Is it safe to buy in person for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X?

The video game industry, like many others, has been affected by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Major gaming conventions and events were canceled. Video games have been delayed as developers switch to remote work settings. All for good reason: These cancellations, delays, and adjustments have been crucial in ensuring the safety of the people who create and play games.

In November, the pandemic will affect the industry’s new console season, with the launch of the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. Fans will be faced with an unusual and timely question: is it safe to shop in person for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X? during launch? ?

Sony announced in early November that it will not sell the PlayStation 5 in retail stores on launch day, a move to keep crowds low. “Please do not plan to camp or stand in line at your local retailer on launch day in hopes of finding a PS5 console to buy,” wrote Sony Interactive Entertainment director of communications Sid Shuman. “Be safe, stay home and order online.” People with in-store pickups at local retailers will be able to do so at their “designated appointment time[s]”Sony said. Also, Best Buy and Walmart announced Thursday that it will only sell its consoles online.

But on November 10 and 12, when Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 launch, respectively, stores may still be busier than usual, putting both employees and shoppers at risk. Sony’s policy can help mitigate the crowds in stores on the day of the console’s launch. However, some buyers may not be intimidated, which could be a problem.

To answer the question of whether it is safe to buy new consoles in person, Polygon spoke with epidemiologists and health experts to determine the risks of a crowded console launch. To put it bluntly, the crowds in stores on November 10 and 12, and of course other days, are not safe for shoppers and employees.

What’s going on with the next-gen console launch?

The PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X launches will take place during another spike in COVID-19 cases in the United States. On November 4, the United States had its first day with more than 100,000 new COVID-19 cases, and the cases have been rising steadily for weeks.

The rules for meetings, both internal and external, vary by country and state, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that in-person meetings are higher risk activities and that people should implement social distancing and the use of masks to reduce the spread. The risk increases as the number of people increases, as well as the time that people are together. It is also important to monitor transmission rates in the community – a higher rate means a greater risk.

There’s no way to make sure it’s 100% safe to visit a store in person. The safest way to make sure you don’t get COVID-19 is to stay home, according to Dr. Krysia Lindan, a professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at the University of San Francisco.

That being said, it doesn’t necessarily mean that hypocrisy go to the store, only doing so increases the risk for you, the people in your household and employees working in the store. Stores can mitigate risk to ensure a safer experience for customers and employees. stories should have policies in place to try to minimize the spread of COVID-19, but remember: minimizing risk is not the same as eliminating it.

Polygon asked several retailers about their security plans for the week of the console’s launch. No major retailers, including Target, Walmart, or GameStop, provided us with detailed information. Of course, the stores will continue with their standard COVID procedures, but declined to share plans due to the potential for increased crowds. However, some retailers have chosen not to sell consoles in the store, at least for some time, in hopes of keeping crowds low.

Photo: James Bareham / Polygon

Perhaps retailers aren’t expecting additional crowds, though the evidence points toward the lines: In September, people lined up by the dozen in front of local GameStop stores to pre-order the PlayStation 5, after pre-orders for the console quickly sold out. online. And even though Sony announced that PlayStation 5 sales would be online-only at launch, it’s unclear how many consumers hoping to buy one in person on November 12 will get that message, just a week in advance.

It is clear that buying a next generation console online and receiving it at home is the safest option with regard to your own personal safety. Some stores, like Target, also allow customers to shop online and use the pickup service on the side of the car at the nearest store. However, it is not clear what protocols exist in distribution, which could put warehouse and shipping workers at risk.

Can I go to a store to buy an Xbox Series X or a PlayStation 5 or not?

As we mentioned before, the decision is yours to go to a store to buy an Xbox Series X or PlayStation 5. You will need to assess the risk on your own terms to allow for the safest experience possible. Some things to consider are whether you live or are in close contact with people who are at higher risk for complications from COVID-19, such as the elderly or the immunosuppressed. If that’s the case, your decision also puts other people directly at risk.

If you decide to buy in person, there are a few additional things you can consider.

One thing to think about early on is how different this trip could be to any other trip to the store in the last six months. While console launches have often drawn massive crowds in previous generations, the combination of a global pandemic and the ease of ordering online and pre-ordering means that stores can be much less crowded than in the past. If you call your local store or drive shortly after launch and you’re not too busy, then buying a new console, if they have it in stock, won’t be much different from a regular post-COVID trip to the grocery store. . Just wear your mask, keep your distance, and be respectful and responsible. But it’s when the stores get crowded that things get a bit complicated and the risk of infection begins to rise.

Medical experts said the biggest concern is the possibility of large groups of people gathering inside poorly ventilated tents, as this is the perfect environment for the virus to spread. Stores must be able to handle any interaction and pickup in a controlled way, to allow for social distancing. The first thing to do before picking up your next-gen console in person is to call a few local stores and see what their plans are. Is there a plan for crowded stores?

If stores plan to have crowds, the best option would be for shoppers to stay outside, where the risk of spreading the virus is lower.

“I think the other thing is to keep a limited number of people in the store at a time, creating a kind of system where people get the console and move to the next place to pay for it, where not everyone goes together.” said Dr. Atif Kukaswadia, who has a Ph.D. in epidemiology.

Photo: Henry Hargreaves for Polygon

Stores can also rely on more basic rules, such as enforcing a mandatory mask policy, something experts say is effective and easy. Every expert we spoke to warned against trips to stores that don’t require masks, even if you wear one yourself. For example, US GameStop customers must wear skins in store, with limited numbers of customers allowed in store at one time. However, GameStop employees cannot deny service to an unmasked customer, according to an internal GameStop memo released in July.

“The masks are more to prevent you from passing them on to other people, rather than other people passing them on to you,” Kukaswadia said. “You are wearing the mask to protect others, and if you do, you are doing your part to help others buy [safely]. “

He continued: “But if you are the only one wearing a mask, you can still choose [the virus] above. “and the probability is still high.” One possible solution to a problem like this that Kukaswadia suggests is to simply find the time when the store is least busy and return at that time.

Dr. Nancy Nielsen, Senior Associate Dean for Health Policy at the University of Buffalo Jacobs College of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, put it bluntly: “Everyone should be masked.”

Regardless of the store’s policies, there are more things to consider: for example, how is the virus spread in your area? Is it an area with a fairly low number of cases or is it widespread?

“If the COVID-19 infection rate in a person’s community is greater than 5% or is increasing, going to a crowded store is not advisable,” Nielsen said.

What’s the best way to buy an Xbox Series X and a PlayStation 5?

While not infection-proof yet, curbside pickup is the closest you can get according to the experts we spoke to. Curbside pickup, especially when both the customer and the employee are wearing masks, or when the employee simply places the item in the car without closely interacting with the customer, has a fairly low probability of spreading COVID-19, so it is the most preferable option. . To further mitigate the risk, some retailers are assigning appointment times to people who pick up their consoles this way. Best Buy customers have already started receiving emails to schedule appointments to pick up your pre-orders at stores. Other retailers are likely to have similar systems; On twitter, Target wrote that neither the Xbox Series X nor the PlayStation 5 would be available to walk-in customers.

Image: Sony Interactive Entertainment

“[Curbside pickup is] the closest thing to home delivery really, ”said Dr. Kukaswadia. “It’s super convenient, super easy. You are not interacting with people that you would be interacting with in the store. “

He continued: “What we know about [COVID-19] – and this could change – is that it really is not something that lives for long on surfaces. So if you want to be really safe, you can take it home and take the box out and leave it on the table for a couple of hours, or take it out and Lysol clean the sides just to be 100% safe. . It may be over the top, but in terms of COVID, I feel like it’s worth it. ”

When it comes to in-store options, there is nothing that will keep you 100% safe, but your best option is to visit a store when there are fewer people. On the one hand, this could mean waiting a few days to get hold of one of the new consoles, until the lines are turned off. After all, Amazon has emailed customers who pre-ordered the new consoles to inform them that they may not arrive on launch day, and most stores will likely have a limited supply of consoles for customers who don’t. They made an advance order. Your safest option may be to simply wait a few days when the release day hype has subsided.