Microsoft has announced that it will be increasing the price of Xbox consoles and Controllers effective immediately, affecting all eligible markets across the world. This news was made in an Announcement made today, which avoided laying the blame for this one on any particular cause. The company said that starting on May 1st, these price hikes would take effect and shared an updated MSRP list for affected countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia.
Markets that were not listed in the announcement can also expect to be affected, but the local pricing might “differ by country to reflect exchange rates and market conditions,” with there being no specific details at this time. In the US, for example, the Xbox Series S, which was $299, will now increase to $379.99, an 80-dollar increase. The Xbox Series X will increase previous $499 to $599, a full hundred dollars above what it was. Other items, such as the Xbox Wireless Headset, will increase from $109 to $119, marking a much smaller increase but still a noticeable one.
Additionally, starting this holiday season, the company stated that “some” first-party games will increase from the $69.99 price tag to a $79.99 price tag. This will include both the physical and digital versions of the game. This marks the second price hike to games in the US region, as they had previously raised the price to $69.99 in 2023.
The company stated:
We understand that these changes are challenging, and they were made with careful consideration given market conditions and the rising cost of development. Looking ahead, we continue to focus on offering more ways to play more games across any screen and ensuring value for Xbox players
The timing of this news, while not directly stated, does seem in line with tariffs announced by President Trump on April 2nd. These have had far-reaching effects on the gaming industry as a whole. While the president had reversed course on these plans only a week later, China continues to receive a 145% tariff. It was reported by websites like gameindustry.biz in 2020 that, at least in 2018, according to figures from Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo, 96% of consoles entering the US came from China. For its part, the world has also been dealing with a global recession since the COVID-19 pandemic, which undoubtedly hasn’t helped here.
Xbox, for its part, is not the only company affected by this. The Nintendo Switch 2 saw a delay to its preorder schedule in the US due to the tariffs, with some items receiving a price increase when a new pre-order date was announced. Mario Kart World, a launch title for the Nintendo Switch 2, was also announced at $80 dollars, part of what Nintendo of America head Doug Bowser referred to as “Variable pricing,” the company had adopted. Sony, for their part, also increased the price of their hardware across certain regions, though not yet in the US. Ghost of Yotei, the upcoming PlayStation exclusive, was also announced at a price of $69.99, the standard they had set when the PlayStation 5 was announced.
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