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If you’ve been searching for a PS5 these past months – convinced that the solution to the ennui of lockdown life lies in next-gen gaming – it’s likely that you’ve also made a new, hated enemy: retail bots.
For many, attempts to buy the console have followed the same sad pattern. A store, like Argos, Currys PC World or GAME, announces it has new stock. Customers descend on the site – more than 160,000 at once, in the case of Currys – crashing it. When the virtual dust settles, the consoles are gone. Almost instantly, hundreds begin to appear on eBay for double the price. The culprits? Scalpers and their weapon of choice – retail bots. And the pandemic has created an ideal hunting ground.