In a shocking turn of events, Xbox officially announced its rumored Xbox Series S console. They had to give in to the rumors that had pointed towards its existence and decided to make it official. The Xbox Series S will be priced are $299 ERP (Estimated Retail Price). The question now remains, how will this affect the PlayStation 5 launch?

When the world was gearing up for the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 announcement back in 2013, Xbox made the first move there as well. But, it did not work in its favor. Microsoft decided to price the Xbox One at $499, whereas PlayStation 4 was priced at $399. This $100 difference was enough to declare Sony as the clear winner in the previous generation of the ‘console war’. The PS4 managed top out-sell Xbox One by a margin and there was nothing Xbox could do about it.

Here, they learned two important lessons: 1. Let your rival make the first move 2. Aggressive pricing.

Xbox Series S announcement spells trouble for PlayStation 5

While they have possibly managed to pull off aggressive pricing, Xbox was again the first one to announce its price for the next-gen console. Even though the Series S is a lesser counterpart of the Series X, it is still a huge deal considering it will be able to run the next-gen games. Xbox obviously failed spectacularly to keep it a secret, but it seems all hope isn’t lost. Its pricing makes it a great choice for fans who don’t wish to spend extra on the Series X. Moreover, this means trouble for Sony.

So far, Sony has unveiled a digital-only and a disc+digital version of the PS5. Rumors suggested that it will cost more than the Xbox Series X. It also meant that Sony won’t have a cheaper counterpart of the PS5 to compete with the Xbox Series S. Additionally, players need the PlayStation 5 to play the next-gen games, since the rumors suggested that not all games will be backwards compatible.

This could be a major problem for the folks at Sony. Xbox now has an edge over them in terms of price. It is one of the major factors influencing a customer’s buying decision and Xbox is currently winning. It will be interesting to see how PlayStation plans to counter this.

Since the Series S is officially announced, it could also mean that a Sony announcement is nearby. For now, the world waits for Sony to make a move. Over to you, Sony!