Playing video games is an expensive hobby, even more so in the depressing economic times we have experienced of late. With the price of the gaming platform itself, games, controllers, and accessories, one can easily spend hundreds, or even thousands of dollars every year. But how has the cost of playing games changed over time? When Sony first announced that they would initially release the PS3 in two versions, costing $500 or $600, many gamers were shocked and dismayed. How does this console price compare to previous consoles? With a little number crunching, it wasn’t too hard to find out.

Back in 2006, Curmudgeon Gamer provided a similar analysis by compiling the prices of thirty years-worth of consoles and adjusting for inflation. I’ve updated the numbers and added some more analysis. Figure 1 shows the absolute, or original, price of console systems since the Atari 2600 in 1977. Figure 2 shows the relative price of each console, adjusted for inflation and displayed in 2008 dollars. This conversion accounts for the fact that $200 in 1977 was worth a lot more than it is today. All inflation adjustments were made using the Bureau of Labor Statistics inflation calculator.

As shown in Figure 1, out of 27 consoles, 16 of them were priced between $200 and $300. So in terms of absolute console prices, the majority of console prices have been somewhat consistent. However, the trend line clearly shows that the absolute price has somewhat increased over the years, as most of the price increases have come more recently. Some of the exceptions were huge failures (3DO), or relegated to an expensive niche system (Neo Geo).

Figure 2 shows us that since the Atari 2600 in 1977, the relative price of consoles due to inflation has decreased quite a bit. That $200 Atari 2600 would cost over $700 in today’s dollars. In 2008 dollars, 15 of the 27 consoles are $400 or more. Of particular note is how the 360 and PS3 jump in price compared to their previous cousins. Compare this to Nintendo, whose consoles have actually been getting relatively cheaper since the NES. One reason Nintendo was able to keep their prices from rising was because they didn’t always include the most advanced technology. We’ve all heard the joke about how the Wii is just two GameCubes taped together.