“Similar to many global businesses, we continue to navigate a challenging economic environment. As a result, we’ve made the difficult decision to increase the recommended retail price for PlayStation 5 consoles in the US starting on August 21. The updated recommended retail price for PlayStation 5 consoles in the US are as follows: PlayStation 5 – $549.99, PlayStation 5 Digital Edition – $499.99, PlayStation 5 Pro – $749.99 The recommended retail prices for PlayStation 5 accessories remain unchanged, and we have no other price changes to announce for additional markets,” says a blog post from the Japanese gaming/entertainment giant careful to avoid mentioning you know who.
Still in “a challenging economic environment” a company should want to be reducing the price of a product that debuted almost five years ago. This morning Axios reported with a cheeky graphic of a $1 bill like a dam about to burst that these exact kind of announcements were coming, while Wired quoted some Trump minion as saying “I’m probably surprised that there has not been more concern,” about prices spiking. “I think the reality is that we’re at that sort of inflection point, where retailers were reluctant to raise prices because they feared retaliation from the administration. Now the reality is setting in that these are not transitory. There are going to be economic consequences.”