What you need to know
- After a year of rumors, the PlayStation 5 Pro was finally confirmed, and it’s going to cost $699.99 for the base version, which is all-digital.
- Buyers will need to pay extra for the disc drive and vertical stand, which are sold separately.
- The PS5 Pro will be available for sale on November 7, 2024.
- People have been making memes about the insanely high price point, but even the Xbox isn’t safe.
As someone who has been in the gaming world for quite some time now, I must say the recent announcement of the PlayStation 5 Pro’s price point left me rather taken aback. I remember when the original PlayStation cost $299 back in the day, and here we are nearly three generations later, and the base version of the PS5 Pro is set to cost a staggering $699.99.
Well, the PS5 Pro is real, and it’s going to cost a real pretty penny, or shall we say a LOT of pennies. Coming in at an eye-watering $699.99 in the United States, £699.99 in the UK, and €799.99 in Europe — and that’s before you’ve even purchased a disc drive or the vertical stand, which cost $80 and $30, respectively. It may beat Xbox to the AI graphics punch but still… $699.99?!
Everyone has been weighing in on the announcement from all sides of the gaming camp, the Sony fans, the Xbox fans, the PC players who still don’t understand why anyone would spend $699.99 and not just buy a gaming PC. Even the Steam Deck clan have been weighing in. Here’s our favorite memes so far:
Steam Deck users weigh in
Instead of spending $699 to construct a good gaming PC, some suggest that for the same price, you could buy the premium Steam Deck OLED instead, offering access to a vast array of games anywhere you go. While it may not match the power of a custom-built PC, the convenience and variety of options make it a persuasive choice.
Xbox Series X catching strays
On October 15, Xbox is set to debut three new pieces of hardware: a disc-less, white version of the Xbox Series X, a 2TB Galaxy Black Special Edition Xbox Series X, and a 1TB white Xbox Series S. The Galaxy Black variant has received some criticism, with some noting that it will be priced $100 higher than the PS5 Pro, at $599.99, despite offering additional storage and a “sparkling” finish.
This price point doesn’t bode well for future generations…
Despite some hesitation about the PS5 Pro’s high cost, we’ll soon see how successful this mid-generation upgrade turns out to be. Regardless of its success, the $699 starting price and $599 for the Galaxy Xbox Series X don’t suggest a budget-friendly future for next-gen consoles. As gamers increasingly seek enhanced performance and visual quality from their gaming systems, manufacturers might find it harder to sell their hardware at a loss in order to gain access to games. The Xbox Series S currently provides the most affordable entry into console gaming, but it’s been met with criticism due to developers reportedly facing difficulties producing games on par with the Series X for this console. It remains uncertain whether Microsoft will maintain the two-tier pricing structure as they move forward into the next generation of consoles.
Based on past pricing trends, it appears unlikely that the PS6 and Xbox Next will cost less than $700 each.
At this point, Microsoft doesn’t seem to be planning a direct response to the PS5 Pro, instead focusing on other areas such as establishing a dominant position in cloud gaming and making their studio games like Sea of Thieves and soon Indiana Jones available on the PS5. Even though there’s been some tension surrounding Xbox and its new strategies, Phil Spencer maintains that the console market is larger than ever. Microsoft claims that their next Xbox will bring about a major technological advancement for their consoles, but it remains to be seen if gamers will be willing to spend $699 and more for their next-gen systems. It seems Sony might be inching us closer towards that price point.
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2024-09-11 00:09