PS5 price hike in Japan drove Xbox sales a little higher (so far)

The recent PS5 price hike in Japan has reportedly driven the sales of Xbox hardware a little higher in online stores and retailers, with more Japanese gamers buying the Microsoft-owned console instead.

Reports online are saying that the recent price hike prompted many Japanese gamers to switch to the Xbox Series X, which is priced at 66,790 yen. Major retailers like Yodobashi have even seen Xbox sales skyrocket, with the Series X climbing to number 1 on their sales chart at the time of this writing.

It’s no secret that, historically, Microsoft has received a lukewarm reception in Japan for Xbox. After all, it’s the birthplace of Sony’s PlayStation consoles. But, PS5 has been out of stock for a while in Japan and China due to the high consumer needs especially with promotions with the recent launch of Black Myth Wukong, so this may also be a contributing factor.

Sony raised the price of PS5 in Japan by around $90 due to inflations, marking the third time such an increase happened. Yen, the country’s currency, has been in its weakest position in recent years, with ¥100 being equivalent to 69 cents now contrary to how it was $1 at the time of the PS5 launch back in 2020.

“In light of the recent fluctuations in the global economic situation and its impact on our business, we have made this decision after careful consideration,” Sony said in the announcement about the PS5 price hike.

PS5 Disc edition now costs ¥79,980 and the Digital edition has a price tag of ¥72,980, prompting many to switch to ¥66,790-priced Xbox Series X.