Microsoft Increases Prices Globally for Xbox Consoles, Controllers, Headsets, and Games Due to Market Conditions and Development Costs

Alright, so Microsoft just dropped a bomb with a major price hike for the Xbox lineup. Like, out of nowhere, right? Suddenly, our favorite consoles aren’t just good ol’ gaming buddies but are starting to cost almost as much as a small vacation. I mean, the Xbox Series X at $599.99 is kind of like, what? Anyway, where was I going with this? Oh yeah, the controllers and headsets got a similar wallet shock. Controllers now at $64.99—honestly, makes you wonder what they’re made of now. Gold?

And games, oh boy. First-party games launching this holiday—brace yourselves—$79.99 a pop. That’s steep, but I guess they’re justifying it with that “rising development costs” spiel. Not Game Pass though, that’s still hanging in there without a price bump. At least for now, so fingers crossed they don’t change their minds.

So, here’s the rundown: Xbox Series X, now $599.99, up by $100 because, why not? And if you want 2TB storage in that snazzy Galaxy Black color, cough up $729.99. No disc drive? That’s $549.99. The Series S 512GB jumped to $379.99, and the 1TB—$429.99.

Anyway—tangent alert—love how they say, these prices are “carefully considered.” Sure. Like, could’ve fooled us, right? Microsoft’s reasoning? Blame it on market conditions, development costs, and oh yeah—trade policy uncertainties. Just fancy talk for “things are expensive, folks.”

But here’s a weird twist—I mean, isn’t there always? Xbox Game Pass prices remain unchanged for now. They already hiked it in mid-2024 and fiddled with it a bit in June 2023, so maybe that’s why there’s no change this time around.

Curious how it pans out? Stay tuned, keep an eye on updates. Who knows what they’ll do next? Brace yourselves, Xbox fans.