Xbox, not content to let Sony soak up all the negative press for today, has decided that it, too, would like to get in on some of that tasty public flagellation. The company has announced that it would yet again be raising the price on its Xbox consoles, with 512 MB models going up $100 and 1 TB models jumping up by $150.
Xbox notes in its post that the price of computer storage and memory continue to rise, contributing to this second price increase in the last eight months. It’s also worth noting that there will be a ton of people looking for a console upgrade now that GTA VI is, for real this time, imminent, and there’s a business case for trying to squeeze as much money out of consumers as possible. Either way, in the immortal words of Fallout 4 (which should at this point be just be Xbox’s new slogan): “Everybody disliked that.” Here’s what people had to say.
If you’re one of those consumers looking to buy a new Xbox, but currently find yourself priced out, don’t worry, Xbox has you covered. In its pricing announcement, it also shared that it would revamp its Buy Now Pay Later program so you can pay for your console in chunks. Additionally, through Amazon, Xbox is offering 0 percent APR financing to help you buy a console. Guys, I think something has gone horribly wrong here.
Remember, friends, this console is six whole-ass years old. Six.
I genuinely do not understand announcing the Xbox price hike this far in advance.
And on GTA 6 pre-order day?
This isn’t stepping on a rake, it’s smacking dynamite with a hammer. pic.twitter.com/8Cf7GVBh59
— Reforge Gaming (@ReforgeGaming) June 25, 2026
This is unaffordable and I sympathize with anyone looking to buy a gaming console in this economy
Delay Project Helix and PlayStation 6 indefinitely, no one can afford this
Focus on the hardware that we already own because this aint it https://t.co/fZFizkxAOA
— Parris (@vicious696) June 25, 2026
Though Xbox has blamed this increase on rising memory costs, it has failed to name Microsoft’s own pursuit of generative AI (along with the rest of the tech industry) as the reason costs are going up so much. To do so would mean acknowledging, at least in part, its own hand in why it now costs $500 for a console that released, and I cannot stress this enough, six years ago.
But the gamers, at least, aren’t that dubious.
