Industry analysts are warning Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo that their relentless pursuit of higher-end performance in gaming consoles may lead to launch prices exceeding $1000. Piers Harding-Rolls of Ampere Analysis suggests that the companies will need to moderate their ambitions to avoid hitting this hefty price point.
Rising costs, driven by factors like the ongoing DRAM crisis and the AI boom, are making affordable hardware increasingly difficult to achieve. James McWhirter of Omdia proposes that hardware stratification across tiers could be a solution, including a cheaper Nintendo Switch 2 with more value-oriented bundles. Manufacturers may also delay new hardware launches to wait out the rising cost of components.
However, this could extend the lifespan of current consoles. Rhys Elliott of Alinea Analytics predicts that the PS5 will remain relevant well after the PS6 launches, with cross-generation games allowing players to delay hardware upgrades. Elliott notes that 'the next generation won’t replace this one so much as sit on top of it.'