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As a child, David Wales stood in line with one of his parents as midnight approached, so he could be among the first to get his hands on the all-new gaming console.
“I’ve been playing games since I was 4 … it’s just something I’ve always done and still feel like something I’ll always do,” said Wales, 34, of Texas, about setting up gambling systems when they release.
But this year, in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, Wales bought its console online and picked it up from a physical store to avoid waiting in long lines.
The PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X consoles have been the first to be released by Sony and Microsoft, respectively, for more than half a decade. With the coronavirus forcing people into isolation and hungry for new entertainment, the launches seem to have come at an ideal time – especially as new outbreaks of cases appear across the country.
“Most people shouldn’t go out to bars and hang out and so on,” Wales said. “The game therefore offers this opportunity to connect people socially.”
While the Xbox Series X was available for purchase in stores, Sony decided to launch the PlayStation 5 exclusively online on Thursday to prevent the potential coronavirus from spreading among a crush of in-person consumers trying to buy the system.
Sony urged customers not to “plan to camp or queue at your local retailer on launch day in the hopes of finding a PS5 console to buy,” according to a statement from Sony Interactive Entertainment’s communications director, Sid Shuman. “Be careful, stay home and place your order online.”
But that warning didn’t stop Xbox Series X customers from leaving when the console went on sale Tuesday. On social networks, people sharing pictures and stories to wait in line to get your hands on the new console. However, stores would have a limited number of consoles.
Historically, any company’s first batch of consoles can be bogged down by frustrating and sometimes unplayable bugs and other issues, leaving some gamers hesitant to spend hundreds of dollars on what could be a defective product on the day of the game. launch.
Wales recalled previous issues in early consoles, such as the “Red Screen of Death” on the PlayStation 2, which was a screen that would appear if an owner inserted an unreadable disc, and the “Red Ring of Death” on the Xbox 360, when the light around the start button turned red, indicating that the console had a major hardware error.
Some on social media had shared alleged issues with their new consoles. Some videos shared alleging their Xbox Series X was running loud or having issues getting their disc drive to accept the disc – standard launch day bugs that can sometimes take gamers away.
“We take all product safety reports seriously and our products meet or exceed industry standards. The findings of our original investigations do not match some of the widely reported allegations, but we are investigating further, ”a Microsoft spokesperson said in an email to NBC News.
At least one bug was reported with the PlayStation 5 on Friday in which games would get stuck in the download queue. According to IGN, who reported the issue, the only apparent way to fix the bug is a factory reset, which reverts the device to its original factory settings. Sony has yet to fix the bug, according to IGN.
“When you’re one of the early adopters, it usually applies to all technologies. You’re usually used to it and already accept that there will be flaws or that there will be the hiccups, ”Wales said.
However, if pre-order sales of the consoles are any indication, it looks like gamers are allaying their bug fears on launch day. In October, Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan said that PlayStation 5 pre-orders sold as many consoles in the United States in the first 12 hours as the PlayStation 4 did in its first 12 weeks on sale, according to Reuters. Sony declined to specify the number of pre-orders sold. Microsoft did not immediately return a request for its number.
“There is always a risk factor in buying a company’s first set of products, but these companies have been in the game for a long time,” said Laine Nooney, assistant professor of media and information industries at the company. ‘New York University. “Sony and Microsoft recognize that a reputation for bugs can ruin word of mouth and is likely to be above any potential problems.”
Even with apprehension surrounding the launch system issues, on social media, fans like Tim Gettys, who took the plunge and bought the consoles, were mostly booming.
“Today we have our FOURTH generation Xbox. Don’t mind me … just a moment. I love video games and love that just thinking about them can make me emotional. ” Gettys tweeted, co-founder of the online entertainment company Kinda Funny. “Here’s another amazing console cycle.”
Fans who bought the Xbox Series X said they couldn’t put the controller down.
“I’ve been playing Xbox Series X most of the day, love that it works so well and everything looks so clean, you don’t really notice it until you get a new console, but now is the time to watch Howls Moving Castle ”, another person tweeted.
Those who bought the PlayStation 5 said their weekends would be spent learning about the new console.
“Woo! The PS5 is here and my PS4 data is being transferred! I can’t wait to start playing Spider-Man!” tweeted another, referencing the highly anticipated PlayStation 5 game Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales.
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