Former Blizzard president Mike Ybarra has recently thrown shade at Microsoft’s Xbox price hikes, claiming that they are motivated by profit issues, not tariffs. 2025 has marked a difficult time for the gaming industry, as essentially all console manufacturers raised prices after the United States imposed tariffs on the rest of the world, and Xbox was no exception.
Microsoft has recently raised the price of Xbox consoles for the second time in 2025. Back in May, the company hiked the price of the Xbox Series X/S, also affecting some limited-edition controllers and other gaming devices. In the latest announcement, Microsoft revealed that the price of the Xbox Series S 512GB will go from $380 to $400, with the 1TB model going from $430 to $450. The Xbox Series X Digital will increase from $550 to $600, and the standard edition will become available for $650 instead of the usual $600. The latest price increases will take effect on October 3 in the United States.
Mike Ybarra has recently addressed these changes, saying that while the first price hikes were indeed necessary due to the tariffs imposed on other countries by US President Donald Trump, the reason the...
