Capcom thinks PS5s are becoming too expensive

Capcom has acknowledged that the PlayStation 5's price hikes have impacted its business outlook, reducing the amount of people that will buy its games.

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Sony's latest-generation PS5 is the most profitable PlayStation console in existence--the company routinely talks about how PS5 players are worth more than PS4 users. That's because the PS5 generation is much more expensive than prior console timelines, with $550 consoles, $70 games, $150+ yearly subscriptions, and $200 premium controllers.

Game publishers are taking notice of these prices and are deeming them somewhat prohibitive; the PS5 has become so expensive that it's affecting Capcom's outlook. The console market wasn't growing before, how can it grow in terms of players if it becomes too expensive? Capcom doesn't have immediate worries--Monster Hunter Rise Sunbreak sold 10 million copies at launch.

In a recent interview with Nikkei, Capcom CEO Kenzo Tsujimoto discussed the 'PS5 barrier' and how the high cost of entry could affect the future of console gaming for Capcom and other companies:

We also found that the 'PS5 barrier' is unexpectedly large. The console costs about 80,000 yen in Japanese yen. When you factor in the cost of software and monthly subscriptions, it comes to about 100,000 yen at the time of purchase. This is not an amount that can be easily reached, especially for younger generations. This situation is not limited to Japan, but is similar overseas as well.

Our next challenge is to overcome these obstacles and get Monster Hunter Wilds to as many people as possible. Sales will begin in the future, so we are currently formulating a strategy to take advantage of these opportunities to boost sales throughout the year.

The Nintendo Switch 2 was released in June 2025 at a price of 49,980 yen (tax included), and the response was better than we had expected. While prices varied by country, this reaffirmed the high level of cost-consciousness among ordinary consumers.