Many Sony fans have been anxiously awaiting a chance to nab an elusive PlayStation 5 but low stock and scalpers have made that task exceedingly difficult. Instead of lying low and quietly having no scruples, one scalping group is publicly boasting about securing another 2,000 PS5 units during a recent GAME restock to flip for $1,000+. 

The UK scalping group goes by the name Carnage, and they took to Twitter to brag about securing stock getting "easier every time" as they boast a recent 2,000 system haul. The "easier" comment is uniquely gouache considering many are scrambling to get just one system as groups like these continue making these highly desired consoles incredibly inaccessible on a financial level. Still, it's not unexpected given the very nature of scalping, to begin with, and it's not illegal and many retailers aren't doing enough to prevent it. Unfortunately, this practice will continue to be a reality until the retail process changes on a fundamental level. 

The Twitter not-so-humble brag predictably was met with backlash, causing the account to go private. But, the internet is forever and the below screenshot was provided via TheGamer: 

Groups like these aren't just one person, and that's what makes it easier to secure stock like this on a mass level. Many members contribute to hauls such as this, often using bots and similar programs to make it through checkout processes easier, more time effective, and easy to do on a multiple transaction scale. 

Getting a new console at the start of a fresh generation is always difficult, but adding in the layer of quarantines and the ongoing pandemic makes it even trickier. With more people at home and manufacturing progress becoming intricately more complicated, the low-stock-high-demand cycle for both the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S isn't likely to end in the immediate future. 

For those that may not know what scalping is, it's the process of buying highly coveted items in order to resell at a much higher price point. With the PlayStation 5 specifically, scalpers have raised the price by double in many instances and people are still buying them even with that $1,000 price tag. Until the demand ceases to give scalpers profit for this avenue of 'business' and retailers/companies band together to better control the checkout process and more effective stock alerts, this will continue to be a profitable endeavor for many. 

In our previous coverage, we noted another major scalping group that goes by CrepChiefNotify. This group runs their network in a similar way to Carnage and they openly boasted taking advantage of COVID-19 lockdowns to turn a profit. 

"During the first COVID-19 lockdown, we noticed a huge shift in products that people were buying," said the Crep manager. "The focus shifted towards the most ridiculous things, like outdoor hot tubs. We noticed that these began selling out in stores and reselling on eBay for a profit. So our developer wrote some site monitor software, and we tracked the stock of the sites selling hot tubs! Every time they pinged into stock, we would notify our members to buy it all."

What do you think about the process of scalping? Leave them alone and let them make that bread, or would you like to see corrective action take place? Sound off with your thoughts in the comment section below. 

Bloober Team’s The Medium straddles the thin veil between reality and the spirit world. A new gameplay trailer focuses on how players, through protagonist Marianne, can interact with the game world around them by using her supernatural powers. You can watch the video above. 

First and foremost, Bloober Team sets out to answer an often-posited question: What does a medium do? Marianne can notice and feel things that other people will never be able to pick up on. These moments of sensory overload drive her intuition and choices. Players can highlight important objects or passageways in their surroundings in order to gain deeper insight into the context of any specific situation. Additionally, Marianne can tune into key items so that she can relive the past (or “echoes”) - you can see examples of this above with the dress shoe. 

More importantly, Marianne can cross over to the spirit world - a waiting room of sorts where spirits dwell before moving on to the afterlife. Players are tasked with revealing fragments of these lost souls in order to bring them peace. I’m definitely not looking forward to conversing with that creepy little girl in the mask. 

In addition to the gameplay footage, Bloober Team released an updated PC System Requirements chart for those who’d prefer to enter the spirit world on mouse and keyboard. You can see the image on those specs below: 

The Medium debuts on January 28 on Xbox Series X/S and PC, with a day one release on Xbox Game Pass alongside a bevy of remastered Yakuza titles.