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The Xbox One has finally scored a much needed victory of arch rival, the Sony PlayStation 4 console, during the biggest sales period of the year.

The month of November includes the Black Friday sales event, traditionally a busy period for the gaming industry in the US, but also increasingly around the world. That the Xbox One managed to emerge as the most popular console during this crucial month would have been of utmost importance to Microsoft, considering the relatively poor year the Xbox brand has just endured.

While the Xbox One was also successful last November, both the Xbox One and Sony's PS4 had just been launched at that time, and the nascent sales figures could not predict the trend that was so clear for most of 2014: that the PS4 would dominate sales, in both hardware and software.

Microsoft's attempt at clawing back lost market share started with a re-jigging of the default Xbox One package. By removing the Kinect motion gaming devices and making it an optional accessory, Microsoft was able to drop the price of the cheapest Xbox One console by $100 (to match that of the PS4). The Redmond based firm further undercut Sony this holiday shopping period by offering special holiday deals that discounted the console by $50, and as much as $150 when taking into account bundled games. 

It seems Microsoft's new pricing strategy has worked, earning the Xbox One it's first monthly sales win in 2014, in both the US and the UK markets.

Even more crucially, November represents a big month for game releases, with a new game being released in the popular 'Call of Duty' franchise. The Xbox One also scored a win here, with the Xbox 360 and Xbox One versions of 'Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare' outselling all other platforms.