Would You Still Buy A PS5 If The Price Increased In The US? - Exclusive Poll
Being an early adopter of a new console generation usually means a few things: your library is limited, the hardware is largely untested in many ways, and the new consoles are typically at their highest price of the generation. Sony and PlayStation have bucked that final trend by raising the price of the PS5 in many regions outside of the US. After nearly two years on the market, Europe, China, Australia and Japan all saw similar price increases for the PS5. The UK saw a £30 increase, which based on current conversion rates (via xe.com) would equate to roughly a $35 increase in the United States. However, Sony has not yet made any moves to increase the price of the PS5 in the States.
SVG asked readers in a recent survey if they would still be willing to buy a PlayStation 5 is the price was raised in the US. 114 people responded to the survey, weighing in on whether the price hike would put a damper in their PS5 fandom. The response may surprise you.
A price hike would encourage more people to pick up an Xbox
The majority of people, 61% of them in fact, said that they would instead purchase an Xbox if the PS5 got a price hike in the US. Microsoft has already said that it would not be raising the price of its console (per Windows Central), which means it would remain cheaper than the PS5 in the event of a price increase. A more expensive console with more expensive video games would seemingly make for a bad combination in the eyes of gamers. 25% of people said they already had a PS5, while a slim 14% said they would still try to pick up a PS5 if given the opportunity, regardless of its cost.
It shouldn't be surprising that having the more expensive console would be bad news for PlayStation, as there have been multiple examples of this being a sticking point for gaming fans. While the Xbox One basically failed for a litany of reasons, costing $100 more than the PS4 at launch certainly didn't do it any favors. Sony made the same miscalculation with the PS3, offering two versions of the console at launch priced at $499 and $599, both of which were higher than the Xbox 360's base price of $399. Gamers can argue about exclusive games and features all day, but it seems like pricing will always play a factor when it comes to picking up a new console.