Last week McDonald’s revealed its massive 50th anniversary celebrations, which included an entire week of streams and the fabulous giveaway prize of a custom McDonald’s themed PS5 DualSense controller. The colours and theming were particularly gorgeous, and it made for a delicious-looking controller — one immediately coveted by many gamers.
But despite the instant popularity of the design, it appears the release of this limited edition controller has now been cancelled by Sony.
While the McDonald’s 50th anniversary Birthday Stream Week was scheduled to kick off on Sunday, August 1, it’s now been postponed to an unknown date.
The event was set to include a number of Australia’s most popular streamers including names like Muselk, Jacko G, Crayator and Kiki, although it’s currently unclear whether it actually will go ahead at all.
Sony continues to be strict on custom PS5 accessories
In a statement to Press Start Australia, McDonald’s confirmed stream week had been postponed with no new date on the table just yet. It also confirmed the prizes for the celebration had been deliberately changed.
“We will have some great prizing including Macca’s 50th Birthday Hoodies and 50 channel subscriptions for each streamer to give away,” McDonald’s told Press Start. But sadly, the McDonald’s PS5 controller won’t be part of the event.
“Sony PlayStation has not authorised the use of its controller in promotional materials related to the proposed Stream Week event and we apologise for any inconvenience caused,” the company said. “McDonald’s stream week has been postponed and Sony PlayStation controllers will not be included in the giveaway.”
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The reason for this decision was not confirmed, but it’s worth noting Sony has been particularly strict on custom plates, skins and accessories for the PS5 since its release last November. In late 2020, it took a hard stance against customisers by forcing some plate retailers to cancel orders by threat of legal action.
It could be that McDonald’s ran into trouble with this food-themed custom for similar reasons, but either way it means we won’t be seeing this gorgeous PS5 controller any time soon. The decision could also have major implications for any future plans for custom controllers.
While Sony has begun releasing different coloured controllers over the last few months, it could be a good long while before we see anything as rad or creative as the McDonald’s PS5 controller again.