Sony Next-Gen Console 'PS5' Sold Out...Selective No Japan?

Sold Out Within Minutes of Pre-Order Start
Netizens Post "Where Did No Japan Go?"

[Asia Economy Reporter Jin-gyu Lee] Sony's next-generation console game machine, the 'PlayStation 5' (PS5), sold out within just a few tens of minutes after its first pre-order sale began. This has sparked sarcastic voices among netizens, questioning whether this is a selective boycott of Japanese products.

According to the industry on the 21st, Sony Interactive Entertainment Korea (SIEK) started PS5 pre-orders at 12 PM on the 18th, and it sold out in less than an hour. At 1 PM that day, online and offline affiliated shopping malls selling PS5 announced that the PS5 was sold out.

The PS5 pre-orders were conducted at 11 online shopping malls including Homeplus, Hi-Mart, SSG.com, and Toys "R" Us, as well as 30 offline stores such as PS Partner Shops. Most online shopping malls experienced difficulty in access around the pre-order start time, and some malls were completely inaccessible.

As a result, netizens, especially in internet gaming communities, pointed out that the boycott of Japanese products does not apply to the PS5. Japanese netizens posted comments on internet communities such as "Truly a nationality of words only," "Selective boycott," and "Where did No Japan go?"

Meanwhile, the PS5 is scheduled for official release in Korea on November 12. The standard PS5 version with a Blu-ray disc drive is priced at 628,000 KRW, and the digital edition version without a disc drive is priced at 498,000 KRW. A SIEK official stated, "There is no information yet regarding the second pre-order schedule."

Microsoft's (MS) next-generation console game machine, the 'Xbox Series X,' is also scheduled to be introduced in Korea on November 10 at 598,000 KRW. Xbox pre-orders will begin on the 22nd through Lotte Hi-Mart and Naver.