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PS5 Pro Console Shortage Hits US Stores Following GTA 6 Trailer Debut

8/31/2026, 03:29 PM • Evgenia Sliv

(edited: 08/31/2026)

PS5 Pro Console Shortage Hits US Stores Following GTA 6 Trailer Debut

The release of an extended 26-minute GTA 6 gameplay trailer on Netflix's streaming service has triggered a severe shortage of Sony's flagship PS5 Pro gaming console across the United States. Retailers rapidly cleared out remaining warehouse stock, while resellers on the secondary market began significantly inflating prices. According to Western specialist outlets, the device can currently be purchased at its official recommended retail price of $899 exclusively through PlayStation Direct, Sony's own branded storefront. However, this sales channel remains the last major source of consoles at a fair price in the country, and analysts do not expect inventory to hold out much longer given the sustained demand frenzy.

The situation across other retail chains looks considerably worse. On Amazon, the PS5 Pro is formally listed in the catalog but is only available through third-party sellers at $1,299. A similar picture is emerging at Walmart, where buyers are also being asked to pay a substantial premium above the official price tag. Major electronics retailer Best Buy and general merchandise chain Target have sold out their available stock entirely, leaving the consoles temporarily absent from their offerings. The long-awaited Rockstar title also made a significant impact on the media industry, boosting Netflix's daily audience in the United States by 50 percent on the day the gameplay footage aired.

Indirect data confirms consumers' willingness to pay over the odds for the hardware they want. On eBay, brand-new sealed PS5 Pro consoles have already been selling for as much as $1,200 per unit — nearly a third above the manufacturer's official price. Sony will most likely restock its retail partners closer to the game's official release date, meaning the current shortage is temporary in nature. Nevertheless, the very fact of such a buying frenzy vividly illustrates the colossal demand surrounding Rockstar's new title: fans of the franchise are prepared to spend hundreds of dollars extra to secure the most comfortable gaming experience possible from the very first days following the long-awaited sequel's launch.

It is worth noting that GTA 6 will officially support dedicated PS5 Pro enhancements, though developers have yet to disclose details of the technical implementation of these optimizations. Judging by the extended gameplay footage shown, the project looks impressive even on the base PS5. At the same time, industry experts believe that even accounting for the Pro version's hardware advantages, a stable 60 frames-per-second refresh rate will most likely remain out of reach for a project of this scale and technical complexity — a traditional trade-off between graphical fidelity and gameplay smoothness in modern big-budget titles.

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