Japanese gamers turn to Xbox as Sony raises PS5 price

Japanese gamers are briefly turning to Xbox as Sony raises the price of its PlayStation 5 consoles and accessories, new sales data from Yodobashi indicates.

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Sony is raising the price of the PS5 in Japan for the third time, and it looks like consumers are opting for competitor systems in response to the cost hike--at least temporarily. Sony has announced that the PS5 will now cost 79,980 yen for the disc model, and 72,980 yen for the digital model. Since launch, Sony has raised the cost of both systems by +60% and +83% respectively, driven by fluctuating values of Japan's yen currency.

Now it looks like Japanese consumers are more open to buying Xbox hardware, at least for the time being. According to the best-sellers charts of Japan's popular Yodobashi storefront, the digital-only Xbox Series X took the #13 spot with a 59,970 yen price tag. The Series S, which costs 49,970 yen, was also on the top 50 list, clocking in at a much lower #48 spot on the Yodobashi top-sellers chart.

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PS5's price history in Japan - Sony has raised prices 3x in the region.

This trend may be short-lived, however. Dr. Serkan Toto, CEO of consultancy firm Kantan Games, believes that Japanese consumers will resume their normal buying habits soon.

"It's just a blip that everybody will forget about next month," Dr. Toto said on Twitter.

It's worth noting that eight different versions of the Nintendo Switch were found on Yodobashi's top-sellers list, solidifying consumer preference for Japan. Interestingly enough, ASUS' ROG Ally was also #8 in the top 10 list, even when its price tag of 139,800 yen.

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