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NEWS: PlayStation 5 Console, Peripherals' Suggested Retail Prices Rise in Japan on September 2

The company cited severe external conditions, including recent changes in the global economic situation as the reasons for the price changes.

Sony Interactive Entertainment has announced a 13,000 yen price increase for PlayStation 5 in Japan, as well as price increases for various PlayStation 5 accessories. All increases will take effect on September 2.

Because the yen is tanking. The yen used to be around 100-110 yen = $1, but has been around 150-160 yen = $1

While much of the world, including the US, have been tightening their monetary policies by increasing Fed interest rates to battle inflation, Japan has kept their negative (yes, negative) interest rates as a way to stimulate their economy. That made the yen less valuable than other currencies, tanking against the dollar, and making goods imported into Japan more expensive

Remember when the Xbox increased its prices in Japan by 5,000 yen? Guess the same applies here. Ya can go ahead and call it anti-consumer with Sony's 3rd price increase and larger increase with only a week's notice. Nintendo Switch is already dominating in Japan - this will only make that domination more

How many called this one? Imagine how much more the PS5 Pro would cost

And what a great timing too! With their newest game Concord fiasco: "Concord Dev Has EPIC Twitter Meltdown After Catastrophic Game Launch FLOP"

Ah, so it was low prices that were causing low marketshare, not a lack of games caused by a hard pivot to live service and just a few megabudget titles while also closing smaller studios not suited to live service or megabudget titles.

Ah, so it was low prices that were causing low marketshare, not a lack of games caused by a hard pivot to live service and just a few megabudget titles while also closing smaller studios not suited to live service or megabudget titles.

Quote:

The company cited severe external conditions, including recent changes in the global economic situation as the reasons for the price changes.

More like trying to abandon the Japanese auditory even higher by putting the costs of financial failures on the markets that not really give as much money, right.

For real - the "external conditions" have barely anything to do with Japan, as the current position of yen as a currency at this point is as same as was in November 2023 when PS5 retail prices were already got hiked up for the general market, as it kick backed in recent months.

Sony will undoubtedly lose market share in Japan with this move, especially if Nintendo plays their cards right, but at the same time, Nintendo's reliance on the Japanese market will also not last due to conditions of an aging population and lack of children, who have always been the primary base for their wares. This is also why Japanese 3rd parties have also been making moves to make themselves more appealing to Western Audiences for years, or at least doing what certain consultation groups tell them Western Audiences want, rightly or wrongly.

jdnation wrote:

Sony will undoubtedly lose market share in Japan with this move, especially if Nintendo plays their cards right, but at the same time, Nintendo's reliance on the Japanese market will also not last due to conditions of an aging population and lack of children, who have always been the primary base for their wares. This is also why Japanese 3rd parties have also been making moves to make themselves more appealing to Western Audiences for years, or at least doing what certain consultation groups tell them Western Audiences want, rightly or wrongly.

While Japan's population decline is a huge problem for the country, it doesn't seem to have affected Nintendo at the extent people think, there's a graphic floating around on the Internet that showcases that the Switch's major userbase mainly consists of adults, ranging from 18 to 40 years old.

even if Concord’s steam numbers are legitimately cratering.

Is 25,000 enough