Microsoft has announced a major price increase to its Xbox range, and it's going to impact more than just the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S consoles.
It will affect the UK, North America, Australia and Europe, with accessories and first-party games also going up, meaning new and existing Xbox gamers are going to feel the sting.
Starting with the consoles, the Xbox Series S, which we reviewed at £250 / $300 / AU$500 back in 2021, will now carry a recommended retail price of £300 / $380 / AU$550.
The Xbox Series X, on the other hand, will increase from £449 / $499 / AU$749, to £500 / $600 / AU$850. Price increases are also hitting the 512GB version of the Xbox Series S, the discless Xbox Series X Digital, and the 2TB Xbox Series X.
Furthermore, Microsoft states that "Xbox Series S and X availability may continue to change over time depending on the retailer and by country."
We're not entirely sure what this entails, but it could hint towards stock shortages that harken back to this console generation's early days, in which Xbox and PlayStation consoles were hard to come by.
Alongside the consoles, controllers are set to become more expensive, with the standard remote now costing £60 / $65 / AU$100; for reference the Xbox Wireless Controller originally launched at £55 / $60 / AU$90.
Xbox's official headsets (both the wired and wireless versions) are also getting a price hike, though it will only affect the US and Canada.
Finally, Microsoft has confirmed that first-party game titles will also get more expensive. It states that some titles will go up to $80 by the "holiday season" (presumably December), though it hasn't confirmed international pricing for future games quite yet.
Microsoft cites "market conditions and the rising cost of development" as the reasons behind this price increase, and it isn't the only company that's feeling the pressure.
Sony announced that the PlayStation 5 will become more expensive due to “a challenging economic environment” last month. Furthermore, Nintendo has raised eyebrows with its pricey new Switch 2 console, which features games priced similarly to the incoming Xbox increase.
We're willing to bet that the vaguely named "market conditions" and "challenging economic environment" are in reference to the tariff situation in the United States. Microsoft primarily manufactures its Xbox hardware in China, which is currently subject to substantial tariff rates, so while it's disappointing to see a price increase, it's not entirely surprising.
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