Yeah, yeah, everyone's talking about it -- hardcore gamers are camping out at the Metreon to buy a $600 Playstation, which goes on sale tonight at midnight. The first people showed up around 8 a.m., and as of noon today, there were 500-1000 people in line. The line is going down Fourth Street and turning down Minna.

The line has 20 guards, who are handing out flyers labeled "bathroom pass" so those who had too many lattes this afternoon can get some relief without losing their place in line. Of the people surveyed, about half are hoping to flip their purchases on Craigslist or eBay -- though one other person is trying to sell his place in line for $250.

Sony is giving out tacos to the waiting hordes, and will give out energy drinks at 10 p.m. However, they're only guaranteeing Playstations for the first 700 or so people. Also, there's a bug in some of the Playstations being sold today -- some of them don't play older games. No way to tell if you got a buggy one until you get home after midnight tonight.

The Chron's pictures are here, and we found some flickr pictures too. Anyone in line -- if you've got wifi out there and are reading SFist to kill time until midnight, feel free to give us the word on the scene in the comments! We'll hold your place in line.