It should come as no surprise that the PS5 is sold out everywhere. Staggering demand has made the new console nearly impossible to buy since the first batch of pre-order units disappeared within minutes.
Now we have confirmation that, and I'll use Sony's own words here, "Everything is sold. Absolutely everything is sold."
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That is what Jim Ryan, the CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment, told the Russian news agency TASS. He went on to explain that his focus has shifted from promoting the PS5 to ensuring there is enough supply to meet demand.
"I’ve spent much of the last year trying to be sure that we can generate enough demand for the product," Ryan said. "And now in terms of my executive bandwidth, I’m spending a lot more time on trying to increase supply to meet that demand."
That task has been complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic. As Ryan noted, prior to production, all the manufacturing preparation had to be done remotely in video conferences.
The PS5 launch has been, in one word, disastrous. Those who haven't secured a console don't need a reminder, but it's worth reiterating the terrible execution of this crucial release. Back in September, Sony revealed the price and release date of the PS5 in a video showcase but failed to mention when pre-orders would go live (even after saying the pre-order date would be made explicit to customers).
The company scrambled to get that info out, posting on Twitter that pre-orders would go up the next day. Instead, retailers jumped the gun, releasing pre-orders at random. Sites crashed, customers (understandably) raged, and the console immediately sold out.
Retailers have since scheduled drops, or small batches of PS5s, but getting one hasn't been any easier. Scalper bots are seemingly buying up consoles and selling them on resale sites like eBay at exorbitant prices.
The result? Angry gamers. As it stands, the PS5 and PS5 Digital Edition have a 2.5-star rating on Walmart.com, and that has little to do with the quality of the product (as we highlighted in our PS5 review).
One more chance to get a PS5
Despite what Ryan said about the PS5 being sold out everywhere, there is one last sliver of hope for customers in the US.
Walmart has another PS5 drop scheduled for November 25 at 9pm ET / 8pm CT / 6pm PT. Both the regular PS5 and PS5 Digital Edition will be made available to purchase at that time (see links).
As someone who tried to secure a console in the most recent Walmart PS5 sale, I advice you to not get your hopes up. I reached the final "Place Your Order" page three times only to get a "Sold Out" notification before the transaction went through.
You should still give it a shot, as this might be the last chance to get a PS5 in 2020, but don't be surprised when the site crashes and the console disappears within seconds. Good luck!
