Sony launched the PlayStation 5 back in February at a price of Rs 49,990 for the disk edition, but it seems like retailers thought the demand for the console would mean that they could force some other accessories and games along with the console for some extra bucks.
This was reported by IGN India, which says that people were forced to buy either two games and a controller or an HD camera with the PS5 console. This meant that users had to shell out as much as Rs 85,000 for the privilege of owning a PS5.
This apparently happened during the initial pre-order phase of February launch as well as the restock that happened
While Sony is yet to make an official comment on this, it has apparently instructed retailers to stop this practice and offer the console as is. Customers are welcome to spend more on games and accessories, provided they have a choice in it.
While online only retailers like Amazon and Flipkart will be adhering to such instructions. Other retailers that have an offline presence may sidestep the instructions and keep some stock to sell as a bundle offline.
And while Sony is asking its retailers to address this issue, it's own Sony Center retail outlet at Gurugram's Ambience Mall, took money for PS5s and held customers ransom until they bought games and accessories. Sony has apparently been quiet about this which makes this believable.
Sony's newest round of restock for the month of June saw the consoles sell out within minutes and it seemed like the consoles were being offered solo without any of the accessories. This could be considered positive, but sheer speed of the stocks selling out may indicate that the larger quantities we had assumed would be made may be contested. But we would get more information with time as people come out and speak about their pre-booking experience.
