PS5 pre-orders delayed until 2021 for some customers

News
By Phillip Tracy
published

One retailer 'won't be able to fulfill your pre-order until 2021'

(Image credit: Sony)

The nightmare continues for some Sony fans. Those who fought tooth and nail to pre-order a PS5 are now being told that the console won't arrive until 2021.

Video Games Chronicle (VGC) reports some of its readers received notice from GameStop Ireland claiming it "won't be able to fulfill your pre-order until 2021." As a reminder, the PS5 is scheduled to launch on November 12 in the US and November 19 in Ireland, meaning some consoles could be months behind.

Worse yet, the emails being sent out say the delay is "due to circumstances out of our control." The retailer is letting customers decide whether they want to keep their pre-order spot or cancel the pending order. The message promises to send out consoles to those who stay in line "once they become available in future waves."

GameStop Ireland isn't the only retailer notifying customers of potential PS5 delays. As VGC points out, ShopTo, a UK-based retailer, said it couldn't fulfill all pre-orders after receiving allocation info from Sony. 

These reports come days after Amazon told PS5 pre-order customers that they "may not receive this item on the day it is released due to high demand." It sent a similar notice to Xbox Series X customers after Xbox's console went up for pre-orders. 

Amazon didn't specify how long the delays would be or what is causing them. Some speculated it could simply be a matter of shipping issues but these latest reports suggest Sony could be facing serious supply shortages. 

PS5 pre-orders went live on September 16, a day before Sony intended. What followed can only be described as mayhem. Retailers opened pre-orders seemingly at random, leading to an influx of customers who caused sites to crash or stop functioning properly. In the end, pre-orders sold out before many could secure a console. 

The PS5 is set to launch on November 12 in the US before hitting the rest of the world on November 19. The PS5 costs $499 while the PS5 Digital Edition goes for $399. If you want to secure a console, we recommend bookmarking our PS5 pre-order page — just keep in mind that pre-ordering the console doesn't necessarily mean you'll receive it at launch. 

Phillip Tracy
Phillip Tracy

Phillip Tracy is the assistant managing editor at Laptop Mag where he reviews laptops, phones and other gadgets while covering the latest industry news. After graduating with a journalism degree from the University of Texas at Austin, Phillip became a tech reporter at the Daily Dot. There, he wrote reviews for a range of gadgets and covered everything from social media trends to cybersecurity. Prior to that, he wrote for RCR Wireless News covering 5G and IoT. When he's not tinkering with devices, you can find Phillip playing video games, reading, traveling or watching soccer.