The latest NVIDIA GPUs, GeForce RTX 5090 and GeForce RTX 5080, officially went on sale on the 30th. Despite their high price, the graphics cards attracted immense attention from PC gamers, prompting shops in Akihabara to make extensive preparations even before the official release.
The most chaotic scene unfolded at PC Kōbō Akihabara Parts Shop, where a lottery-style sale was planned for release day. The store had announced, "Lottery tickets for the GeForce RTX 5090 will be distributed from 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM, and for the GeForce RTX 5080 from 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM. Winners can pick up their products at 11:00 PM." The shop also warned customers not to line up before 3:00 PM.
However, by 2:00 PM, large crowds had already gathered around the store, waiting for a chance to buy the new GPUs. As 3:00 PM approached, the line extended all the way past a nearby elementary school and daycare center, creating an unprecedented scene with hundreds of people gathering in an area that is usually quiet at that time of day.
The growing crowd led to several issues, including:
・Customers trespassing onto a neighboring kindergarten’s property to cut in line
Blocking vehicle traffic
・People who had lined up before 3:00 PM receiving an unfair advantage in the lottery
・The atmosphere became increasingly tense, with shouting in multiple languages adding to the confusion.
At one point, a kindergarten sign was damaged, further escalating the situation. Eventually, the police were called to restore order.
Due to the chaos, the second round of ticket distribution for the GeForce RTX 5080, originally scheduled for 4:00 PM, was abruptly canceled. Instead, the store switched to an online lottery system for the sale. However, according to the shop, winners of the GeForce RTX 5090 lottery were still able to pick up their products as planned at 11:00 PM.
In Japan, large-scale resale and scalping, particularly involving foreign buyers, have become a growing issue. Many stores, including those in Akihabara, are now struggling to implement countermeasures to prevent bulk purchases for resale.
Viewer Comments:
I wonder how many people are actually gonna use it.
Violent people should be arrested and sent back to their country.
The store’s sales method was the real problem.
Source:GeForce RTX 5090/5080を求めて客が殺到。パソコン工房パーツ館の周辺は大混乱、抽選販売は中止に（AKIBA PC Hotline!） – Yahoo!ニュース
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