Scalping has been a problem since what feels like time immemorial, but lately, scalpers have been using an arsenal of bots and work-arounds that exacerbate the problem far more than one rude customer buying out the stock of figurines at a local GameStop. Anyone who’s tried to get their hands on a limited-run collector’s edition of a game or figurine in recent years has probably crashed into the aftersale market at some point, where scalpers roam wild and the prices get wilder. The conventional wisdom for non-scalpers trying to get their hands on limited items they can’t miss has lately just been “get up early and do it in person”.
So what are we going to do now, when large swathes of people gathering outside physical game retailers isn’t so hot an idea? With both Microsoft and Sony’s next-generation console releases right around the corner, the pre-order problem seems ready to rear its ugly head. We’ve already seen extreme console demand and scalping this year - getting your hands on a Switch in spring this year was hellish - so what can we expect for the launching of the PS5 and Xbox Series X? And, more importantly, what are Sony and Microsoft going to do if pre-orders turn sour?
We already expect that they’ll have a one-per household limit, but if that quantity-per-household measure worked out so perfectly, scalping wouldn’t be anywhere near the issue it is currently in the first place. It is not only the bare minimum of what they’ll need to do; it’s also the equivalent of trying to use a band-aid to hold together a tectonic fault line. Put bluntly, it won’t stop the worst offenders, especially if people can still pre-order through other places such as GameStop or Target. Even less technically advanced scalpers could amass more consoles than they need (read: more than one) if that’s the extent of their efforts to stop quick-turnaround resale.
While it’s directed more at concert ticket scalping, this website provides a bit of an overview on how automated scalping bots work, and why they’re such a problem. Sony and Microsoft could attempt to mitigate reselling by only offering their product through their own storefronts (highly unlikely, and a potential cause of backlash among retailers they sell their games through), but in all likelihood, they’re going to have to think outside the box for this problem, or we’re all going to have to suffer the consequences. Well, that’s not entirely true - since Microsoft and Sony are getting paid no matter what happens, we guess they technically don’t have to care, do they?
Loathe as we are to say it, until Microsoft or Sony announces some more proactive measures against this scamming, it’s uncertain how long gamers who don’t snag a pre-order might have to be ready to wait to pay the actual, legitimate price for their console of choice in a worst-case scenario.
NEXT: My PS5/Xbox Series X SSD Is Going To Get Filled With F2P Games On Day 1
