Walmart Has A Serious PS5 Problem On Its Hands
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Scalpers ruin almost everything at some point, including "Pokemon." Earlier in 2021, scalpers were one of the biggest problems in players' quests to find next gen consoles, making it nearly impossible for ordinary customers to find and purchase PS5s and the Xbox X|S consoles. Scalpers made an astonishing amount of money on their efforts to snatch up all the available next-gen systems, and even though many scalpers feel they've been "unfairly maligned" in media depictions of the next-gen releases, they continue to become more creative in their attempts to bypass stores' security measures. The latest in a long line of scalping fiascos has occurred at big box chain Walmart, where scalpers are attempting to sell PS5s at an extreme markup.
Walmart has begun allowing customers to resell PlayStation 5s through its website, and scalpers are doing so — at a steep price. One listing for the PlayStation 5 disc edition listed it as "PlayStation 5 C0NS0LE." To most, that might seem like a normal listing, but upon careful inspection the world "console" uses zeroes instead of letters, tricking Walmart's website and customers in the process. While the original page has since been taken down, Game Rant noted that the "C0NS0LE" was priced at $1,299. For those keeping up at home, that's more than double the listing price of a new PlayStation 5.
Delays, shortages, and high prices
These listings seem to be from third party sellers, but Walmart.com doesn't offer much information on who exactly is selling these marked up consoles. Other online retailers, like Amazon, don't currently show such inflated prices. Amazon's PS5 listing indicates that the console isn't available, but it doesn't include listings at exorbitant prices from third party sellers. Walmart, on the other hand, has seen more than one console listed at double the original price (or more).
Earlier this year, players got the worst news about PS5 supply chains. Despite promises of more stock in 2021, retailers are having a hard time predicting when they'll get more PS5s. Sony has claimed that a lack of crucial manufacturing components and a massive demand for the next-gen console means that players might not be able to buy a PS5 until 2022.
At the time of publishing, Walmart has not yet commented on the expensive PS5s floating around its site. Importantly, it appears that Walmart is still cracking down on scalpers as quickly as possible. With one scalper's listing already removed from the site, others may soon follow.