What looked like a rumor only a short while ago has now become official. Sony really is raising prices across several PlayStation products, meaning the PlayStation 5, the PlayStation 5 Pro, and the PlayStation Portal are all getting more expensive in yet another blow for players this generation.
French content creator Gyo had previously claimed on Twitter that Sony warned retailers about an incoming price increase across almost the entire product line, with only one exception. At the time, that was still being treated as a rumor, but Sony has since confirmed the move itself, which means the new wave of price hikes is now official. The changes are set to take effect on April 2 and will hit multiple pieces of PlayStation hardware.
The PlayStation Portal, currently priced at 220 euros, is moving up to 250 euros, which means a 30-euro increase or roughly 13.6%. The disc-based PlayStation 5 had been sitting at 550 euros, but will now jump to 650 euros, a brutal 100-euro increase equal to 18.2%. The PlayStation 5 Pro is not being spared either: Sony’s mid-generation upgrade will rise from 800 euros to 900 euros, which again means a 100-euro increase and a 12.5% hike.
There had previously been uncertainty about the PlayStation 5 Digital Edition, but the official announcement has now confirmed that this model is affected as well. It is going from 500 euros to 600 euros, which works out to a flat 20% increase. At that point, this really does become painful. It also marks the third major price adjustment since the console family launched in 2020. The first came in August 2022, when the base and digital models both rose by 50 euros, and then last April the digital version was hit with another 50-euro increase.
And if anyone thought the situation could not get more awkward, it absolutely can. If the disc-based PlayStation 5 really settles at 650 euros, then it becomes more expensive than the Xbox Series X, which currently sits at around 600 euros. That is no longer just uncomfortable, it is actively embarrassing for Sony. The company is pointing to global economic pressure and rising costs, but that is not likely to make players feel any better, especially when this entire generation is increasingly becoming associated with constant price hikes and repeated corrections instead of the usual long-term slide downward.
Source: WCCFTech
