Reader Brendan says that a friend of his has had a great deal of trouble getting his hands on a PS3. In preparation for the release of Metal Gear Solid 4, said friend tried EB Games to preorder the console bundle. Not only did the friend have no luck with the preorder, but it was a no-go on a standalone console. Calls to Big W, K-mart and GameTraders were met with similar failure, with GT going as far as to say that the MGS4 pack may miss its release date due to shortages of the console.

So, I gave a couple of JB Hi-Fi and EB Games stores a call in Sydney and was told that they had units in stock, though EB Games said it was only a few and the GTA IV bundle was sold out. Given the success of Rockstar’s title, I wasn’t surprised.

Even though it was looking like there wasn’t much to Brendan’s rumour, I fired an email to Sony’s local branch. Here’s the reply I received:

Due to the success of the latest GTA IV and GT5 Prologue bundle offers, stock has been flying off the shelves and also, hand in hand with their success, we’ve seen an increase in consumer demand for standalone PS3 consoles. We’re very aware of the demand and are working closely with retail to ensure good stock supply.

Well. Going by this response Sony might have some issues on its hands with some stores, but it’s doing its best to keep retailers in supply. I know things are swell in Sydney, but let us know what the situation’s like around you!