Getting your hands on a PS5 and Xbox Series X is difficult, to say the least. Demand is unusually high, and the fact that duffers and bots continue to buy up inventory makes things even worse.

There is good news, however. Wal-Mart has promised to improve the way it identifies duffers using bots and prevent them from buying more next-generation consoles and reselling them at exorbitant prices.

The news comes from a post on Wal-Mart's website by Chief Information Security Officer Jerry Geisler. In it, Geisler outlines how Wal-Mart has been working to ensure that people, not bots, get "the hottest gifts you want this season." This includes the PS5 and Xbox Series X, which, he says, will also be "coming online soon."

While it may be too late to have the console delivered before Christmas, it may be possible to order online and pick it up at a local store, assuming Wal-Mart has new inventory to sell. After all, if you pick it up in person, you don't have to wait for the console to be shipped and delivered.

In-person pickup would also help in the fight against duffers. Wal-Mart said it was able to stop 20 million bots in the first 30 minutes of the November 25 restocking, but it is clear that more needs to be done. Retailers may be using technology to actively prevent bots from purchasing inventory, but each time a new measure succeeds in thwarting bot efforts, duffers begin to take evasive measures in the never-ending battle to see who gets all the PS5s.

By allowing people to pick up the consoles directly, it is far less likely that duffers will be able to purchase multiple consoles so easily. This is especially true if Wal-Mart stores strictly adhere to a "one console per person policy" to discourage people from buying up high-demand products.

Fraudsters could still visit multiple Wal-Mart stores to collect their ill-gotten purchases, but the more difficult it becomes to purchase multiple consoles, the less likely they will bother to do so.

Of course, the only real way to stop duffers is to not buy consoles from them. As frustrating as it may be to not be able to get a PS5 or Xbox Series X from an authorized retailer, the more people who resort to overpriced duffers, the more likely there will be a rash of duffers. However, if no one buys, it will no longer be economical to continue stockpiling consoles as before.

In the meantime, the best tactic is to be patient and try your luck the next time a next-generation console arrives in retail stores. Be sure to check out our guide on how to beat the bots and buy an Xbox Series X.