John Lewis and GAME all crash on the launch date of the PlayStation 5

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Opportunistic hustlers are selling PlayStation 5 consoles, which launched in the UK this morning, on eBay for more than twice their retail price, reaching almost £1,000. 

It comes as the websites of major UK gaming retailers crashed this morning due to extraordinary demand for the PlayStation 5 console, which has launched today.  

GAME and John Lewis both went down, leaving would-be customers unable to get hold of the coveted device. 

John Lewis provided customers with a screen saying: ‘Sorry about the wait, please try again soon. It’s the much-anticipated launch of the Sony Playstation 5 console so we’re busier than usual.’

GAME did not provide any information, with the site simply failing to load. Both websites now appear to back online, but are out of stock of the PS5. 

Currys PC World did not crashed but, due to enormous volume, implemented a virtual queue to restrict traffic. More than 120,000 people were in the queue when MailOnline tested it this morning. 

However, the store ran out of stock of the PS5 by 9:30am and has now confirmed ‘there will be no PS5s available to buy today’.

While virtual vendors have largely depleted their stocks, gamers have resorted to standing in a drizzly, socially-distanced queue outside physical shops.   

Customers voiced their annoyance and sadness at being locked out of the websites, unable to get hold of a device. 

One Twitter user, called Nicole, said: ‘Trying to help my friend get a PS5 and there’s 120k people in the queue at Currys PC World LOL’.

Others used a visual medium, with GIFs and memes rife on social media.  

The PS5 is several times more powerful than the current generation PlayStation 4 and is able to handle higher-quality graphics with significantly shorter loading times.

Its British launch comes just after a week after the Xbox Series X went on sale. Both consoles cost the same amount of money, with a price tag of £449. 

Sony is releasing a slimmer, digital-only version of the console which costs £349, £100 more than the digital-only Xbox Series S. 

When the PS5 went on sale in the US on November 12, there was a huge scramble to source one of the coveted machines. 

Jim Ryan, president and chief executive of SIE, said the new system had ‘limitless possibilities’.

‘I’m thrilled for the new worlds that players will begin to experience today.’

The console includes a new ultra-high-speed solid state (SSD) drive as well as the ability to run games in 4K resolution at up to 120 frames per second (fps).

The DualSense controller, which comes with the console, has also been given a major update and now features enhanced haptic feedback to more accurately recreate in-game vibrations through the handset.

It has also been given an aesthetic makeover, with a space-age appearance much different to that of its predecessor.  

‘Today marks a historic moment for the PlayStation brand, and all of us at SIE are pleased to celebrate the release of PlayStation 5 together with our community of fans, game developers, and industry partners,’ Mr Ryan said.

‘PS5 is a truly next-generation console representing the beginning of a new era for gaming.

‘I’m thrilled for the new worlds that players will begin to experience today, and I’m equally excited for the line-up of games still to come for PS5 that will continue to propel the gameplay experience forward.

‘We are humbled to work with a talented community of world-class game developers. Their creativity will bring limitless possibilities to what the future of gaming can look like on PS5.’

The console, which first released in the United States and several other countries last week, has so far received positive reviews from critics.

The gaming giant has partnered with Transport for London (Tfl) to celebrate the launch of the new console by giving a new look to Oxford Circus Tube station.

Outside the four entrances of the station the characteristic London underground sign has been replaced by Sony’s X, triangle, circle and square button icons.  

It is not yet clear how much Sony paid TfL for the unusual advertising campaign – which will only be in place for 48 hours. 

As well as the the Tube’s roundels, its tunnels, entrances, exits, Victoria, Central and Bakerloo line platforms have also been transformed and now feature the four PlayStation shapes.  

The marketing stunt is located right in front of a Microsoft store – the company behind rival console the Xbox – although it is not clear if this was an intentional swipe by Sony.

Another four Underground stations across London have undergone some changes as Mile End station has become ‘Miles End’, paying homage to Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Lancaster Gate is renamed to ‘Ratchet and Clankaster Gate’, Seven Sisters has turned ‘Gran Turismo 7 Sisters’ and West Ham station has become ‘Horizon Forbidden West Ham’. The changes will be live until December 16.

The PS5 looks very different to all other consoles to be released in recent years, including all previous PlayStation iterations since the first one went on sale in 1994.

It is also considerably larger, measuring 15.4 inches (39cm) tall, 10.2 inches (26cm) deep and 4.1 inches (10.4cm) wide.