It seems that amid the next-gen frenzy, PlayStation 5 has joined the Xbox Series X in terms of stock shortages, with no signs of restocking until 2021.
Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan confirmed in a recent interview that Sony’s launch stock of PS5s has entirely run out. In a conversation with the Russian outlet TASS, Ryan claimed that “absolutely everything has been sold”. Retailers are selling out within minutes of the new stock going live, which won’t come as a surprise to anyone attempting to purchase the next-gen console.
However, Ryan has confirmed that Sony is devoting significant efforts into meeting the rapidly growing demand. With all PS5 stock gone, Ryan stated that he will now be “spending a lot more time on trying to increase supply to meet the demand”.
Ryan also suggested that the COVID-19 pandemic had been a huge contributor as to the PS5 stock not quite meeting demand. Ryan followed by praising his manufacturing team who had “worked miracles” to get the new console on the shelves this year. However, they might’ve had “a few more to sell” had the pandemic not struck.
Despite the COVID-19 situation, Sony has managed to pre-sell more next-gen units during the first 12 hours of pre-orders than the PS4 did during its first 12 weeks after launch. Ryan told Reuters that “the demand as expressed by the level of pre-order has been very, very considerable”. We are yet to find out the final sale numbers, as it’s likely that Playstation is gearing up for a huge announcement - but one thing is for sure; we can expect it to be record-breaking.
In a recent tweet, Playstation thanked their customers for making PS5 their biggest launch to date, confirming that inventory will be coming to retailers before the end of the year! So hopefully we won’t have to wait too long for a restock.
We want to thank gamers everywhere for making the PS5 launch our biggest console launch ever. Demand for PS5 is unprecedented, so we wanted to confirm that more PS5 inventory will be coming to retailers before the end of the year - please stay in touch with your local retailers.
— PlayStation (@PlayStation) November 25, 2020
If you’ve been unsuccessful in trying to grab a PS5, then this week’s Black Friday deals could be the silver lining you’ve been looking for, as retailers are hoping to restock in time to meet the demand. It won’t be easy, as you will be fighting against many others who also haven’t been able to get their hands on the PS5 yet. If you miss your chance again, you’ll hopefully have one by early January at the latest.