Game consoles worth 370,000 euros have disappeared from a warehouse. The co-founder of the company says it feels like a “crime drama” and no one knows where the devices have gone.
The Playdate is a handheld game console released in 2022 by the American software developer and publisher Panic Inc. The special feature of the console is a small crank attached to the side, which can be used in various games.
The official price for the small console is 199 US dollars and is currently only available through the manufacturer.
Now, Cabel Sasser, co-founder of the company, told at the Game Developer Conference (GDC) that they have lost devices worth 400,000 US dollars (approximately 370,000 euros). The online magazine Kotaku reports on this.
Consoles Disappear Without a Trace from a Warehouse
Cabel Sasser reported that he checked the inventory of Playdates in a shipping center in Las Vegas. He noticed that the numbers did not add up. After further investigations, he found that about two pallets of Playdate systems had disappeared. “It’s a bit like a true crime drama,” Sasser said during his GDC presentation.
When Sasser raised his concerns with the shipping center, he was told that FedEx claimed they had been delivered, but there was no trace of them. A few weeks later, another set of pallets (which was eventually found) was delivered to the construction site of a gas station (Circle K) near the shipping center, complicating matters further.
Interestingly, Sasser then showed the conference attendees a picture of the pallets simply sitting outside, before the shipping center presumably sent someone to pick them up.
Strangely, he was told that the same person who appeared to mark the missing pallets also marked the pallets found on the construction site. Sasser humorously explained that they are still on the hunt.
By the way, Sasser mentioned that his company is not yet in the black. They definitely want to achieve that during the year 2024. However, he did not disclose whether the missing consoles would affect revenues.
Other consoles are also frequently stolen: A man allegedly stole 200 consoles, including PS5 and Nintendo Switch devices, and sold them secretly. The consoles were actually supposed to be shipped. The thief stole consoles worth 5.8 million yen (about 35,000 euros).
Man allegedly steals dozens of PS5 consoles and sells them secretly – Spends money on horse racing
