Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X Shortage: Where Are They?
If you are anything like me, you probably haven’t gotten your hands on a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X since the highly anticipated released on November 12th, 2020. Nearly 5 months after the initial release day, the demand for these gaming consoles hasn’t faded. As of February 25th, 2021, Sony and their PlayStation 5 has sold roughly 5.21 million units whilst Microsoft and their Xbox Series X has only sold about 2.8 million units. With these relatively small numbers in mind, it begs the question, what is the cause of this shortage?
The causation of the shortage stems from many different sources. One, as you could have guessed, is the dreaded COVID-19 pandemic. This pandemic has not only taken jobs away from millions of Americans across the nation, but it has also slowed the production of these game consoles astronomically. In a recent interview, Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan stated, “Supply chains become a little more complicated than would normally be the case…the pandemic has ravaged many industries, leading to upset production”.
Another source of the shortage is obviously, the demand for the product being so high. Ryan also stated, “Demand is greater than we anticipated. That, along with the complexities of the supply chain issues, resulted in a slightly lower supply than we initially anticipated.” With websites such as BestBuy, Target, Amazon, and Walmart restocking their limited inventory almost weekly, it is still nearly impossible to snag one from the website. These retailers aren’t restocking their shelves with consoles in-store, it is strictly online inventory. Now, the question is, how are you able to obtain a console off of one of these websites? After months and months of research, the only way you will be able to buy a retail console from these websites is through the social media app Twitter. Accounts such as “PS5 In Stock Alerts” and “PS5 Drop (PS5 Restocks 24/7)”, tweet out daily updates on release dates, drop info, and live links to each website with available consoles. The method is, you follow these accounts and turn on tweet notifications so you can be as fast as possible to these websites without a bot doing it for you.
These bots are becoming a serious issue for the demand for these consoles. Like I said before, the best way for you to get your hands on a PlayStation 5 and/or Xbox Series X is through Twitter, these bots have the same idea. People all around the world download bots and buy out as much inventory from the retailer – much faster than any human can. These people can possibly obtain up to 25-30 PlayStations at a time and then resell them for a highly inflated priced. As of right now, you can buy a PlayStation 5 (Disk edition) for a rough $720, nearly $220 over the starting retail price of $500, on StockX.
The final source of these console shortages comes by surprise to most people. In an article written by the videogame informers and experts, GamesRadar, they state, “However, the current semiconductor shortage may be the biggest roadblock facing PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. Wondering why that matters? It’s because these tiny chips prop up the electronics industry. They’re used everywhere; you’ll find them in smartphones TVs, cars, washing machines, graphics cards (like the RTX 3060), and of course, gaming consoles. With that in mind, supply bottlenecks have wreaked havoc on how many PlayStation and Xbox systems can be made. Indeed, the situation has grown so dire that it will be investigated by the US Government after a plea from Sony, Apple, and other market leaders”. As you can conclude, there is a shortage of chips being produced that is critical to the production of these gaming consoles.
I, myself, am not the only one on the hunt for these consoles. Senior, Paddy O’Donnell, avid video game player, stated in a recent interview when asked about his attempts to try and purchase the new Xbox Series X, “My parents tried to get one for me for Christmas and that was a failure. Ever since, I have been checking and reading up on upcoming release dates/shortage updates. Companies like BestBuy and Walmart are very vague when they have new inventory in stock”. Later in the interview, I asked Paddy to tell me about his feelings regarding the shortage of consoles, “I really want the new Series X, the shortage stinks. They are trying to keep them in high demand by releasing few at a time”.
In brighter news, PlayStation CEO, Jim Ryan states that “The PlayStation 5 isn’t expected to be readily available at retailers until the latter half of 2021”, so we only have a couple of months until everyone will be able to obtain the console of their choice.