PS4 pre-order sales at Blockbuster have soared in the wake of the E3 2013 hardware and price reveal, mirroring the record-breaking Xbox One pre-orders last month.
Showing that the next-generation consoles are proving incredibly popular with consumers even before they launch next year, Blockbuster has seen a huge spike in pre-orders for the PS4.
“We are absolutely thrilled with the amazing response to our pre-order service for both the PS4 and Xbox One!” said James Morton, Head of Product at Blockbuster. “We’re looking forward to seeing the brand new consoles in our stores along with the latest games to buy or rent.”
Last month, Xbox One pre-orders on the Blockbuster website broke all previous pre-order launch records. The unprecedented interest in Microsoft’s next-generation console is now being repeated for the PS4 after Sony revealed the console’s design and price during its E3 press briefing.
“2013 has been a fantastic year for gaming at Blockbuster and its set to only get better following the announcements at E3.”
Online retail giant, Amazon, has also noted that both next-generation consoles are proving popular with gamers, but noted that the Xbox One is currently doing better than the PS4 in terms of pre-order sales.
In fact, the US arm of Amazon has already sold all of its Xbox One pre-order stock, despite the Xbox One release date still being a good five months away.
“We believe it is indicative of a pattern we are going to see for pre-order,” said Chris Lewis, Microsoft’s Vice President of Interactive Entertainment Business for Europe. “I think that it is very true for the UK and markets where we’ve seen genuine success over a number of years.”
Sony has been speaking about its PS4 pre-order figures too and envisions it may have the same pre-order stock shortages as the Xbox One soon, but will try to accommodate where possible.
“We’ve been really pleased with the boost overnight of pre-order figures of the PS4 following our E3 press conference,” said Fergal Gera, Head of Sony Playstation UK. “We’ll do our best to have plenty of stock for gamers in the UK.”
The Xbox One will launch in November for £429, while the PS4 is expected sometime during the “holidays 2013” period with a £349 price tag, some £80 cheaper than its Kinect-wielding rival.
Next, read our PS4 vs Xbox One comparison.
