We’re living in unprecedented times, and the future of consoles is in question. It’s because of their price. Five years after this generation began, the consoles have never been more expensive, and it’s not a pattern we’re used to. We’re used to prices going down – to manufacturing improvements shrinking both the physical size of the machines and their price. But not this time. This time, it’s different.
Today, it costs $150 more to buy a base Xbox Series X console in the United States than when the console launched (a price change came into effect there last week, on the 3rd October), and $100 more for an Xbox Series S. Meanwhile in the UK, it currently costs £50 more for an Xbox Series X, and £100 for an Xbox Series S, than it did at launch. And it’s not just an Xbox thing: PlayStation 5s have gone up in price as well, both in the US and in Europe. This is the first generation I know of where an early adopter could conceivably money by selling a launch-bought machine.
But is it just a blip? Could prices settle back down into a normal generational rhythm if the world calmed down a bit, and inflation and tariffs and other mitigating factors eased? Then again, what if they don’t – could this become the norm? Could prices even rise again? Who would be able to afford one? And if fewer people could afford them, does it make sense to keep producing them? Do the dominos begin to teeter and topple until we’re suddenly living in a world where no new console hardware is being produced?