The Short, Strange Saga of the McDonald's PS5 Controller That Wasn't

By Brendan Menapace

PlayStation gamers in Australia were excited about possibly getting their hands on a McDonald’s-themed PS5 controller decked out with the red and yellow color scheme, logo placement and, of course, a burger and fries.

But, in an extremely weird turn of events, it was revealed that the design was never supposed to see the light of day. In fact, McDonald’s apparently never even approached Sony about the idea.

Now, McDonald’s Australia has to do some backpedaling after initially promoting the chance to win the special edition DualSense controller.

“Sony Playstation has not authorized the use of its controller in promotional materials related to the proposed Stream Week event, and we apologize for any inconvenience caused,” a spokesperson said, according to IGN. “McDonald’s stream week has been postponed and Sony PlayStation controllers will not be included in the giveaway.”

The weirdest part may be the timing. Gaming websites first reported that Sony blocked the promotion at the last minute. But it was later revealed that the controllers never existed in the first place. As reported by IGN:

As it turns out, the McDonald's PlayStation 5 DualSense controller was never actually meant to be advertised in the first place. IGN has learned that the design was an internal concept that never left the planning phase, let alone something McDonald's approached PlayStation about.

In a statement from McDonald's Australia, the company confirmed that "the image was provided to media in error and there is no commercial relationship between McDonald's Australia and Sony PlayStation."

This is in addition to the previous statement from the company about Sony PlayStation not authorizing the use of its controller in promotional materials.

McDonald’s Australia said in a statement to Press Start that they haven’t picked a new date for the proposed event, but will continue with other celebrations for the franchise’s 50th birthday in Australia by releasing merchandise like hoodies.

This is truly monstrous. I must have it. 🤡https://t.co/Z3HC43s8F1

— GAMINGbible (@gamingbible) July 30, 2021

So, sorry, Aussie gamers. If you happened to fall into the camp that liked the design, you’re just going to have to keep dreaming.

Whether it was a lack of communication from the marketing department to the art department, or whether the controllers were actually made but Sony called it off at the 11th hour, is unclear. If they do exist, you can bet that they’ll pop up on eBay.