You'd better start getting used to the price hikes that have dominated the world of gaming over the past few years, as one leaker has revealed the potentially eye-watering amount of money you'd need to spend to get yourself the next generation Xbox console.
Many expected Rockstar to be the ones to break the $70 glass ceiling when it came to game prices this year with the release of GTA 6, but it actually ended up being Nintendo who revealed $80 titles alongside the new Switch 2 console release.
People have branded this the 'hidden cost' of owning a games console in 2025, and it has since extended out to the other major platforms with Xbox recently revealing one of its biggest upcoming games under the raised price tag.
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While the aforementioned Switch 2 did receive some criticism for its price increase over its predecessor, we're still yet to see quite how much of a bump the next generation of PlayStation and Xbox consoles will get when they drop in the coming years.
Microsoft reveals major partnership for future consoles
Alongside the reveal of a new handheld console, which many had been waiting over a decade for, Microsoft also announced a long-term partnership with chip maker AMD - with the next major home console being the first display of this technological potential.
While this isn't a new thing in the gaming world, as the PS5 and Switch 2 both feature custom AMD and Nvidia SoCs, Microsoft's supposed move away from the traditional console model into something that more strongly reflects the PC market could suggest a worrying price point.
How much could the next Xbox cost?
According to renowned leaker Kepler_L2 on X, who previously correctly revealed the Switch 2's specifications, the next generation Xbox console could cost over $1,000.
"Multiple storefronts = Console has to be sold at a profit," Kepler wrote in response to the news of Microsoft's AMD partnership, adding that we should "get ready for the first >$1000 console boys."
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This would be quite a significant jump over the price of the Xbox Series X and Series S, which are currently $599.99 and $379.99 respectively - and that's even after a mid-generation price hike.
Why will the Xbox cost that much?
Kepler's point about multiple storefronts being allowed on the console is perhaps the most pertinent here, as all of the main console makers primarily rely on profits made from software, as hardware is often sold at a loss in order to get people onto the ecosystem.
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Having locked storefronts controlled exclusively by the console maker ensures that they're getting the most profit possible, but having other options like Steam or the Epic Games Store complicates things more as they'll need a cut on top of the game's publisher.
Therefore that could mean that the console itself is more expensive as a means to increase the profit margin in lieu of game sales, but gamers themselves won't be paying any less for the titles that they're buying so it'll end up costing everyone more in the long run.
Additionally, a partnership with AMD also suggests that the hardware inside the console will be more powerful and beginning to compete with the PC space which has long since offered far more expensive options for those willing to pay up.
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Xbox's upcoming handheld console release in partnership with Asus could very well be the beginning of Microsoft's higher-priced hardware initiative with numbers between $700 and $1,000 being thrown around by insiders.
We're still likely a couple of years away from the next console generation though, so only time will tell quite how much Microsoft is willing to stretch to when releasing its next major piece of Xbox hardware.