Electronic component shortages are proving a big problem for many industries, including the gaming industry. Massive stock shortages are causing manufacturers to drip-feed the PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and other gaming hardware, to consumers and subsequently many are being snatched by scalpers.
So how are electronic component shortages affecting the gaming industry? Let's find out.
Chip Shortage = Console Shortage
In case you didn't know, there's currently a massive global chip shortage that's affecting many major industries, such as car manufacturers, phone companies, and, of course, console manufacturers.
Simply put, there's currently a huge shortage of semiconductor chips (which are used in pretty much all electronic devices) that's resulting in claims of companies stockpiling as many chips as they can to meet the increased consumer demand for electronic products. All because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Besides lockdown measures and a reduced factory workforce, this has led to major supply chain disruptions within the gaming industry. The most notable example of this would be the huge shortages in gaming hardware, such as Sony and Microsoft's flagship consoles and NVIDIA's new RTX 30-series GPUs, as well as the Analogue Pocket being delayed yet again.
What Does the Chip Shortage Mean for the Gaming Industry?
Unfortunately, as the global chip shortage continues, so will the limited supplies of new consoles, GPUs, and CPUs, as well as most other electronic items outside of gaming.
This further limits the gaming industry as other industries will take priority when getting the latest batch of semiconductor chips, such as for smartphones and computers, which makes the logistics of delivering consoles to meet the ever-increasing demand from gamers that much harder.
Unfortunately, this is a perfect opportunity for scalpers. The pandemic has meant that, with everyone at home, the hype and demand for the latest consoles, GPUs, CPUs, etc. has been uncontrollable.
And, with the limited supply of these items, scalpers can snatch them up and sell them to the highest bidder for usually hundreds of dollars over the market price. Despite Sony selling 4.5m PS5s in 2020, a huge amount of them went to scalpers.
Even months after their release, there's still lots of hype and excitement for the PS5 and the Xbox Series X/S. But, sadly, if you're planning on getting one soon, your prospects aren't too encouraging at the moment.
But Nintendo Seems to Be Doing Okay...
Despite Nintendo Switch stock shortages in 2020, if you search for a Switch or a Switch Lite, it's probably in stock or will be in stock very soon. The same can't be said for Sony and Microsoft's flagship consoles.
Why is that?
Although there isn't an exact answer, it's safe to speculate that not releasing a new console during a pandemic has helped matters.
And, when manufacturers announced the new consoles later in 2020, demand likely decreased from the Switch over to the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, giving Nintendo a little more breathing room to produce more Switches.
The Switch was also incredibly popular before the pandemic, giving Nintendo plenty of reason to make as many as it could, which would've been a lot easier to do before a global chip shortage occurred.
However, we also know that Nintendo has a new Switch on the cards. While we're not sure what to expect from Nintendo's new console, this raises questions around how Nintendo is developing and hoping to release a new console during the chip shortages.
For Now, It's Best to Invest in Patience
So, things are still looking a little bleak. With electronic component shortages and supply chain disruptions, the gaming industry is still struggling to meet the demand of its consumers.
But, despite the current situation, things could get better in the long run as both companies and governments work to assess and solve this ongoing global chip shortage.
For the consumers, however, this means the best thing we can do is to be patient and wait for the light at the end of the tunnel.