Normally, habang tumatagal ang console, dapat bumababa ang presyo. Pero sa Pilipinas ngayon, kabaliktaran: mas tumataas ang presyo ng gaming consoles kahit years after release, and itโs turning โpang-masa na hobbyโ into something that feels like premium gadget culture. May mga units na umaabot na sa โฑ40K hanggang โฑ70K depende sa model at configโhindi na โentry-level fun,โ kundi โmajor purchase.โ
Bakit? Kasi imported lahat โyan. So kapag humina ang peso (lumagpas sa โฑ61 per $1), plus inflation (7.2% in April 2026), plus transport costs na sumipa dahil sa fuelโautomatic, tumataas ang landed cost. Retailers and importers donโt absorb that forever; ipapasa โyan sa buyer. Kaya kahit gusto mong โupgrade na,โ parang ang tanong na ngayon: kaya pa ba?
Pinaka-blunt example: PS5 (disc). Nagsimula sa โฑ27,990 (2020), naging โฑ30,790 (2022), tapos umabot na sa โฑ40,032 (as of May 1, 2026). Thatโs not a small jumpโโyan yung tipong pang-laptop level na. Tapos โyung mga high-end like PS5 Pro (wala pang official PH price), lumulutang sa gray market at around โฑ56,950, so ang vibe: โKung gusto mo, magbayad ka ng premium.โ
Meanwhile, mixed ang galaw ng ibang brands. Xbox (Series X/S) dito, malaking factor ang parallel imports, kaya mas โfluidโ ang presyoโmay units na bumababa depende sa supply. Nintendo, on the other hand, mas upfront sa higher pricing for newer hardware: Switch 2 is already around โฑ31,990, with bundles going up to โฑ35,500, habang older models like Switch OLED bumababa na to around โฑ15.5K range. Pero pinaka-grabe sa price range? Handheld gaming PCsโyung tipong โฑ36,995 to โฑ56,995 for ROG Ally variants, and โฑ64K to โฑ73K territory for higher configs like Legion Go 2 listings.
Bottom line: kung dati consoles ang โcheaper entryโ into gaming, ngayon mas maraming kabataan ang mapipilitang mag-delay, mag-secondhand, or mag-subscription/streaming route kaysa bumili ng brand-new hardware. At kapag ganito ang trend, hindi lang โconsole priceโ ang naapektuhanโpati kung anong platform ka magco-commit, kasi mas mahal na lumipat o mag-upgrade.
Image from Vanamo Online Game Museum