After a few price increases, the PS5 will now set you back $599 for the digital edition, but Sony has just announced a cheaper $350 console – but it's exclusive to Japan.
In a blog post, Sony announced that it was launching a Japan-only digital 'Midnight Black' PS5 for 55,000 Yen, or approximately $350, on November 19, the same day as Grand Theft Auto 6. At this point, with hardware prices being what they are, launching an affordable console like this worldwide might genuinely break sales records. However, the console will only be available in Japan.
According to Sony, this model can "only be used with a PlayStation account that has the system language set to 'Japanese' and the 'Country/Region' set to 'Japan.'" While there might be a way to game the system if you're really committed to it, for most people, this version of the PS5 is effectively exclusive to Japanese users.
This isn't the first time Sony has released a cheaper PS5 for the Japanese market. Back in November 2025, Sony announced a digital PS5 at the same 55,000 Yen price that was similarly exclusive to Japanese users, according to Polygon. However, a lot has changed in the year since then, and it's not just the fancy new colorway.
Pretty much the entirety of 2026 has been marred by price increases at the hands of AI datacenters. This RAMageddon isn't going to let up any time soon, and has already caused Sony to raise the price of the PS5 and PS5 Pro here in the US back in March. And, now that used PS5 Pros are going for around $1,400, there's likely another price increase around the corner.
So, it's unlikely that Sony is going to announce a similarly-priced PS5 here in the US or in Europe any time soon. However, that 'Midnight Black' colorway doesn't exist here, with the closest version being the Black PS5 sold by Gamestop. But this new, slightly-different colorway is exclusive to Japan, and I'd love to see it released over in the US, even if it carries the same price as any other PS5.