EB & GameStop Hold Reservations Off
As some of you may have experienced earlier Monday, EB Games and GameStop will not be taking pre-orders on the PS3 until "after September". While on the surface it may seem like a baseless rumor meant to hurt Sony, I have reason to believe it is true, and I have reason to believe that it is a good thing.
The decision was not made by EB Games to not take pre-orders... they were directed by Sony to not take orders. After talking with one of the managers who was in the conference call, I was able to extract some interesting and exciting information.
First, Sony told EB and GameStop that they would be supplying 3 million consoles at launch worldwide, 1 million more than they claimed at E3. They also broke it down by region: an even cool million for each Japan, NTSC and PAL. Please note that Sony informed retailers that these were launch day figures.
Second, Sony instructed them to not take pre-orders until "after September". It may seem a bit odd on the surface, but why September? Well, at the end of September, September 22-24 to be specific, an event occurs called the Tokyo Game Show.
It's important to note that Microsoft suggested the same thing to retailers during the XBox 360 launch, however, retailers pre-ordered anyway. This time, after their experience with Microsoft's shipping debacles, manufacturing problems and overall retail mix-ups, EB and GameStop are both honoring Sony's request and waiting until Sony has actual volume numbers.
So the long and short of it is that a lot of other retailers are taking pre-orders. Notably GameCrazy. However, EB Games and GameStop have decided to play it safe and not oversell themselves. What this will mean is that when October rolls around, EB and GameStop will still have their entire reserve of SKUs available to sell, and they will know how many they have, meaning you're more likely to get the console you paid for on the day it comes out.
So start saving up you money boys and girls. I know I will. :lol