• Sony intends to manufacture only a limited run of 5-6 million PlayStation 5 units in time for launch later this year.
• Component scarcity and the ballooning cost of the final retail model are reportedly at play in the decision.
• Sony’s PS5 marketing plans have been heavily derailed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, most recently with the rushed reveal of the DualSense.

Would-be PlayStation 5 owners will need to have their fingers on the trigger when pre-orders go live or risk missing out come Holiday 2020.

According to a report from Bloomberg authored this morning , Sony intends to manufacture and ship far fewer PS5 units at launch compared to the PlayStation 4.

Sony Limiting Production Due To High Cost of PS5

Sources speaking to Bloomberg cite pricing as the reason behind the decision to limit PlayStation 5 production. The high cost of components will reportedly inflate the launch day pricing of the PlayStation 5.

With Sony opting for some genuinely innovative hardware, notably in the form of an ultra-fast SSD, it is proving challenging to keep the cost of the final product down. Current estimates place the price of the PlayStation 5 in the ballpark of $499 to $549.

The Japanese gaming giant is, therefore, sizing down the initial production run to 5-6 million units up to March 2021. By comparison, the PS4 sold over 7.5 million units in the six months after launch.

Assembly plants in China have reportedly already received PlayStation 5 components in anticipation of mass-production starting this June. COVID-19 concerns had Chinese partners wary of meeting promised deadlines, but with the situation improving drastically in China, the production schedule is reportedly back on track.

Marketing Plans Derailed

As Bloomberg puts it, the coronavirus pandemic hasn’t harmed Sony’s production plan but has derailed the churning gears of the PlayStation 5’s marketing machine. Sony reportedly had to ax plans for a traditional console reveal with the press in attendance and all the bells and whistles.

Interestingly, Sony rushed the recent unveiling of the DualSense controller to pre-empt possible leaks. Sony had showcased the controller to several developers and wagered that a leak was only a matter of time.

The lead up to the launch of the PlayStation 5 has been far from ideal so far. Sony may opt to sell the PS5 at a loss as it’s done in the past, but what’s certain is that panic pre-ordering of the console is inevitable to avoid disappointment.