tower has been modified in its 85-year history. Each symbol weighs 97kg and is made up of 72 neon strips. Engineers and abseilers worked for four days to construct the 1.1 tonne installation.

On the night of 28 November, over 400 retail stores across the UK will open at midnight to celebrate the PS4's UK launch.

Sony PS4