The launch of next-gen consoles across the globe is going to be a bigger nightmare than initially thought. We already talked about how Sony themselves have refused to allow in-store sales of PS5 consoles. Various UK retailers opted to follow a similar policy. in the UK it was due to a government order mandating another nationwide lockdown in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Various retailers in the nation had to amend policies to only allow in-store pre-orders to be honored.
And now it looks like the US is following a similar path. Major US retailers have implemented similar policies to UK stores, all of their own accords. Walmart and Best Buy have announced purchase plans for next-gen consoles will have to be altered. Anyone looking to purchase a PS5 or Xbox Series X/S will have to do so online, as in-store stock will not be available.
Walmart laid out plans for rotating in-stock times for both consoles. Xbox Series X/S consoles will be open for sale on November 10, at 12 PM ET. The PS5 will come online at 12 PM ET on November 12, with new stocks being made available every three hours until 9 PM that day.
Best Buy has announced similar plans on their website. Xbox Series X and S will arrive on November 10 and PlayStation 5 arrives on November 12. Best Buy has not revealed stocking times, but they did clarify that this will be a long-term plan, through at least the holiday season for 2020. And depending on how the pandemic that caused this goes, possibly well into 2021.
Both in-store and curbside pick up options will be supported for both launch days it looks like, so grab it online and pick it up in-store later. You may have to wait for shipping times though.
This all happens in the same week where the US elections for 2020 just completed voting, and the US President Donald Trump continues to insist his opponents are stealing the election with fraudulent voting, something that no evidence has been presented of. But that’s not all, the United States just set a new record for daily new COVID-19 cases in 24 hours, for the second time this month, with more than 120,000. Suffice to say that this week is a chaotic mess.
