The Saga of My PS5 Launch

 

Oh man, the PlayStation 5 (PS5) is out now! Hooray! The new age of gaming has arrived and I couldn't be more happier to give impressions...if only I could find one. I've been interested in the PS5 since I saw the Demon's Souls Remake trailer so many moons ago. It was a huge surprise and I would love to relive the magic that started my FromSoftware fandom from 10 years ago. The game looks downright beautiful and with the slate of games coming down the pipeline (*cough* looking at you Final Fantasy 16), I thought it would be great to get one at launch.

But boy, was I an idiot to think this was going to be anything less of a nightmare.

I don't recall if I ever posted my experience in getting a Nintendo Wii way back in 2006. While it was a long day, it was a very seamless experience especially since pre-orders weren't done for the system at the time. I had to wait 18 hours in line but, with my friends, it was more of an extended hang out than anything else. So I'm not stranger to camp outs and day one launches but before I go into the crapshoot of launch the PS5 was, I'd like to go back to the pre-order fiasco in September when Sony announced their new system's release date. 

September 16th, 2020 - Date Reveal Trailer

Obviously with a pandemic going around, a lot of concessions had to be made with hardware companies and the release of their new products. Since a lot of manufacturing and supply chain operations were either shutdown or operating at reduced capacity, I'm sure getting units to stores was a challenge. However, both Sony and Microsoft assured consumers they would be able to produce a good amount, supposedly enough for the ensuing demand. There was even a video or an interview with Sony about how they have these cool automated lines that can produce millions of PlayStation a year. A lot of the PR seemed good. The biggest issue was that Sony hadn't provided a release date before this day and all eyes were on this trailer to know when people could get their hands on the system.

So the trailer comes out and forty-five minutes later the date is revealed. The Playstation 5 would be released November 12th and pre-orders would go live on September 17th (the next day!). 

Knowing that the pre-orders would go live soon, I planned to wake up early and sniff around for pre-orders. I prepared. I had Amazon and Best Buy windows open. I had the PlayStation website open and also gave some love to Target. Much to my chagrin, Wal-Mart decided it would be great to start pre-orders right after the trailer went live. This led to all other retailers to follow suit. By the time I woke up to check the site, all pre-orders were sold out. 

But after reading of the public outcry of Sony's PR debacle, I started to realize a more insidious system in place. It wasn't just that so many people that were interesting in getting a pre-orders, but it was the people who subscribed to bot services that were nabbing up several units at a time so they can upsell them later on eBay.  

I knew I'd have to wait until launch day but that's when...

October 16th (or 20th?), 2020 - The Second Wave

Can't remember the exact date, but there was news of a second wave of pre-orders. There was no guarantee they'd come on launch day, but it was a way to secure a unit without having to worry about the months of drought ahead (or worrying about going to a store on launch day with a pandemic going around). 

The entire second wave was a wash. Bots snatched these up quickly and only a few were able to get through to any big name retailer sites. The thing with bots is that they not only snatch up multiple units at a time but they also slow down the website for human users. This makes it almost impossible for regular users to push through the multiple screens at checkout. 

At this point. I didn't even bother. I knew things were going to be difficult and thought it would be best to save my energy closer to launch. 

October 30th, 2020 - The Plan

Boss told me that I didn't take enough vacation during the year and should try to plan some in the next coming months. With that said, why not take November 12th off? At the very least, I'd have a break. 

But knowing that I had time off made the interest turn into an obsession...

November 11th, 2020 - Minutes to Midnight

Showtime! I logged into Wal-Mart, Best Buy, PlayStation direct, Amazon, and Target. Made sure all my information was accurate and had my payment methods saved. I wanted to make sure nothing could go wrong when I am staying up late trying to mash the checkout buttons. I had every page open by 8:30pm and just waited. And refreshed. And waited. And refreshed. I thought that since it would technically be "tomorrow" on the east coast at 9pm PST, I made sure to focus around that time. 

After a few arduous minutes (yeah, I know, it was minutes, but I was constantly refreshing), I found stock on target for in-store pick up the next day. This was a dream come true. I picked my closest target added the system to my cart and was ready to check out. The only issue was that target just HAD to confirm my PIN for my target card. 

That's when the errors started coming. First it said my CV code (3 digits) was not correct, but the only field to input was my PIN (4 digits). I knew that with a launch like this it could be that the errors were happening on Target's side and not mine. So I kept trying to click the save button. Then I started getting weird errors that said I had too much money on my gift card. I didn't use a gift card and what's wrong with having too much money? That's when my heart sank, because the poor Target website/app had crashed. I quickly switched over to the PayPal option but that was a rookie mistake. The PayPal option required me to enter into too many screens and eventually the availability of the system was gone. 

Strike 1....

So I kept my refreshing up until midnight. Midnight might be when most local stores launch the system and since most of it was to either be shipped or picked up, the release would be online. 

Target availability magically appeared again. I got it back in my cart but sadly the same error. I was too slow. I was not robotic enough. There was nothing I could do. It was removed again from my cart and my heart sank even further.

Strike 2....

That's when I heard PlayStation direct had orders. I immediately switched gears and headed over to the site. Somehow I bypassed the one hour queue wait time (maybe because I logged in early) and immediately got a system in my cart. Great this could be it! Everything loaded smoothly, I could enter everything I needed and I had already saved my info in my account. I got to the payment screen and then, BAM! The hype train halted as it asked for my payment info again. No problem, I thought, I'll just enter it again and be done with it. The entire page let me input information except for the friggin credit card number!! Could do anything. I waited and tried to proceed because I thought it would refresh that section of the form. Nothing. I did the dreaded thing and finally refreshed the page and I was out...again.

Strike 3....Y'errrrr ouuttta here!

I gave up. Decided that I was done for the day. It was around 1:30am and I needed sleep. Wal-Mart still had their weird staggered online release schedule for the 12th and there was still the option of Costco since they don't pre-order or pre-release anything. 

So I slept. I did not dream.

November 12th, 2020 - Launch Day

So I woke up around 6am and immediately went to my computer. I didn't bother thinking of going to a store since Sony said that retailers would not be holding an in-store launch. Decided to first go with the safer option and checked Costco. Found the listing and the picture said "out of stock" clicked it anyways and it went to the page. The "add to cart" button was blue and ready for the taking.

Here...we...go!

I panicked and started clicking everywhere on the page. Mistyped my information, forgot a number on my address (even though it was saved already! What's with these sites!?). But eventually stumbled to a checkout page. The only uncertainty I had was that Costco sold a bundle for a 140 bucks over the console listing price. But since it came with things I could use, I didn't really feel too bad about it. 

The moment of truth. I hit submit and waited as the little loading circle spun and spun until what seemed like eternity had passed. I had done it! I secured a unit! I can't wait until- ships on November 23rd??- to play it. 

That's fine, I can wait. I'm a grown, man...

No, I can't!

Don't get me wrong, I'm elated that I even got one to begin with. But with the way this saga has gone on, there is no guarantee that I will get one. Costco could have easily oversold or there could be a glitch. I could not have it ship or get lost somewhere. Who knows. The saga is only over when the system is in my car. 

So I continued to monitor. I tried the Wal-Mart staggered release and that was more of the same. I was able to get the system into my cart but couldn't check out. Imagine being in the store and putting something in your cart and then the cash register person tells you it's not there. IT IS THERE, MARTHA, DO YOU HAVE EYES? DO YOU NEED NEW GLASSES? But sadly when the camera focuses back on your cart in this suspense horror film you've been living for the past twenty four hours, the system is not there. Did you imagine it? Was it all in your mind? What's the going rate for a good therapist?

This happened to me on Wal-Mart. Every. Single. Time. I even tried to let the system in the cart until the next batch released, but nope. The site would just crash. 

PlayStation Direct again. Same issue as last time. Try again tomorrow they say. Sure Sony. I will. You bet I will. 

November 13th, 2020 - Technically Still Launch Day

So I know I've already got my Costco PS5 ordered, but like I said, not sure if it'll ship until it ships. 

So I tried to look into something called www.popfindr.com. A friend pointed out to me that it has a good chance of showing the stock of certain stores on high demand items. It was originally created for those Pop! figurines, but I guess it expanded. So I looked into Target and it showed many local Targets with PS5s still in stock...odd...the Target app shows that everything is unavailable. 

So I do research. I find out that Targets are having a semi-launch event the day after launch. Which is weird but okay. With Covid-19 restrictions, I thought most stores wouldn't allow camp-outs. So my plan was to wake up early and just chill in the parking lot.

My understanding of the world is wrong. 

I wake up at 6am and think two hours would be enough to scope the target and "wait in line" without causing any suspicion. Boy, was a I wrong. There were only 12 units supposedly available at this Target. But over 15 people were standing in line since before 12:30am this morning. So I waited just in case they had more in stock. But the funniest part was when someone cut in line and caused a tussle. A fight almost broke out over a damn video game console and the Target lady was close to sending everyone home. I kind of wanted to see it happen since I wasn't going to get one anyways. Turns out most Targets had camp outs all over the city.

And that was that. Nothing much left in trying to track one down. I'll still check sites from time to time but I'm just going to pray I keep my Costco order and maybe take some time off after Thanksgiving to enjoy my system.

I hope whoever reads this had a better experience than I did. I feel like trying to get Comic-Con tickets is a lot easier than any of this. 

Also, bots suck. 

I get the appeal and the logic of reselling high demand items, but this is just too much. The issue is that people feed into the scalper economy and it just becomes a vicious cycle. I hope we find a better way to purchase electronics in the future., but until then. We're stuck with bots.