The $500 Console Is Dead

Gaming hardware is much costly than ever. There’s a fewer antithetic reasons things are arsenic atrocious arsenic they are, and I’ll get into them successful a moment, but careless of however we got here, there’s nary denying it’s an perfectly unspeakable clip to beryllium successful the marketplace for a caller gaming console oregon PC.

Even worse is the realization that there’s nary going back.

For the past 20 years, the unsmooth terms of introduction for console gaming has maxed retired astir $500. The Xbox and PlayStation consoles of the past 3 generations each launched successful the $400–$500 range, and past typically got cheaper implicit the people of the procreation acknowledgment to less-expensive “Slim” console variants and inevitable vacation discounts.

This procreation has played retired differently. The PS5 and Xbox Series X some launched successful 2020 astatine that $500 saccharine spot, but successful the astir six years since person lone grown much expensive. First, their launches were hampered by COVID-19 pandemic-related proviso concatenation disruptions, starring to banal shortages that kept the terms locked astatine oregon supra MSRP for much than 2 years.

In the astir six years since launch, the PS5 and Xbox Series X person lone grown much expensive.“

Supply yet started to drawback up with request astir 3 years in, and for a little infinitesimal it looked similar we were heading into the mid-cycle constituent you would expect things to commencement getting cheaper – lone for President Trump to upend the planetary system with a draconian tariff regime. Sony and Microsoft raised their prices arsenic a result, and adjacent Nintendo, agelong king of the lower-performance budget-friendly realm, had to motorboat the Switch 2 astatine $449.

This storm, too, could person been weathered, but past came the spot shortage. Percolating successful the inheritance this full procreation has been a monolithic buildout of AI information halfway infrastructure, which straight caused a shortage of the representation chips utilized to marque graphics cards, storage, and RAM. We’ve written a large woody present astatine IGN astir this ongoing RAM situation – however it’s the crushed for an $899 PS5 Pro, $749 Xbox Series X, and wherefore the Steam Machine costs $1,049 alternatively of $750. We’ve besides written astir however things aren’t going to get amended immoderate clip soon. Valve says the representation situation is “still getting worse,” and the CEO of RAM-maker Micron expects the shortage to past good into 2028.

So, 2029? Maybe past we’ll spot a $500 console again?

Not a chance.

I fearfulness the days of a $500 crippled console are agelong gone. For 1 thing, by 2029 we should beryllium talking astir the PlayStation 6 and immoderate Xbox’s Project Helix ends up being called. Sure, we mightiness spot a discount connected the 9-year-old PS5 and Series X by then, but I don't deliberation the caller procreation has a accidental of landing anyplace adjacent the $500 motorboat terms we’ve travel to cognize and love.

The unfortunate world is that by the clip those adjacent procreation consoles launch, the marketplace volition person adjusted to these new, higher prices. Even if proviso chains instrumentality to normal, tariffs are rescinded for good, and the RAM situation works itself retired (maybe proviso catches up with demand, possibly the AI bubble bursts – who’s to say?), consumers volition beryllium utilized to paying adjacent to $1,000 for their gaming hardware by then. Given that, Sony and Microsoft volition person small inducement to terms their caller consoles immoderate less.

Just look astatine however the GPU marketplace responded to its ain bid of supply-related terms shocks. In 2017 and again successful 2020, the roar successful cryptocurrency mining led to GPU shortages and scalper-driven prices good supra MSRP. Both times, GPUs yet returned to mean banal levels, but the consequent GPU procreation besides saw their motorboat prices heavy pushed up by the inflated numbers radical had grown utilized to forking implicit to scalpers.

I spot nary crushed that things volition beryllium immoderate antithetic this clip around.

Of course, there’s nary warrant that consumers volition travel retired arsenic fervently for a $1,000 console arsenic they person for erstwhile generations, but I person small uncertainty the request volition beryllium there. The Switch 2 is the 2nd fastest-selling console successful U.S. history, contempt its higher motorboat price. Then again, request for the Steam Deck has cratered successful the aftermath of its ample terms hikes, but that doesn’t astonishment maine fixed that determination are presently amended and cheaper options connected the market.

The enactment seems to good and genuinely beryllium over.“

I’m not assured determination volition beryllium overmuch contention to support the next-gen consoles successful cheque though. Sony says it doesn’t program to subsidize the outgo of the PS6. Meanwhile, Xbox’s aboriginal is murkier than ever, but each signs constituent to Project Helix being much similar a PC than a accepted console, and PC graphics cards aren’t getting immoderate cheaper. That’s not adjacent to notation that everything feels much costly these days, arsenic evidenced by U.S. ostentation hitting a 40-year grounds precocious successful 2022 and holding good supra mean rates successful the years since.

Adjusted for inflation, the 60GB PS3’s motorboat terms of $600 would beryllium adjacent to $1,000 successful today’s dollars. Viewed done that lens, possibly we’re fortunate that console prices person remained truthful inexpensive for truthful long. Whatever the case, the enactment seems to good and genuinely beryllium over. Like it oregon not, the $500 console is gone for good.

Bo Moore is IGN's Senior Manager of Tech. You tin find him online @usebomswisely.