Xbox Console Price Hikes Cement Game Pass as the Only Way Microsoft Wants You to Play

Welcome to the era of $80 games. Xbox is the first major game publisher after Nintendo to promise a sweeping price increase for its entire portfolio, save for Game Pass. Consoles, controllers, and other accessories will cost more, but the real cherry on top is the promise that some of the company’s first-party games will start at $80 later this year. It sounds like the sort of thing that would hurt sales, but all it really means is Xbox will push Game Pass even harder than before.

In a note published to the Xbox support site, Microsoft detailed a new pricing structure it’s recommending to retailers. Starting Thursday, May 1, all Xbox consoles will see price increases. The Xbox Series S with 512GB of storage increases from $300 to $380, and a 1TB version jumps from $350 to $430. An Xbox Series X Digital console now costs $550 compared to its previous $450, and the model with an optical drive now costs $600, $100 more than its previous $500 MSRP. An Xbox Series X Galaxy Black Special Edition with a 2TB SSD now runs $730, or $120 more than its previous $600 price tag, and even more than a $700 PlayStation 5 Pro.

The Xbox Wireless Controller, which remains a staple for both console and PC gaming, now costs $65. The Xbox Elite Series 2 controller now starts at $150, up from $145. The official Xbox Wireless Headset will set you back $120, $10 more than before. Microsoft’s gaming hardware will see price hikes outside the U.S. as well.

First-party Xbox games will hit the $80 price point “this holiday season,” according to Xbox. Microsoft’s gaming brand is the first to jack up prices since Nintendo introduced its $70, $80, and $90 pricing structure for first-party Switch 2 titles. It’s only a matter of time before other major publishers take the hint and raise their prices as well.

“We understand that these changes are challenging, and they were made with careful consideration given market conditions and the rising cost of development,” the company wrote on its support page. Gizmodo reached out to Xbox for comment on whether this had anything to do with Trump’s tariffs, but we did not immediately hear back.

As much as Xbox wants to point the finger at market conditions, the game price gouging has been a long time coming. Major publishers have been gnashing their teeth for years over how game prices have not increased with inflation. For instance, Halo: Combat Evolved retailed for $50 back in 2001, equivalent to $91 in today’s dollars when adjusted for inflation. However, publishers have been looking hard at Nintendo and its Switch 2 pricing. The Japanese console maker is promoting digital editions of Donkey Kong Bananza at $70 and Mario Kart World at $80. The Switch 2 is already sold out in most shops that are doing preorders, which is likely indicating to the industry that players are willing to bite the bullet on more expensive games.

Xbox Game Pass remains the only service that’s not going up in price. Last year, Microsoft changed up its gaming subscription service, increased the cost of most tiers, and nixed access to day-one games from its lower-priced console tier. With more expensive games on the horizon, Game Pass may look like an even better deal than before, but Microsoft can always change its policies in the future.

If it isn’t clear already, Microsoft’s Game Pass will be its bread and butter going forward. Xbox is no longer interested in using hardware to push exclusive titles. This month, it brought once-exclusive games like Forza Horizon 5 to PlayStation 5. Xbox head Phil Spencer recently said he would put Game Pass on Nintendo and Sony platforms if he’s given the opportunity.

Based on Microsoft’s Q3 earnings report released this week, Xbox hardware sales were already down compared to the rest of its portfolio. Meanwhile, revenue from Xbox “services,” namely Game Pass, was up by 8% year-over-year. Microsoft now sees Xbox as a service model, and hardware will inevitably fall by the wayside. Rather than make a handheld itself, Microsoft will partner with hardware experts like Asus on an Xbox handheld. Higher prices on all hardware and games, even those from other publishers and console makers, will inevitably push more people to Game Pass. In that way, the entire games industry is feeding into Microsoft’s hands.