The CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) Jim Ryan has stated in an interview that not everyone who wants the PlayStation 5 on launch may be able to get it, due to high pre-order demand.
Speaking to Reuters, Ryan stated many stores selling pre-orders of the PlayStation 5 sold out in the US in the first 12 hours. “The demand as expressed by the level of pre-order has been very, very considerable,” Ryan stated. “It may well be that not everybody who wants to buy a PS5 on launch day will be able to find one.”
Ryan added SIE was “working as hard as we ever can” to meet supply demands for the Christmas and Holiday season. Reuters also report that Sony had reported (in Reuters’ words) a “jump” in quarterly profit, with the PlayStation 5 expected to be the first next-gen console to not cause a loss for SIE during its launch year.
“AAA game development is an incredibly complicated and difficult thing to do,” Ryan explained, adding that Sony had “learned many lessons over many years.” This lead to improving the PlayStation 5 lineup.
Sony are also reportedly planning to expand the studio organically. However Ryan noted “where we can bolster our in-house capability with selective M&A that might be possible.”
As more people game thanks to quarantine orders due to the coronavirus pandemic, some have questioned how this will play out in the long term; something analyts have questioned as Reuters reports. There have also been concerns about games in development, especially in the initial stages.
Ryan explained that “We’re definitely looking upwards and thinking that we can do better than we thought we could […] The initial concerns about the impact on the 2021, 2022 roster were really legitimate but are probably slightly assuaged now.”
The PlayStation 5 will launch November 12th in the US, Japan, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, and South Korea. For the rest of the world, it will launch November 19th. The PlayStation 5 will cost $499.99 USD, while the Digital Edition will cost $399.99 USD.
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