Finding a PlayStation 5 or an Xbox Series X right now is not that easy. Although more next-gen consoles are being built constantly, they are still scarce and simply not easy to locate. So when someone finds anything from a console to even a controller, it is a relief to finally purchase it and have it shipped. The last thing anyone wants is to open a box and see something else entirely inside.
Recently, someone posted a rather comical but also sad post on r/gaming on Reddit. A user looks to have purchased a PS5 controller on eBay. So it seems this user was lucky enough to find a PlayStation 5 itself at one point and is now simply looking for an additional controller. But a new controller is not what they received.
The image posted on Reddit indicates that the user (u/crihyde) received a PS5 DualSense Box, but inside was an Xbox One controller instead. To make the post somewhat funny, the controller has a color-scheme that matches the PS5 DualSense controller; half white and half black. The only thing that is missing are the blue lines.
The comments are flooded with a mix of laughter, genuine sincerity, and stories of oddly similar situations of wrong orders coming in over the years. The order could have been a mistake, of course, but the fact that the Xbox Controller shares the color scheme of the PS5 DualSense controller and was inside of the PS5 DualSense packaging makes it seem more on purpose than a mistake. eBay has already promised to put an end to PS5 and Xbox scammers; specifically when sellers simply send over an image of the console and nothing else. Sending the wrong controller with a new paint job is a new low.
eBay and online scalpers are of course a big problem whenever a new generation of consoles launch. It seems unfair to many that individuals who want to purchase the console at the manufacturer's suggested retail price are unable to and others are able to snag multiple, only to then resell them for double that rate. Of course, scalping is one issue that technically isn't illegal, even if there are regions or retailers or locations around the world that are looking to make it so; like the UK. Meanwhile, a total scam--like selling a piece of paper and pretending it is an Xbox Series X or giving someone an Xbox One controller and claiming it is a PS5 DualSense controller--is an entirely different story.
For the Reddit user who didn't get the PS5 DualSense they paid for, hopefully, eBay will help them out. In the meantime, there are also Reddit users who are scamming the scammers by sending scalpers to meet up locations that do not exist and things of that nature. Whether or not that will fix the problem is yet to be seen, but it has at least generated a good laugh from many gamers.