GameStop’s PS5 Pro Price Hike Shows How GTA 6 and Rising Demand Are Driving Console Prices Up

GameStop has reportedly raised the price of used PS5 Pro consoles to as much as $1,400, putting the system around $500 above Sony’s recommended retail price. Third-party sellers across major retailers and marketplaces have also raised their prices to match the increase.

While the situation is being linked to strong demand for Sony’s premium console, it also points toward a much bigger problem facing console gaming. If you are already looking at spending $1,400 on a console, the value proposition starts to look very different from what made console gaming appealing in the first place.

The reported price increase comes as anticipation for GTA 6 continues to grow.

The game expected to create strong demand for hardware capable of taking advantage of its additional power. The PS5 Pro has already seen its price rise from around $750 to $900 earlier this year, making the new used-market prices even harder to ignore. With new units reportedly becoming harder to find, third-party sellers have also been pushing their prices higher. 

This kind of pricing can create what is essentially a domino effect. One seller sees another asking for more money and decides that their system should be worth more as well, even without a major change in the product itself. Once enough sellers start following the same pattern, inflated prices can quickly become the expectation across the used market.

Once enough sellers do that, the market starts moving based on what people think someone might pay for rather than what it was worth originally. You see the same behavior with other collectibles and products. Trading cards, for example: if a card is in high demand, it can quickly become a target for aggressive markups.

The bigger problem is that this behavior reduces the accessibility of console gaming. A console has traditionally been an easier way to enter into gaming because you could buy the hardware once and then simply play your games without worrying about building or upgrading a PC. That simplicity has always been one of the most significant advantages of consoles. 

That is especially important because affordability has always been a major part of the console market. You could buy a PlayStation 2, then upgrade to a slimmer version, then look at other hardware as prices changed. Across generations, companies have released smaller, more efficient models, offered discounts, and created different ways for players to enter the ecosystem. 

That approach reached a much bigger audience with consoles.

If you weren't interested in paying the launch price, you could wait for a discount or a new model. A cheaper version could be the eventual entry point for people not willing to spend hundreds of dollars on day one. That made the hardware feel like something you could actually save for, instead of an ever more expensive luxury.

PC gaming has become much easier over the years with software automating many of the things that used to require more technical knowledge, but there is still a different mindset involved. You can spend your time tweaking settings, hooking up hardware, updating drivers, and making sure everything works properly, or you can get a console, which is designed to be a more relaxing experience.

That does not mean PCs are worse. A PC can offer plenty of advantages, and living-room-friendly systems are making that experience more accessible. However, the price difference becomes important when a console starts costing $1,400 or $1,500. At that point, you are getting close enough to the cost of a capable PC that the traditional reason for choosing a console becomes harder to defend.

There is also the issue of upgrades. One of the most significant reasons people choose consoles is that they can buy one and expect it to remain useful for years without constantly replacing components. If you already have $1,500 available, though, it can become tempting to save a little more and build a system that you can gradually upgrade over time. 

This is where the future of console generations becomes important.

Former PlayStation executive Shuhei Yoshida has argued that Sony and Nintendo should keep their current-generation systems around for as long as possible. The PS5 has been available since 2020, while Nintendo’s Switch 2 is still relatively new, and rising hardware costs could make a quick move to another generation difficult.

The reasoning is fairly straightforward. Players have limited budgets, and the cost of components for PCs and consoles has been rising. If you already own a PS5, Switch 2, or a sufficiently powerful PC, there may not be much reason to immediately spend hundreds more on another system. 

For you, as a player, that might mean getting to know systems you already own. You might end up holding onto your PS5 or Switch 2 for much longer than previous generations instead of buying a new console every couple of years. It’s not exciting, but it also means developers have more time to work with existing hardware instead of always having to target new specs.

The downside, however, is that console launches have become part of gaming culture. For many, memories have been made of midnight launches, packed stores, people gathering together, and the excitement of new hardware. These are events that are more than just buying a machine but provide people a shared experience around something they love.

At some point, if hardware is too expensive, there may be fewer people willing to engage in those moments. That could make traditional midnight launches and the shared excitement around new consoles increasingly difficult to maintain. The experience itself could slowly become less common.

The problem extends beyond the hardware itself. Game developers also need to consider how many people will actually own the next generation when it arrives. If the price is too high and production cannot keep up with demand, adoption could be slow. That means publishers may have to keep supporting older systems for longer because that is where the larger audience will remain.

That could also affect companies such as PlayStation and XBOX as they decide how heavily to rely on exclusive games. Building an expensive console around a small audience becomes more difficult when players are increasingly hesitant to upgrade. If companies want major games to sell, they need to consider where their audience will actually be playing them.

For now, that could leave players in an unusual position.

Instead of rushing toward the next generation, you may be better off keeping your current console and waiting for prices to settle. A mid-tier PC is another option if you are already considering spending close to $1,500, especially if you prefer having the ability to upgrade individual components over time.

The rumored $1,400 PS5 Pro price ends up being more than one expensive listing. It’s a case of high demand, low supply, big upcoming games, and reseller behavior colliding. GTA 6 may be fueling interest in beefy hardware, but the bigger question is whether console gaming can remain affordable as premium systems inch closer to PC-level prices.

Console gaming has always relied on giving people a cheap way to play. If that advantage is gone, you are no longer picking a console just because it is the easiest and cheapest option. You're making a much bigger financial decision, and at $1400 for a used PS5 Pro, that decision is a lot harder to justify.

The situation may eventually settle down, but the direction is still concerning. If next-generation hardware continues becoming pricier while production costs rise, keeping current systems around longer may be one of the few realistic ways to maintain a healthy console audience.

For now, sticking with the hardware you already own may be the more sensible choice, especially when even used consoles are being pushed into prices that would have seemed unreasonable only a few years ago. Waiting a little longer could also save you some money.