Microsoft’s next-gen consoles, the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, are anticipated to sell out this year. The shortage appears to be so severe that even Xbox head Phil Spencer has issued an apology for it.
In a recent interview, Spencer confirmed that the demand for the Xbox Series X/S will undoubtedly surpass supply. He also revealed that the next-gen console shortage will last for at least a few months after its launch.
The PC as well as the next-gen consoles are one of today’s most prominent gaming devices of this era. Thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, gamers are more than satisfied staying inside their homes and playing games.
As of writing, next-gen graphic cards such as the RTX 3000 series are out of stock in all retailer stores. The upcoming AMD 6800 XR card arriving in a few days will most likely sell out too. However, the biggest problem will be on next-gen consoles.
The Xbox Series X/S as well as PlayStation 5 will have shortages in supply. The demand for the next-gen consoles is unimaginable, to the point that Phil Spencer admits supply problems.
“We know what our supply will look like basically for the rest of the year. We’re going to have more demand than we do supply,” Spencer said in a podcast. “And I will apologize in advance to people for that.
“We saw it with pre-orders, how much energy there was, and we were basically out [of stock] in a couple of hours, which is unfortunate. I think we are going to live in that world for a few months. We’re going to have a lot more demand than we do supply.”
The scarcity of Xbox Series X supplies is something that the company head frequently reiterated. In his previous press tours, he has accustomed the gaming industry to anticipate issues with the console supply chain as he expects both Microsoft and Sony’s next-gen consoles will be sold out before the year ends.
“Let’s take this holiday, obviously, PlayStation and Xbox are shipping new consoles,” Spencer said in the interview. “We are both going to ship as many consoles as we can, and I am going to predict that we are both going to sell every console we build in 2020. And if I had another exclusive game, all I could do would be to sell out more quickly, right.
“The excitement for gaming is bigger than the excitement for exclusive games. Especially right now with Covid-19 and a high level of engagement in our business due to people being stuck at home and not physically socializing in the way they are used to.”
The Xbox Series X and Xbox Series X are set to be released on November 10, which is only a few days away. Meanwhile, the PlayStation 5 will launch a couple of days after on November 12, 2020.
