The Playstation 5 is making a comeback in recent weeks with numerous restockings at French retailers. Good news largely related to the arrival of FIFA 23 packs and a new model.
[Updated October 5, 2022 at 10:12 a.m.] For just under two years, the Playstation 5 has been at the center of attention, victim of permanent stock shortages. A complicated situation since this next-gen console from Sony remains the preferred choice of the French, resulting in extremely strong demand while the supply remains desperately low. But there are times when the PS5 makes more frequent appearances on retailer sites, and these next few weeks just happen to be one of them. We explain why in this article, but before, here is the follow-up of the restockings of the day live.
Obtaining a new Playstation 5 at factory prices requires a good dose of patience, and flawless monitoring of daily restocking at different retailers. If the console is back in stock, then it must be purchased as soon as possible, facing stiff competition and high demand. If this waltz of restocking weighs on you, you always have the option of looking for a resale or used console. Its price will inevitably be impacted, resellers being aware of the value of the console, but there are sometimes quite interesting offers, like those just above. As a reminder, the base price of the PS5 is €549 for the Standard version and €449 for the Digital version.
Sources close to Sony recently announced that the company is aiming for 30 million Playstation 5s produced for the fiscal year 2023 (between July 2022 and June 2023). An obvious response to the shortages which greatly handicap its sales, while the console remains the first choice of a large part of the players, far ahead of its competitor the Xbox Series X. This announcement comes to us from the webjournal InsiderGaming, which affirms that the company is currently in the process of producing a new model of the console with a detachable disc player.
Buying a Playstation 5 has almost become a discipline in its own right. The home console market has changed a lot since the coronavirus pandemic, due to numerous shortages which greatly impact their production. Since November 2020, the date of the release of the PS5 and the Xbox Series X, Internet users have been snapping up the rare console stocks at gold prices. Restocking of new consoles is rare and in high demand, hence the need to react immediately in the event of restocking. In order to help you in your quest for PS5, we have prepared our top ten tips for a quick and successful purchase.
But that’s not all, the console would also have entered a new stage of its existence since Sony would be developing a brand new model. This model would have the particularity of having a fully removable disk drive, making it a hybrid between the Standard version and the Digital version. Of course, this copy of the PS5 should not appear on the market for a few months, and we imagine that its price would be higher than that of the PS5 Standard, given the versatility of its new model.
If the summer lacked bad news, here is another one that will greatly displease video game players. Sony has made the decision to increase the selling price of the Playstation 5 by just over 10% in certain regions of the world. De facto, the console sees the price of its Standard version go from 499 to 549 € and its Digital version from 399 to 449 €. An increase justified by Jim Ryan in a Playstation Blog article (Jim Ryan is the CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment) by the climate of global inflation.
This increase is effective immediately in the affected regions, namely the United Kingdom, Europe, Australia, Mexico, Canada, China and Japan. Only spared, the United States. In the blog post announcing the price increase, Sony said: “The global economic environment is challenging for many of you around the world. You can see high inflation rates and currency curves hostile environment, impacting the lives of consumers and creating great pressure on many industries. Based on these economic conditions, SIE has made the difficult decision to increase the selling price of the Playstation 5 in certain markets in Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific, Latin America and Canada.” Jim Ryan, CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment
Side gamers, difficult to swallow the pill, an increase of 10% remains consistent, despite the justifications of Sony. The Japanese company claims to follow the evolution of the market, in strong inflation since the coronavirus pandemic and the start of the War in Ukraine. The company claims to put the interests of consumers first, and is trying to maintain its margin on the production of Playstation 5, which is undoubtedly more expensive since the price increase of various raw materials.
The quantity of consoles available on the market is also the subject of the last paragraph of Jim Ryan’s blog post, which states “While this price increase is a necessity given the global economic climate and its impact on SIE, our primary goal remains to improve the supply of PS5s around the world, so that as many players as possible can enjoy all that the PS5 has and will offer in the future.” It should be noted that the year 2022 saw the best supply side on the French market, while experts expect a return to normal by 2024.
On the other hand, there is one who is likely to smile after this announcement. And yes, it is the Xbox Series. The official competitor of the Playstation 5 retains its original selling price for the moment, giving it a clear advantage over the Japanese console. The Xbox Series S can therefore always be found at 300 € while its big sister the Xbox Series X keeps its selling price of 500 €. A price difference that could well capsize the hearts of some buyers in favor of the American console. That said, it is not excluded that Microsoft announces such an increase in the coming months.
Since its release in November 2020, the Playstation 5 has been permanently out of stock. A situation largely due to the coronavirus pandemic, and the impact of health protocols on the production of electronic chips. Indeed, in Southeast Asia, the leading region producing semiconductor metals, the coronavirus has hit various industries hard, forcing them to slow down their production. Since then, it has been difficult for international trade to resume a normal pace, and difficult for Sony to maintain PS5 production at the height of strong demand.
If you are waiting for an estimate as to the return to normal of the home console market, be aware that forecasts vary from one semester to another. The most recent comes to us from Pat Gelsinger, the CEO of Intel, who estimated in an interview with CNBC that a return to normal could occur in 2024. A fair enough prediction for industry professionals, who remain on fairly pessimistic opinions for the end of 2022 beginning of 2024.
