Nintendo and Xbox have made it very clear where they stand on prices
Sony made a bold move yesterday by announcing that it will be increasing the retail price of the PS5 in regions outside the United States, including Japan, Europe, and Canada. Sony Interactive Entertainment President and CEO Jim Ryan said this is due to the “global economic environment,” which basically means that they’re blaming inflation. Check out this post to see the updated prices for all affected regions, which are already in place (with the exception of Japan on September 15).
In the wake of this news, other companies have made statements in response, including Xbox, which says there are “no plans” to increase the price of their consoles, and now, Nintendo is echoing the same sentiment when it comes to Switch prices.
The company made a statement to Eurogamer reemphasizing a quote from Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa back in June during a shareholders’ meeting that they have “no plans to increase the trade price of its hardware.”
This is after Furukawa also reached out to news outlet Nikkei last week to share the same sentiment again. You know, just in case it still wasn’t clear.
While PS5s have been the most famous over the past few years for being in high demand, consoles like the Xbox Series X and Nintendo Switch have also been in short supply due to the pandemic and supply chain issues. What it comes down to really, is that Sony didn’t have to increase its prices, but knows it can get away with it. In 2021, Sony accounted for “46% of all money spent on console games, hardware, and services,” which is pretty staggering considering a ton of its audience haven’t been able to secure a console yet.
As annoying as the price hike is, it all comes down to classic supply and demand. But, the good news is that Xbox and Nintendo have made it clear where they stand on the whole thing. Honestly, I’ve gotten more use out of my Switch than any other console, partially because it has a lot of the games I like to play, but also because its portability is unmatched in my opinion.
Point being, if a PS5 is unattainable for whatever reasons, there are still some other great gaming options out there, and with Nintendo Switch prices still sitting around $300, I’d say that’s a pretty good deal at this point.
