Pre-orders for PlayStation open early, sparking buying frenzy that left many retailers sold out

Sony announced pricing and release dates for its PlayStation 5 Wednesday and retailers opened pre-orders of the console one day earlier than expected – creating a buying frenzy among the gaming community.

Gamers around the world ran to their computers, smartphones and tablets to reserve a console, but many were met with broken links, page time outs and the dreaded ‘out of stock’ message.

Major retailers including Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop and Walmart were all sold out within hours, some even in minutes.

The PlayStation 5 was not the only technology up for grabs, as Nivida’s new RTX 3080 graphics card went on sale Thursday, but was also sold out in minutes.

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Sony announced pricing and release dates for its PlayStation 5 Wednesday and opened pre-orders one day early shortly after the event – creating a buying frenzy in the gaming community

Many gamers flocked to Twitter to share their frustrations, with some saying the technologies were mostly bought up by bots or people looking to flip the console for more than what it costs.

PlayStation 5 pre-orders were not set to open until Thursday, September 17, as the gaming system shared a tweet shortly after the event: ‘PS5 pre-orders will be available starting as early as tomorrow at select retailers.’

However, many retailers seemed to jump the gun and offer the gaming console earlier- even without having any physical systems.

GameStop shared a news release stating it was now taking pre-orders for the PS5 Wednesday evening and quickly ran out of stock.

Major retailers including Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop and Sony itself were all sold out within hours, some even in minutes

Major retailers including Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop and Sony itself were all sold out within hours, some even in minutes

GameStop shared a news release stating it was now taking pre-orders for the PS5 Wednesday evening and quickly ran out of stock

GameStop shared a news release stating it was now taking pre-orders for the PS5 Wednesday evening and quickly ran out of stock

Target has also sold out and is encouraging consumers to check back on the official release date of November 12. Best Buy is out of stock and lists ‘coming soon’ on its website, while Walmart’s website notes it should have more in stock on September 22

Target has also sold out and is encouraging consumers to check back on the official release date of November 12. Best Buy is out of stock and lists ‘coming soon’ on its website, while Walmart’s website notes it should have more in stock on September 22

Target has also sold out and is encouraging consumers to check back on the official release date of November 12.

Best Buy is out of stock and lists ‘coming soon’ on its website, while Walmart’s website notes it should have more in stock on September 22.

Pre-orders were gone in what seems to be minutes on Amazon, leaving many customers with an error message or telling them they missed getting the console in the first release.

Users ran to Twitter when they could not secure console, telling the world of their frustrations.

Users ran to Twitter when they could not secure console, telling the world of their frustrations. One user by the name of ‘Roy’ wrote in a tweet: ‘PlayStation pre-orders are sold out everywhere, I gotta be on my A-game next wave' - but some places are already sold out for the next release

Users ran to Twitter when they could not secure console, telling the world of their frustrations. One user by the name of ‘Roy’ wrote in a tweet: ‘PlayStation pre-orders are sold out everywhere, I gotta be on my A-game next wave’ – but some places are already sold out for the next release 

Jason Celso was also unable to secure the gaming console, but is hopefully to have better luck pre-ordering the Xbox Series X

Jason Celso was also unable to secure the gaming console, but is hopefully to have better luck pre-ordering the Xbox Series X

However, it seems those who beat the rush and pre-ordered a PS5 are already trying to ‘flip them on Amazon and Ebay’ for a higher cost

However, it seems those who beat the rush and pre-ordered a PS5 are already trying to ‘flip them on Amazon and Ebay’ for a higher cost

One user by the name of ‘Roy’ wrote in a tweet: ‘PlayStation pre-orders are sold out everywhere, I gotta be on my A-game next wave.’

Jason Celso was also unable to secure the gaming console, but is hopefully to have better luck pre-ordering the Xbox Series X.

However, it seems those who beat the rush and pre-ordered a PS5 are already trying to ‘flip them on Amazon and Ebay’ for a higher cost.

PlayStation was not the only technology that sold out.

Gamers around the world ran to their computers, smartphones and tablets to reserve a console, but many were met with broken links, page time outs and the dreaded ‘out of stock’ message

Gamers around the world ran to their computers, smartphones and tablets to reserve a console, but many were met with broken links, page time outs and the dreaded ‘out of stock’ message

PlayStation was not the only technology that sold out. Nividia’s RTX 3080 graphics card went on sale early Thursday for $699 and was gone within minutes of its release at major retailers like Amazon, Best Buy and the firm’s own website

PlayStation was not the only technology that sold out. Nividia’s RTX 3080 graphics card went on sale early Thursday for $699 and was gone within minutes of its release at major retailers like Amazon, Best Buy and the firm’s own website

People formed lines outside certain retailers last night with the hopes of getting their hands on one. 'Bread For Congress,' a twitter user, shared a thread saying she started standing in line 12 hours before the release

At first they were not one of the first 10 in line, but more than 14 hours later 'Bread for Congress' shared she had purchased the RTX 3080 graphics card

People formed lines outside certain retailers last night with the hopes of getting their hands on one. ‘Bread For Congress,’ a twitter user, shared a thread saying she started standing in line 12 hours before the release. However, the gamer was able to get her hands on one

Nividia’s RTX 3080 graphics card went on sale early Thursday for $699 and was gone within minutes of its release at major retailers like Amazon, Best Buy and the firm’s own website.

Twitter user ‘TmarTn’ wrote in a tweet: ‘3080 sold out faster than the PS5 lmao. It’s a great stressful time to be a gamer.’

People formed lines outside certain retailers last night with the hopes of getting their hands on one.

‘Bread For Congress,’ a twitter user, shared a thread saying she started standing in line 12 hours before the release, just to find out the story only had 10 cards.

At first they were not one of the first 10 in line, but more than 14 hours later ‘Bread for Congress’ shared she had purchased the RTX 3080 graphics card.