The disastrous restocking of the PS5 is nothing new; we've seen plenty of retailers flop in the simple act of selling the PS5 to eager customers, but Walmart may have taken the crown for the worst fall in history with a restocking that was a disaster from start to finish.

Yesterday afternoon, the giant retailer announced that it would be restocking the PS5 in the next few hours. This initial announcement was greeted with excitement, and the confirmation that a Walmart Plus membership was not required to purchase the console was greeted even more warmly. However, the enthusiasm for this restocking ended there.

Wal-Mart adopted a new ordering process, apparently designed to make it more difficult for bots to take away the retailer's limited console allocation. While this effort to combat resellers is to be commended, the system was clearly not ready for prime time. Customers quickly took to Twitter to complain that Walmart's PS5 listing page was causing their screens to flicker. (Warning: the video below contains flashing images.)

If this problem wasn't enough, the drop also involved a virtual queue, which failed quite spectacularly. Several customers experienced problems with inaccurate or frequently changing wait times. Others reported that despite being at the front of the queue, they were not given the opportunity to purchase a PS5 console and were sent back to Walmart's website. A Reddit thread about the price cut received over 220 comments, most of them negative.

YouTuber and full-time stock tracker Jake Randall summed up the situation as "one of the worst drops I've ever seen," and it is hard to disagree with his assessment. While at least a few customers seem to have successfully checked out, the majority of shoppers left empty-handed and no small amount dissatisfied.

While it is understandable that selling a product at this level, where demand outstrips supply, will inevitably lead to many disappointed customers, Wal-Mart really needs to do better; the PS5 has been on the market for a year and the retailer has had time to develop a sales had time to build a system.

To make matters worse, the overwhelming demand for the PS5 is not expected to diminish anytime soon. In fact, once the holiday season and Black Friday sales season arrive, even more people are expected to become desperate to buy the console. Don't be surprised if this Wal-Mart price cut is just the first disastrous restocking of the season.

If you're hoping to pick up a PS5 in the coming weeks, be sure to lock in your Tom's Guide. We've got the ultimate guide to buying a console this holiday season, as well as a PS5 restocking hub with all the latest news. While we can't guarantee that you'll be able to get your hands on a gaming console, we can definitely give you a helping hand.