Microsoft is raising prices on Xbox consoles… again. The previous price hike shifted expectations for both the Xbox Series S and Series X. The new pricing structure demands so much money from consumer wallets it seems nobody in their right mind would buy an Xbox in this day and age.
The new pricing structure begins Oct. 3. In a post to its support page, Microsoft blamed today’s “macroeconomic environment,” which is a longer way to say “Trump tariffs.” All consoles are demanding at least $50 more. According to the new console pricing sheet, a Series S with 512GB of storage will retail for $400, up from $350. Meanwhile, a new Xbox Series X digital edition will cost $600, up from $550. If you want the disc drive model, you’ll need to spend $650, up from $600. An Xbox Series X Galaxy Black Edition with that larger 2TB SSD will ask for $800, up from $730.
This is the second time Xbox has instituted price hikes this year. Sony also increased the price for its PlayStation 5 consoles in August. The PlayStation 5 now costs $500 for the digital edition. A PlayStation 5 Pro without a disc drive demands $750. The pain to gamers’ wallets is unending. Nintendo also increased the price of all its original Switch consoles plus its Switch 2 controllers and accessories, but not the Switch 2 console itself. Not yet, at least.
At least, we don’t have to pay more for peripherals. In its May price hike, Microsoft also pushed the price of its baseline Xbox controller to $65. The Xbox Elite Series 2 controller price increased by $5 to $150, and the Xbox Wireless Headset jumped $10 to $120. The company also declared it would start pricing games at $80 a pop. However, the company backtracked on its first attempt at this new pricing scheme with the release of Outer Worlds 2. Microsoft now says that game will cost $70 at launch. This led to speculation that Xbox was disappointed by the number of Outer Worlds 2 preorders with the announced price bump.
Who will buy an Xbox now?
There is no silver lining here. Increasing prices will inexorably damage Xbox, especially when gamers’ wallets are already being stretched. Analyst firm Ampere told The Game Business this week that fewer younger people are buying hardware, and a big reason for that is likely increasing console prices. While consoles are still making money for both Sony and Microsoft, the total number of Xboxes and PS5s sold is far less than the previous console generation. Video game industry analyst Mat Piscatella reported that the total video game hardware unit sales have trended down from 2023 to their lowest point since the start of the covid pandemic.
Xbox isn’t the only tech brand that’s raised prices twice this year due to tariffs. Camera maker Fujifilm jacked up costs of its popular cameras twice in the same month back in August. It will only get worse for Microsoft’s gaming arm. Xbox has shifted away from gaming hardware toward its flagging Game Pass subscription model. While the company promised it has a new Xbox console in the works, that more powerful gaming machine may not be here for another year, at least. Microsoft’s gaming division is relying on the Asus ROG Xbox Ally handheld PC to get it through to the end of the year, but Asus and Microsoft have refused to tell us how much it will cost. With this latest price hike, it does not bode well for Microsoft’s hardware ambitions.
There is so little reason to buy an Xbox nowadays. Most of the once-exclusive games on the system are coming to other consoles and PC anyway. At launch, the Xbox Series X was a stellar console at $500. This is the first console generation in recent memory where device prices haven’t depreciated over time. If you’re already afraid you won’t be able to afford groceries anymore, an ever-inflated 5-year-old game console will be the last thing on your mind.
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