Are New Gaming Stations a Good Idea?

With new consoles releasing over the course of the last year, the question arises- is any of the fair to the average person, or were these stations made for the elite?

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New Devices

Over the course of 2021, two new major gaming stations were released and sold at what many believe to be outrageous prices. The Playstation 5 and the Xbox series X came to a vending price of $499.99 originally, not including resells, and sold out almost immediately after being placed on shelves.

Shortage

Due to the rapid procurement of both stations, global sell out on the electronics was inevitable- quite unfair to the less fortunate consumers who were unable to obtain one. Both companies failed to or ignored the qualms produced by the upset individuals, still proceeding to sell these consoles at $500 while also maintaining that their stock was extremely limited. Was it a good idea to put these products on shelves yet, or was it a greedy course of action? These major corporations couldn’t have been ignorant to the fallout of low supply and high demand.

New Competition

Now, the most common conception of the consumption of these products consists of others buying them for themselves, whether that be to use or to resell. Unsurprisingly, though, online bots have been set up to buy the consoles before real people are able to. These bots work by constantly scanning the websites of retailers so they can obtain the console at the beginning of a sale ahead of other buyers. They then provide the scalper with all of the relevant information, including the retailer’s website, price, available stock and SKU number. Not only are human beings fighting for these new consoles with one another, but robots have risen as our competitors.

Unfortunately, the gaming industry isn’t as accessible to those who don’t have the time or money to purchase the latest console, especially as prices of everything rise. Major video game and console producers would certainly benefit from better serving their customers in a way that allows them to enjoy their games regardless of class.