As per a new report, it is possible that either the next-generation PS5 or the Xbox Series X console, or probably both devices’ launch, will be postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Recently declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization, the novel COVID-19 coronavirus has triggered the slowdown of and in numerous places the complete stop of several industries and functions all over the world.
From the shit down of the Disney theme parks to the numerous movies and TV shows which have halted production, the impacts of the coronavirus have made industry leaders on almost every part of humanity to reconsider the ways they do business.
The video game industry has been just as prone to suffer these impacts as everyone else and has seen a number of Esport tournament cancellations due to the fears surrounding the dispersing of the pathogen.
Both Consoles Could Have a Delayed Launch
Now, a new report from DFC Intelligence, published by WCCFTech, has detailed a bit of how the novel coronavirus may impact the manufacturing and distribution process of the next-generation consoles.
As per the DFC, a video game industry analyst and research company with more than 25 years of experience, both the PS5 and the Xbox Series X have a ‘strong likelihood one or both systems will not make a 2020 launch.’ The report gets even worse when it says that ‘if the systems do launch, supply will likely be constrained and initial pricing could be higher than expected.”
For fans already concerned about the price of both PS5 and Xbox Series X, this is not an ideal situation. DFC also claimed that even if the world stops fearing the effects of coronavirus tomorrow, the damage has already been done.
As the report says: “Even if the situation clears up in a few weeks, the ability to manufacture and release a high-end new game system has already been severely impacted.”
Because both consoles are scheduled to launch sometime during the Holiday 2020 season, there is not a lot of time left for things to return to normal, DFC states.
