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Sony, citing inflation and 'fluctuating exchange rates,' has hiked the price of the Playstation 5 in several regions – but is shielding US consumers from the decision.

The Sony Playstation logo is seen at the Paris Games Week (PGW), a trade fair for video games in Paris, France, November 5, 2023. REUTERS/Claudia Greco/File Photo

The company said it was a "tough decision" to raise PS5 prices for the first time in three years.

"With a backdrop of a challenging economic environment, including high inflation and fluctuating exchange rates, SIE has made the tough decision to raise the recommended retail price of the PlayStation 5 console in select markets in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), Australia and New Zealand," the company said in a statement, and confirming to Gamespot that US prices will remain the same.

Analyst Daniel Ahmad suggested that "The knock on effect [of tariffs] in terms of inflation, exchange rates, and macro trends" may cause Sony to raise prices globally.

According to Gamespot, the changes are as follows;

Europe

• PS5 Digital Edition – €50 increase from €450 to €500
• PS5 Standard with disc drive – No price change
• PS5 disc drive – €40 decrease from €120 to €80

UK

• PS5 Digital Edition – £40 increase from £390 to £430
• PS5 Standard with disc drive – No price change

• PS5 disc drive – £30 decrease from £100 to £70

Australia

• PS5 Digital Edition – AUD $70 increase from AUD $680 to AUD $750
• PS5 Standard with disc drive – AUD $30 increase from AUD $800 to AUD $830
• Ps5 disc drive – AUD $35 decrease from AUD $160 AUD $125

New Zealand

• PS5 Digital Edition – NZD $60 increase from NZD $770 to NZD $860
• PS5 Standard with disc drive – NZD $50 increase from NZD $900 to NZD $950
• PS5 disc drive – NZD $30 decrease from NZD $170 NZD $140

Interesting, eh?