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The Dualsense Controller, which was released along with the PlayStation 5
Sergey Galyonkin. Creative Commons
Sony has raised the price of certain PlayStation 5 consoles. It’s a move likely to be met with collective sighs from gamers throughout Europe, Australia and New Zealand. Why? Why?
Apparently, it’s all due to what they’ve called a “difficult decision” driven by – you guessed it – inflation, wobbly exchange rates, and an economic environment that’s about as stable as a three-legged chair on a windy day. Prices are increasing by At least 10%. Ouch.
According to the official PlayStation blog, the recommended retail price for the PS5 Digital Edition in Europe is heading to €499. Over in the UK, it’s jumping from £389 to £430 – that’s roughly £40 more for the same box, just with added existential dread. Australians will now have to cough up AU$749 (up from AU$649), and in New Zealand, it’s NZ$859 – which is almost as painful as stepping on a LEGO.
Here’s some (slightly good) news: The standard PS5 with Blu-ray drive, and the shiny new PS5 Pro from last year will remain at their current price in Europe and UK. So, no changes there – for now.
Strangely, the US is untouched. Sony doesn’t seem to want to upset the biggest console market. A price hike across the pond could hit them right in the revenue stream – and they’re not about to mess with that cash cow. Fair play for you, but it’s a little slap on the face to everyone else.
No longer are consoles getting cheaper as time goes by.
Meanwhile, over at Nintendo… Chaos
Nintendo is having its own saga while Sony is busy doing its thing. The much-hyped Switch 2? Delayed. Indefinitely. They’re “evaluating demand” – corporate speak for “we’re not quite sure what we’re doing yet.” They’ve suspended US pre-orders until they can figure out what tariffs are doing to the process.
Gamers who managed to sneak a peek at the European pricing online weren’t exactly thrilled either: €470 for the console alone, and €510 if you want it with the new Mario Kart. And speaking of Mario – the new game will set you back a whopping €90 for a physical copy. Digital version? Still €80. Mario would have to deliver the product at that price.
