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The PlayStation 5 launch has been a bumpy one, not least with plenty of issues from both online and brick and mortar retailers over the past week as they struggle to meet demand for the new console.
However, a report from Business Insider (spotted by Video Games Chronicle) has indicated that a big part of the issues have stemmed from scalping groups using botting software designed to purchase the consoles as fast as possible, with a UK based group going by the name CrepChiefNotify claiming to have gotten their hands on nearly 3500 consoles—1000 of those when Sony opened pre-orders back in September, and 2,472 consoles on launch day ready to sell on at sites such as eBay.
A manager for the group known only as 'Tom' said to Business Insider that their group was "watching all the sites for when they drop stock" almost as soon as England announced it was going into a national lockdown a couple of weeks prior to the launch. He also said that the bots were originally used for grabbing other high-demand products such as sneakers, and told the report: "Bot developers have seen the demand rise for next-gen consoles and have changed their focus from being sneaker focused bots into multi-use bots for electronics too."
Of course, scalpers aren't anything new — but hopefully there'll be some word soon from Sony about their plans to ensure more consoles get to stores to try and meet the demand for the PlayStation 5 following its launch last week. We're big fans of the console ourselves; you can read our verdict on the machine over here.
