"The price increases are unprecedented, if not completely unexpected. While buying a new gaming console, the year it came out has certainly always been a luxury; aggressive price cuts also made those same consoles much more affordable after just a few years of being out on the market."
"By the mid-point of each console cycle, the price of a PlayStation was roughly half of what it had been at launch. A PlayStation price curve that used to be down and to the right now looks more like a horseshoe."
"The price cut dynamic first started shifting in the PS4 era. There were only two notable price drops of $50 each, and they happened in quick succession."
"Whether because of declining cost savings from manufacturing improvements, Sony's growing dominance in the high-end console market, or possibly both, it wasn't as aggressive in trying to make its consoles more affordable."
The PlayStation 5 with a disc drive will launch at $650, the highest price for a console that has been out for over five years. Historically, Sony has reduced console prices significantly after launch, but recent trends show a reversal. Previous consoles saw aggressive price cuts within a few years, but the PS4 era marked a shift with minimal reductions. Factors such as manufacturing costs and market dominance may have influenced this change in pricing strategy.
Read at Kotaku
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