Xbox U-Turns on The Outer Worlds 2 $80 Price Point, Reverting to $70 and Reimbursing Pre-Order Customers

Xbox has announced that it will not be selling The Outer Worlds 2 – or any of its holiday games, for that matter – for $80 after all. Instead, it will be kept at $70.

An Xbox spokesperson shared the pricing changes with IGN today: “We’re focused on bringing players incredible worlds to explore, and will keep our full priced holiday releases, including The Outer Worlds 2, at $69.99 – in line with current market conditions.”

Refunds and reimbursements for those who have already pre-ordered the game for $80 will be available via whatever storefront or location the game was bought at. Xbox says that customers should expect refund notifications from the point of purchase, and some sellers may take a few days for refunds to be available.

This comes after an announcement earlier this month that The Outer Worlds 2 would be Xbox’s first $80 game, while coming to Xbox Game Pass upon release as well. At the time, Xbox cited “market conditions and the rising cost of development” as the reason for the price increase on its biggest titles. The original The Outer Worlds cost $60 at launch, and a number of fans criticized the move especially in light of The Outer Worlds’ generally anti-capitalist themes and story.

Xbox raised the price of its first-party AAA games from $60 to $70 for the first time officially in 2023. Its announcement earlier this month followed in the footsteps of Nintendo, which released Mario Kart World last month as its first $80 game and effectively opened the floodgates for other publishers to follow suit.

Despite attempts from executives and analysts to explain the reasons behind continued price increases of video games, consoles, accessories, and services industry-wide, gamers have remained frustrated at the growing expense required to participate in the hobby. Earlier this year, Gearbox head Randy Pitchford faced criticism for suggesting that if someone was a “real fan” of Borderlands 4, they’d find a way to buy it at $80 (the game was later announced to only cost $70).