( CNN ) -- The late-fall chill outside a Best Buy store in Elkridge , Maryland , was n't all that was keeping George Nelums awake late Thursday . `` I 've been a PS dude since the first PS , '' said Nelums , the first in line to pick up a PlayStation 4 when the clock struck midnight . `` I 'm not planning on sleeping tonight . I 've got a 6-hour energy drink . I 'm all set . '' He and about 100 others were there for the next step in the evolution of home entertainment . The new PlayStation hit stores a week before Microsoft 's Xbox One does the same , touching off a new round in the fight for the hearts of console gamers . Compare : PlayStation 4 vs. Xbox One . It was a scene that played out at thousands of stores across North America . In New York , Sony rented out the entire Standard High Line Hotel in Manhattan , where roughly 500 people showed up to watch a light show of video-game scenes as they waited for the midnight launch . Matt and Tammy Nyers , of Laurel , Maryland , picked up their two new pre-ordered consoles at the Elkridge store -- one to keep and one they plan on selling on eBay . Matt said he 's more of a sports gamer and really wants to see what next year 's `` Madden '' will be like when it is designed specifically for the new console . `` It is the latest and greatest and I want to see what they can do , '' he said . `` I 'm really wanting to see what games will be coming out next because they will be built just for the PS4 . This is built more like a gaming rig ( than the PS3 ) . '' The first new home console for Sony in more than seven years , the PlayStation 4 incorporates many new features over its predecessor , the PlayStation 3 . Greater focus on social interaction during gameplay , a redesigned controller with a touchpad interface , and expansion of streaming entertainment choices are just a few of the new elements for PS4 . Andrew House , president and group CEO of Sony Entertainment , said building this next-generation console took nearly seven years and that Sony had specific goals in mind to reach today 's launch date . `` Having a shared experience on the same sofa in front of the same screen is something that I , as a parent , want to have with my family , '' House told CNN during the PS4 launch event in New York City this week . `` A device that is designed from the ground up to be able to serve up all those different kinds of experiences , but with a great user interface that 's designed to work specifically in the living room , I think is still very , very important . '' With more than a million pre-orders reported by Sony in August , it would seem the public was ready to get their hands on the latest next-generation console ( Nintendo 's Wii U was released last year ) . Analysts expect the demand for the system to outstrip supply through Christmas . `` People were coming in early this week just to get games that were released and extra controllers , '' Brooks Holman , home sales manager at the Maryland Best Buy said . `` They were making extra trips to the store just to make sure they had everything they wanted for when they got their new PS4 . '' Devin Gergen , Minnesota native , is one of many military personnel stationed in the area who spent hours outside the store . He had n't pre-ordered , but remained hopeful . `` I just like the experience of standing in line , meeting new people , sharing gamer tags , '' Gergen said . `` You get to chat around with all kinds of people . It is fun . '' The lines were predominately guys in their 20s and 30s , and some in line were hoping to score the perfect gift . Delaney Lockhart , a 21-year-old college student attending Towson University , waited with her mother in the chilled night air . But Lockhart said she was n't getting the PS4 for herself . `` I 'm getting the game for my brother for Christmas , '' she said , laughing . `` I 'm a good sister . He owes me . '' The excitement , though , did n't mean everything has gone perfectly for Sony 's rollout . Shuhei Yoshida , president of Sony 's Worldwide Studios , tweeted that the company is investigating reports of broken consoles , but said the problem is n't widespread . `` Be assured we are investigating reported PS4 issues , '' he wrote on Twitter . `` The number is very small compared to shipped , we believe they are isolated incidents . '' Over the next few months , PlayStation 4 consoles will go on sale in other countries around the world , with the final launch date set for February in Japan .
Fans lined up late Thursday to be the first to get a PlayStation 4 . The new console launched at midnight to high demand . Rival Xbox One will hit the market soon , with November 22 release date . Some say they 're excited to play old favorites with new-console capabilities .