I suppose the implicit corollary to any such pricing statement is “for now,” but yes, the U.K.’s going to enjoy an exclusive, permanent Xbox One price drop on the core system this Friday, February 28. Make that a £30 delta, falling from £430 (about $715) to £400 (about $665). And yes, relative value of the dollar or no, the Xbox One is kind of pricey across the pond right now.
Microsoft’s U.K. marketing director Harvey Eagle announced the price adjustment in a press release this morning, writing:
At Xbox, we believe there’s never been a better time to join the new console generation. To help our fans do just that, Xbox One will be available at the new UK estimated retail price (ERP) of £399.99 from February 28th.
What’s more, Eagle says Microsoft will throw in a copy of Titanfall for that same £399.99 price “while supplies last.” The Titanfall deal includes “special edition Titanfall packaging,” the console itself, Kinect, a wireless controller, an Xbox One headset, one month of Xbox Live Gold and a digital copy of Respawn and EA’s upcoming online-only mech shooter.
While the Xbox One sold by itself remains $500 in the U.S., Microsoft’s apparently offering the Titanfall bundle deal everywhere. If you’re in the U.S., you can order direct from the Microsoft Store, where Microsoft promises release-day delivery (March 11) if you preorder by 12 P.M. PST March 8.
Whither price relief on the standalone model in other territories? Speaking to OXM, Eagle says it’s all about the U.K. right now: “There’s no announcements in other countries planned, so it’s a UK-only adjustment and we feel this is the right thing to do in our market.”
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