The lousy launch of the PS5: a seemingly never-ending story

The lousy launch of the PS5

In mid-November, a new era in the console sector began once again. Both Sony and Microsoft brought their new flagships to the market with the PlayStation 5 and the Series X / S. But not only production problems due to the omnipresent pandemic, but also extremely high expectations and scalpers let the publication degenerate into chaos. We look back again, take a look at the current situation and dare to look ahead to the future of the eternal console battle.

Customers overrun the websites

Major events have been falling into the water regularly in the past few months. However, there were places on the Internet where more than 130,000 people cavorted at the same time. This is what happened on the website of the Euronics online shop. According to the purchasing manager, on February 17th, that huge crowd of PS5 prospects got stuck in line at the electronics retailer, hoping to get one of the few consoles off the sell-side. Euronics relied on this system in the fight against bot attacks and over-selling. But the company did not expect such a run on the online shop. Even the website of the shipping giant Amazon went to its knees due to the immense demand in one of the waves of pre-orders. The servers surrendered for a few minutes and went offline. Despite the problems, the consoles were also no longer available on Amazon within a very short time. Due to the constant high rush to the various online shops, it remains to be seen when the situation will improve. We are currently living in crazy times: Who would have thought at the beginning of last year that we would have to completely turn our lives upside down within just a few days due to a virus? Certainly not that many. But even outside of this topic, strange things happen every now and then. In order to get a PlayStation 5 (buy now), interested parties are currently given the opportunity to receive one of the mostly out of stock Sony consoles through a special application process - including a letter of motivation, of course. A few months ago, we probably would not have thought this scenario possible either. But first let's take a step back to the release of the new generation of consoles.

First, the Xbox Series X and its little sister, the Series S saw the light of day. The Microsoft console was released worldwide on November 10, 2020. The launch of the PlayStation 5, however, was split up. In countries like Japan or the USA, Sony's console was launched on November 12th. In Germany and many other European countries, the time had come seven days later. Due to the situation around the corona virus, the game consoles in this country were only sold in a purely virtual manner. However, the availability left a lot to be desired from the start. It was already clear in advance that the PlayStation 5 would be very popular, but Sony was struggling with production difficulties.

The Porsche among consoles

There wasn't even a set release date for the new PlayStation, so fans with a too loose wallet could pre-order a very special PS5. On the website of the luxury retailer Truly Exquisite there was a completely gold-plated Sony console on offer from September. Whereby the word “offer” seems out of place here. Strictly speaking, the PlayStation 5 was available in three different versions: gold, rose gold and platinum. The bargain hunters were able to secure the “cheapest” model for around 8,800 euros. The price of the most expensive variant, on the other hand, was already 9,120 euros. For those who find that too cheap, the Russian luxury manufacturer Caviar may have just the thing for them: A PS5 processed with 20 kilograms of gold at a proud price of 500,000 US dollars. In addition to the “Golden Rock”, as the console is called, there is also a controller covered with crocodile skin. If you don't strike, you should never again complain about the availability of the PlayStation 5. So it turned out in the first few days and weeks that a good dose of patience is the prerequisite for getting hold of a PS5. The tense situation was made more difficult by scalpers who, with the help of bots, bought up all the supplies on the Sony console within seconds.

Meanwhile, online retailers like Amazon are taking action against these fraudsters and even laws are against these buying robots in the starting blocks. Still, the availability of the PlayStation 5 improved little or nothing. Almost every week there are reports of bizarre opportunities to purchase a Sony console. From mobile phone contracts including PS5 to crazy lotteries to the aforementioned application procedures including letter of motivation.

Many online shops do not set any limits to their creativity when selling the new PlayStation. But unfortunately there are also less creative, but all the more brazen offers to be found in the vastness of the Internet.

Astro's Playroom

The failed launch of the PS5: a seemingly never-ending story (3) source : PC Games The Astro's Playroom, which was preinstalled on the PlayStation 5, impressed fans and the trade press in no time at all. The Jump & Run title, which is supposed to introduce the new functions of the DualSense controller, has a lot to offer in a playful and immersive way. With its charming design paired with a great soundscape, Astro's Playroom conjures up more than just a smile on the player's face. The handling and functions of the DualSense are unique and bring anticipation to future blockbuster games.

Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart

The failed launch of the PS5: What feels like a never-ending story Source: Sony Interactive Entertainment The release of no PS5 exclusive in the next few months is likely to be so eagerly desired as that of the jump & run shooter Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart. From June 11th we can finally get through the various dimensions of the with our hero duo Adventure jump. The colorful adventure already looked excellent in the first gameplay scenes and shone with a lot of action in extremely varied worlds.

Horizon Forbidden West

The failed launch of the PS5: What feels like a never-ending story ( 2) Source: Sony / Guerrilla Games There are still rumors that the action role-playing game around the charismatic protagonist Aloy will be postponed until next year. Nevertheless, the open world adventure is considered the first real endurance test for the PlayStation 5. Further blockbusters are not expected until later in 2022. We can probably marvel at what the PS5 really can do as soon as Horizon: Forbidden West is on our hard drive.

The prices of the game console soared on auction sites like Ebay. Not infrequently, the PlayStation 5 was offered there for over 1,500 euros. Even the online giant Amazon wasn't safe from nasty third-party offers at times. They tried to exploit the impatience of many Sony fans with horrific sums and thus earn a golden nose. But not only the PS5 had to struggle with problems of this kind, also its American counterpart, the Series X felt the influx of prices. In this country, for example, the electronics retailer Expert sold the new Xbox instead of the original 499 euros for 599 euros - a whopping 100 euros more expensive. Although there was no legal objection to this approach, it is clearly different on the moral side. But the success proved the retailer right, because despite the higher price the consoles went away like hot cakes.

The country needs creative minds

In mid-March, the German e-commerce company Alternate 265 offered PlayStation 5 consoles for sale at. However, in order to get a chance at acquiring the PS5, players had to convince the team with a letter of application. In addition to a form, it was also necessary to send a letter of motivation. But there was another catch: the provider only sold the consoles in special bundles, which of course were well above the original price. Applicants also had to choose one of the packages before writing. Understandably, the company received a good pinch of criticism in this regard. With this campaign, Alternate wanted above all to exclude the buying robots, which had robbed various other online shops in advance, from buying one of the PS5 consoles. For those people who had both time and a bit of creativity left, a slightly different way to get to one of the coveted machines. Normally, after these reports, we would have to assume that the launch of the new generation has proven to be a huge flop. But you thought wrong! Both Sony and Microsoft occasionally reported sales records for their devices in certain countries. In the USA, the PlayStation 5 is the fastest-selling game console of all time, despite the pandemic and delivery bottlenecks. The Series X, on the other hand, managed to overtake the PS5 in England in January in terms of pure sales figures, but this could also be due to the availability of the Sony machine during this period. As before, the contingent made available in Germany, but also in other European countries, left a lot to be desired in the past few weeks. Most of the time the ghost of the available consoles in online shops was over after a few seconds or at most a few minutes and we got a big "not available" on the website.

Unfortunately, there is also a big change in the situation in this one Year not in sight. According to Sony chief executive Jim Ryan, the situation may remain tense and unsatisfactory through Christmas 2021. Mike Spencer, Head of Investor Relations at Microsoft, predicts a very similar picture for the Xbox Series X. So if you haven't got hold of a PS5 or Series X, you have no choice but to remain patient and keep various online shops to check for console availability.