U.S. Console Sales Sink as Xbox and PS5 Prices Rise

U.S. PlayStation 5 sales fell 25 per cent through August, while Xbox retail sales were down 33 per cent year to date, according to Circana advisor Mat Piscatella. He says higher prices and growing price sensitivity are adding pressure to the market.

Slashdot has reported:

U.S. video game console sales have fallen sharply, with PlayStation 5 sales down 25 per cent and Xbox retail sales down 33 per cent year to date through August, according to Mat Piscatella, a video game industry advisor at research firm Circana. The figures were shared on Piscatella’s Bluesky account and reported by Tom’s Hardware.

The PS5 decline puts sales at their lowest level since 2013, when buyers delayed purchases of PlayStation consoles ahead of the PS4’s arrival. Xbox sales are at their lowest since the brand launched almost 25 years ago. Piscatella said price sensitivity is becoming a significant problem for gamers, as a chip shortage has led console makers to increase prices.

Microsoft has raised Xbox prices three times in two years. The 512GB models increased by $100, while 1TB models rose by $150, and the company discontinued the 2TB model. The Xbox Series S now costs $499.99 for 512GB and $599.99 for 1TB. The Xbox Series X Digital Edition is priced at $749.99, while the disc version costs $799.99, a further $50.

Sony has also raised prices, increasing PS5 costs by between $100 and $150. The base Digital Edition now sells for $599.99, and the model with an optical drive costs $649.99. The PS5 Pro is priced at $899.99. PlayStation Portal, which streams games from a console, now costs $249.99, up $50 from its $199.99 launch price. Sony also raised the price of refurbished PS5 Slim consoles by $100, bringing them to $399.

The sales figures and price increases come as the U.S. hardware market faces mounting pressure. Piscatella said, “Still, Piscatella says the U.S. hardware market has never been more precarious since the early 1980s.”