Cockroaches – the latest bug to hit the PlayStation 4

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No, this isn’t some hip name for a Playstation defect or glitch, we’re talking about Periplaneta Americana here, people. That’s “cockroaches” for you non-educated folks, and it’s a bigger problem than you realized.

Console repair shops across the country are noticing that more and more people are bringing in consoles that are literally crawling with the little bastards. One shop in NYC has garbage bags filled with the carcasses of the critters. Why they keep them in the shop, I don’t know, maybe as some sort of cryptic warning to other bugs, but, regardless, they literally have trash bags full of roaches.

This is not to say that the Xbox One is roach-free, but the PS4 is more prone to the issue. Is this because Sony has sold over double the amount of consoles as Microsoft? Maybe a little, but there are actually more factors at play.

You see, the Playstation 4 has an internal power supply compared to the original Xbox One which uses an external supply on the power cable (Xbox One S uses internal, however). This extra warm source is akin to the beacons of Gondor, calling all cockroaches to converge inside of your console to do whatever it is that cockroaches do.

Also consider the Playstation 4’s ventilation system, which is located closer to the bottom of the console and has wider grates, allowing the pests to slide right in and make themselves at home. Add to this that many gamers keep their consoles in dark, warm settings inside of an entertainment center or nook, and you have the perfect recipe for a cockroach party.

Want to keep your console free of creepy crawlies? Keep your console in the bright light of day and as far off the ground as possible. Stop using your console as a 5-star roach motel, and invest in some actual roach motels.

And the last tip, and maybe the most important of them all – clean your damn house.

► Kotuku