If you’re angry about the way Sony has handled PS5 pre-orders, you’re not alone. Pre-order windows for the $499.99 PS5 and $399.99 Digital Edition opened quickly after Sony’s mid-week games showcase, causing chaos across the internet as people struggled to get their orders in.
Worse, even getting a confirmed PS5 pre-order in doesn’t seem to guarantee a launch-day console, with Amazon emailing buyers to let them know that they may have a wait ahead of them.
Now Sony has accepted that things haven’t gone smoothly, and issued an apology to fans about the way things have been handled. “Let’s be honest: PS5 preorders could have been a lot smoother,” the Sony’s official PlayStation account tweeted. “We truly apologize for that.
“Over the next few days, we will release more PS5 consoles for preorder – retailers will share more details. And more PS5s will be available through the end of the year.”
Let’s be honest: PS5 preorders could have been a lot smoother. We truly apologize for that. Over the next few days, we will release more PS5 consoles for preorder – retailers will share more details. And more PS5s will be available through the end of the year. pic.twitter.com/h1TaGsGBunSeptember 19, 2020
Hopefully that’s a sign that Sony was either too conservative with initial allocations, or it has a plan to ramp up production quickly – because a possible alternative is allocations intended for other markets’ November 19 launch being rerouted to cope with America’s November 12 date.
Either way, it’s good that Sony has recognized its mistakes, because the PS5 pre-order window opened in a manner that’s the polar opposite of what was originally promised. Back in July, Eric Lempel told Summer Game Festival curator Geoff Keighley that: “I think it’s safe to say that we’ll let you know when pre-order will happen. It’s not going to happen with a minute’s notice.
“At some point we’ll let you know when you can pre-order PlayStation 5, so please don’t feel like you have to go run out and line up anywhere until you receive official notice on how that’ll work.”
In something of an ironic twist, the man who asked the question also seems to be caught in pre-order limbo.
Amazon has just informed me I may not receive my PlayStation 5 pre-order on release day due to “high demand.” pic.twitter.com/3S1ZqmhWKaSeptember 18, 2020
Hopefully, Sony’s promised additional stock will cope with demand, because at the moment, Christmas has come early for scalpers. A search on Ebay for PS5 pre-orders reveals listings of up to $12,500 for confirmed console bundles.
This chaos is good news for Microsoft, which will open its Xbox Series X and S pre-orders at 8 a.m. PT.11 a.m. ET on September 22. While there’s no guarantee that the new Xbox won’t be just as scarce as the PS5, the company may well hope to pick up a few disappointed would be PS5 buyers unless Sony gets its act together very quickly indeed.
