by Bad news if you live in Sweden and are planning to buy an Xbox Series X|S console, because Microsoft has just raised the price in the country.
This latest price increase knocks the Xbox Series X from SEK 5,695 (Swedish Krona) to SEK 6,195. Regional equivalents would be around $600 / £500 / AU$875. Oddly enough, Xbox Series S has jumped to SEK 3,895 ($380 / £315 / AU$550) on the Swedish Microsoft Store, but is still at the previous price of SEK 3,300 at other major retailers (thanks, Vice Gambling (opens in a new tab)).
Currently, there is no official word from Microsoft regarding the price increase in Sweden. The company also did not warn of an increase for the rest of Europe and the UK. The radio silence is in stark contrast to last month’s price hike for the console in Japan, which Microsoft stressed was “a difficult decision” in an official statement.
Are Xbox Series X price increases inevitable?
So far Microsoft has been tight-lipped about the Xbox Series X|S price hike in Sweden, which is admittedly not a big deal. We know to expect price increases for Microsoft’s current-gen consoles, as Xbox boss Phil Spencer has repeatedly told us in light of console demand and declining subscriptions for services like with Xbox Game Pass.
The only silver lining here is that Xbox’s price increases are more gradual than Sony’s with the PS5 so far. In August 2022, Sony raised the price of the popular console simultaneously across the UK, Europe, Canada and Australia. Japan followed suit a month later. Meanwhile, the US is unaffected by price increases from any of the three major console manufacturers.
It’s sad and unprecedented for a console that’s just over two years old to go up in price. Especially since both the Xbox Series X and PS5 are expensive pieces of technology. Amidst the ongoing cost of living crisis, these machines are already out of reach for a wide variety of gamers. And now that supply chains have more room to watch in the current year, these price increases don’t really matter if the reason is to curb demand.
It seems inevitable that the rest of the world will eventually see the console price hikes, although I’d like to hope it won’t be a trend with current and future generations of consoles.
Consoles and their mid-gen revisions tend to drop in price to let in more young consumers. But those days seem to be largely over, with few systems beyond the portable-friendly Nintendo Switch Lite keeping the torch burning.
