Remember how the PS5 Pro met with widespread ridicule (rightly so) for its extortionate $700 asking price? What if I told you it could be jacked up to almost a thousand dollars in the near future? Like many less-than-ideal things happening this week, it can be tied back to Trump's victory.
According to Trump, tariffs are "the greatest thing ever invented," and this opinion is evident in the way he plans to apply them. Trump has stated plans to apply a baseline 60% tariff on all Chinese exports – which will have far greater-reaching consequences than just video games, but video games are my area of expertise, so stick with me here. It may go without saying, but many components for game consoles (and PCs, and everything else) are made in China – and those that aren't will likely get smacked with his blanket 20% tariff on foreign goods anyway.
Last time Trump was in office, electronics manufacturers were successfully able to lobby for an exemption to his initial round of tariffs, but who can say if they're going to be able to do the same with an emboldened Republican government in power? If these tariff promises weren't just a ploy to get elected by his xenophobic base, gaming in the US is about to get a lot more expensive. All I wanted to do was play Alan Wake 2 at 60 FPS.
