Do you want the bad news, or the even worse news first? Since there’s really no palatable way to deliver this, let’s just roll them both out together: game hardware has seen a significant price surge in 2025, and we should brace ourselves for more upcoming increases in 2026. Mat Piscatella, an industry analyst from Circana, expressed his deep concerns to GamesRadar+, stating, “I’m not afraid to say I’m extremely concerned about” the rising hardware prices we’re likely to face in 2026. To illustrate just how steep things have gotten, the standard Xbox Series X has jumped to $600 from its previous $500 price tag, with each PS5 model now costing $50 more. The original Nintendo Switch, which launched back in 2017, has also seen a price increase, moving from $300 to $340.
“If there’s one way that cloud will ever get off the ground in a meaningful way, it would be to make dedicated gaming devices completely unavailable and/or unaffordable,” Piscatella grimly notes. “It’s going to be one rocky ride in 2026.”
On average, game hardware is now $200 pricier than it was back in 2019, according to industry insights.
Microsoft has claimed that their next Xbox console is poised to deliver a “very premium and high-end curated experience,” a vision that users might catch a glimpse of in the Xbox Ally handheld. Meanwhile, former Nintendo icon Reggie Fils-Aimé has pushed back against fan demands for reduced pricing on the Switch 2, suggesting that the new hardware is actually reasonably priced.
Dr. Serkan Toto, CEO of Japanese consultancy Kantan Games, took a more blunt approach with GamesRadar+, emphasizing that “Hardware prices will not fall,” even for the gradually aging PS5 or Xbox Series consoles. Toto pointedly remarks, “I would like to stress that Nintendo in 2025 RAISED the price of the 8-year-old Switch 1 from $300 to $340 in the US.” Ouch, right? And he adds, “Would anybody be shocked if Nintendo followed that up with a price increase for Switch 2 next year?”
If that happens, it could spark serious ramifications for an industry already focused on growth. As Piscatella highlights, “November spending on physical video games in the US was the lowest for a November month in tracked history.” Frankly, “I expect next year to break that record. 2027—assuming we see new generation consoles that year—will likely witness even steeper declines.” Well, here’s to a not-so-happy new year ahead.