On September 16, Sony announced the price and release date for the PS5. Shortly after, many shops began accepting pre-orders for the console. However, this was not supposed to happen, as Sony originally promised. Now, the internet is making fun of it, including the competition from Xbox.
What happened? After the livestream regarding new games and the price of the new PS5, a very chaotic pre-order began. Sony itself announced that pre-orders should start on September 17, only a few hours after the livestream.
But things turned out quite differently. Shortly after 11:00 PM, the first people could order a PS5 here in Germany, for example at MediaMarkt. They were sold out within minutes. While some shops keep accepting orders, the overall rush was large and chaotic, which frustrated many.
Because Sony actually wanted to prevent exactly that. Beforehand, it was said:
It will not happen on the side. At some point, we will let you know when you can pre-order the PlayStation 5. So please do not feel that you need to line up somewhere until you receive an official notice.
Eric Lempel, Vice President and Head of Worldwide Marketing & Consumer Experience
What followed is typical for the internet. Gamers, and even the competition from Microsoft, mocked Sony.
Xbox mocks the PS5
How does the competition react? In a tweet, Xbox announced exactly when pre-orders for the new “Xbox Series X” and “Series S” consoles will begin, namely on September 22. At the same time, they mentioned that the launch will take place simultaneously in 36 countries.
The tweet is a clear jab at the competition. Not only did the chaotic pre-orders attract criticism. The PS5 launches in Europe on November 19, a week later than in the USA, Canada, or Japan. That is not the case with the Xbox.
Players show a mix of anger and humor
How do players react? In the subreddit for the PS5, various threads regarding the chaotic pre-order are gathering. Some of them are dissatisfied and feel that Sony has lied. They went to sleep or work after the event and therefore missed the first chances, like the user Kompletionist, whose thread is currently ranked 2 on reddit with over 9,500 upvotes.
Others, however, are mocking the situation, like the here selected candidates:
People hoard consoles and sell them at high prices
As is often the case with pre-sales, some individuals are trying to profit from the scarcity of consoles. That should no longer be possible through official channels, but other sellers do not monitor that as strictly.
Consoles are already being sold at exorbitant prices on eBay. There you can find individual consoles offered for up to 1,000 euros. However, you should avoid such offers and instead wait until official retailers have a PS5 in stock again.
Anyone wanting a PS5 should check the shops regularly, as some quantities may occasionally become available for pre-order again. More about the pre-order process with an overview of the shops can be found here.
