Walmart will have in-store pre-orders for PlayStation 5 on September 22

By Tom Caswell September 17, 2020

The PlayStation 5 pre-order debacle has been nothing short of terrible for most people, with retailers sporadically making inventory available at random times, with only eagle-eyed gamers refreshing store pages able to nab one against bots that automatically snatch up a console.

Digital Trends reached out to several retailers to try and get some clarity regarding availability, and Walmart replied with some actionable info. They will be reopening pre-orders for the PS5 on Tuesday, September 22, but you will have to do so in an actual store.

That is coincidentally the same day as Sony’s own pre-orders for those that signed up and were judged on their PlayStation Network activity as to whether they would be invited to order one from the company. Emails went out late on September 16 with the September 22 date, and the caption, “Be one of the first people to pre-order PlayStation 5.”

September 22 will be six days after the first pre-orders went up through retailers, although it’s presumable this process should be a lot smoother for those lucky enough to be chosen, as Sony more than likely allocated a unit for each email that was sent out.

At this time, there is still no clarification as to what other retailers are planning on doing regarding pre-orders. As of the morning of September 17, it seems that more PS5s were in stock the night before, despite Sony stating that pre-orders would begin on that date. It might be a safe bet that most won’t be refilling that inventory until September 22 along with Walmart and Sony. Hopefully, some retailers will still allow gamers to order online and not take unnecessary risks with the pandemic by having them wait in line at a store.

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PlayStation Showcase teased Sony’s live service future, but I’m not impressed yet

playstation showcase live service games reveals marathon

Ahead of the May 2023 PlayStation Showcase, I wrote that the presentation needed to “elicit confidence in Sony’s future with live service.” Well, multiplayer-focused live service games did end up being a big part of the show, but I can’t say I’m that confident in them yet.
Between neat looks at single-player exclusives like Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 and Synapse, Sony revealed four live-service games that it's publishing. Those games are Haven Studios’ Fairgame$, Arrowhead Studios’ Helldivers 2, Bungie’s Marathon, and Firewalk Studios’ Concord. The fact that these accounted for almost every major first-party announcements of the show signals that we’re entering a new era for Sony: one where multiplayer rules.
Over the past year or so, PlayStation Studios has made it very clear that it’s trying to break into the games-as-a-service sector now that it’s perfected the single-player adventure with games like Horizon Forbidden West and God of War: Ragnarok. Unfortunately, these early live service announcements raised more concerns than hope, which isn’t a great start when it comes to establishing a new direction for PlayStation.
A live service showcase
Haven’s sci-fi PvPvE heist game Fairgame$ was the PlayStation Showcase’s opening, and honestly, it wasn’t a memorable first showing. The trailer was purely cinematic, but its shots were composed like they were live gameplay. That still feels misleading 18 years after Sony did it with Killzone 2, even if it clarified it at the start of the trailer. It also means I don’t have a good idea of how this game will be structured and when I’ll have a chance to play it. All I know is that this is an anti-capitalist game that will probably also be a heavily monetized live service experience. It wasn’t a strong show opener; at least, like all of the other titles on this list, it’s also coming to PC.

Fairgame$ was followed up by the long-awaited reveal of Helldivers 2, a sequel to an entertaining 2015 PS Plus sci-fi top-down shooter. To Helldivers 2’s credit, it had the most honest-feeling showing of these games, with a trailer that showed lots of impressive third-person action gameplay and even gave a 2023 release window. Even if its anti-capitalist undertones were a bit similar to Fairgame$, this was the style of reveal I was hoping to see from Sony’s live service announcements. Unfortunately, it was the only live service game reveal to feature any actual gameplay.
After a break from live service announcements, Bungie emerged to reveal that it was reviving Marathon as a sci-fi PvP extraction shooter. While it’s very surprising to see Marathon coming back and that Bungie is making something other than Destiny, it was a purely cinematic trailer that leaned into its techno-futuristic aesthetics -- much like Fairgame$’s reveal trailer. A dev diary released after the reveal also says that we’ll need to wait a while to learn more and see gameplay. But you can buy a $77 shirt based on this game we don’t know much about yet, though.

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The most exciting PlayStation Showcase trailers you shouldn’t miss

A planet floats in the sky in Marathon.

Sony returned to its long-form PlayStation Showcase format today with an hourlong reveal stream showing off what's next for the PlayStation 5. The stream was filled with plenty of exciting announcements, from a remake of Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater to a spectacular Marvel's Spider-Man 2 trailer. Those were just a few of the games shown off during the stream though, which was packed with trailers.

There was a lot to see and no one would blame you if you missed a few things during the hour. From astonishing indie games from celebrated studios to a mysterious new project from Bungie, these are the trailers you need to catch up on if you missed the show.
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During the May 2023 PlayStation Showcase, PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan revealed Project Q. It's a new handheld streaming device that will allow you to stream any game from your PlayStation 5 console using its remote play function or Wi-Fi.

It doesn't have an official name yet, so it's known internally as Project Q. What we do know is that it has an 8-inch HD screen, plus all of the buttons and features of a DualSense wireless controller.