Big PlayStation 5, Xbox disappointment on the cards

It looks like gamers might not be able to walk into a store and pick up a PlayStation 5 console until the second half of 2022, according to PS5 and Xbox supplier AMD.

Both PlayStation 5 and Xbox customers looking at buying consoles may not have an easy time. (Robin Sinha/HT Tech)

The PlayStation 5 or PS5 restock has been on most gamers minds for over a year and a half, since the novel coronavirus pandemic began. Buying a PS5 console has been nearly impossible, due to very limited supply and ‘scalpers' ensuring that the consoles go out of stock almost as soon as a fresh supply arrives. With more countries emphasising social distancing to prevent the spread of the virus, the demand for gaming has increased, but supply of the PS5 consoles has remained extremely tight.

The short supply of Sony PS5 consoles around the world is thanks in part to the global semiconductor shortage that has affected nearly every industry that relies on chips from automobile manufacturers to smartphone and tablet OEMs. Supply chains have also been affected by the pandemic, worsening the situation and making these gaming consoles a coveted commodity. ‘Scalpers' are also notorious for buying up large quantities of the PlayStation 5 and Xbox consoles and then reselling them at much higher prices.

According to AMD CEO Lisa Su, chip supplies will be”likely tight” for the first half of 2022. CNBC reports that the AMD CEO believes that the global shortage could be less severe in the second half of the year, thanks to new manufacturing plants that companies started investing in a year ago. “It might take, you know, 18 to 24 months to put on a new plant, and in some cases even longer than that,” Su said at the Code Conference in California on Monday.

Those looking to buy the latest Xbox consoles might not have an easy time either. Xbox executive VP Phil Spencer previously stated that console supplies could continue all the way into 2022, and that there were other reasons for the company being unable to get more Xbox Series X/S consoles in stores, aside from the global chip shortage.

It looks like gamers will have another long wait ahead of them before they are able to buy their favourite console from a neighbourhood store.