Xbox consoles are getting a third price increase in roughly 13 months. Effective August 1, the costs of certain Xbox models are being raised worldwide by no less than $100.

An Xbox Wire post states that the 512 GB models of Xbox will increase in price by $100 and the 1 TB models by $150 in the U.S. The 2 TB Xbox Series X model is also being discontinued.

Xbox does not list the new prices, but this update would indicate that the affected consoles will soon be sold at the following prices:

Xbox Series S 512 GB - $499.99 (currently $399.99)

Xbox Series S 1 TB - $599.99 (currently $449.99)

Xbox Series X Digital 1 TB - $749.99 (currently $599.99)

Xbox Series X 1 TB - $799.99 (currently $649.99)

It's worth noting that Xbox recently revealed a limited 25th anniversary edition of the Series X with 1 TB of storage, launching in November. The price of this console has not been revealed, but one would have to imagine it, too, will be priced at an even higher premium. 

This most recent price adjustment follows previous price hikes in May and October of last year. Xbox appears to acknowledge the frustration these changes will likely create for consumers and cites the ongoing component crisis as the primary factor for the price adjustments. The company even says it expects this supply problem to worsen by the fall of 2027. Their message reads,

“Last October, we increased XBOX console price by $20-$70 in the U.S. We hoped another price increase would not be necessary, and we have spent the last several months working with suppliers on options. Unfortunately, console storage and memory prices have increased by more than 2.5x and we expect another doubling by the fall of 2027. The entire consumer electronics industry is struggling with the current components crisis, but the effects are particularly hard on consoles. Unlike phones, computers, speakers, and other consumer devices, consoles are typically not sold at a profit, but instead for less than they cost to make.”

Xbox is far from alone in this situation, as both Sony and Nintendo announced price increases for the PlayStation 5 and Switch 2, respectively, over the past year for similar reasons. Valve has also significantly raised the price of the Steam Deck, and its upcoming Steam Machine is priced at over $1,000 due to, again, the tumultuous economic conditions in the tech industry.

The news is another unfortunate blow for Xbox, which has made headlines in recent weeks due to reports of significant layoffs set to hit the gaming division in the coming weeks, if not days. Following the announcement of an Xbox reset by CEO Asha Sharma and chief content officer Matt Booty, several Xbox-owned studios are reportedly at risk of being closed or spun off. Compulsion Games, Double Fine, and Ninja Theory have reportedly been negotiating their future, with further reports indicating Xbox unveiled Ninja Theory’s next game, Senua, during Summer Game Fest to attract a potential buyer for the studio. 

Earlier this month, NBA The Run arrived on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC to mixed reviews. Game Informer contributor Danreb Victorio gave it a 7.25 out of 10, summarizing his review by saying, "As it is, it’s too barebones to wholeheartedly recommend, but there’s a great game of basketball waiting for you if you don’t mind only playing online matches." Today, developer Play By Play Studios announced plans to rectify that when it revealed its roadmap, which includes more content, including an campaign mode.

In a new blog post, Play By Play revealed what fans can expect in the coming weeks, months, and even next year. It all starts today, with a new patch that addresses some bugs and tweaks gameplay, but that's the least consequential of the updates the studio laid out. Next month, players can expect new content and three new players, with a hint towards content surrounding the recent NBA Draft. 

In August, the title's seasons will kick off, starting with Summer Heat, which will reward an in-game championship belt that evolves over the course of the season. This update will bring a new drive camera to provide a more modern gameplay feel, as well as a comms wheel, practice mode, two new rulesets, new shop items, leaderboards, and another NYC court playable in both daytime and tournament variations. This August update will include updates to the player AI, HUD, and balancing.  You can also expect more players, with Play By Play potentially hinting at this update including legends from the past. 

Then, in the fall, new content will continue with new seasons arriving every two to three months, with the studio eyeing new features like Ranked and Ladders for its online play and voice chat. Then, finally, as the blog post says, the "big one:" campaign mode. The studio hesitates to provide full details, but the hope is that it can be played solo or with friends, and locally or online. The current timeline says "spring 2027," but as the studio indicates, "to do this right, it's going to take time." 

NBA The Run arrived on June 9. For more on the NBA Street spiritual successor, read our review.

It's been a rough few months to be a Destiny 2 fan, but it's even worse if you're one of the developers who worked on the shooter over the past decade. Five weeks ago, Bungie announced that Destiny 2's next update would be its last, bringing the live-service game to an end a little less than nine years after its launch. At the time, it wasn't quite clear what this meant for the studio – some theorized the Destiny 2 team would all get to work on Destiny 3 – but today confirmed one of the worse outcomes.

Bungie has announced significant layoffs, which will include "most of the Destiny team," some Marathon developers, and employees at Sony Interactive Entertainment that helped support Bungie, according to a statement from Hermen Hulst, CEO of Sony's Studio Business Group. "We explored multiple alternatives before concluding that a reduction was necessary to align the studio’s resources with its current priorities and long-term goals," Hulst writes. 

As for Bungie's more recent game, Hulst adds, "Marathon remains an important part of our portfolio, and we will continue to support the team as they build on the strong foundation established in Season 1 and 2, and as they work on incubation efforts for future projects. While it’s too early to discuss, we are encouraged by the creativity and opportunities that lie ahead." In other words, it seems like Marathon is safe for now, but it's hardly a guarantee the game will stick around as long as Destiny 2 has.

Bungie issued its own statement as well, justifying the cuts by saying, "Following our final content update to Destiny 2, and with our future projects still in early incubation, we unfortunately could not continue operating at our previous size." Still, the scale of the layoffs implies that Bungie will be left a shadow of its former self, and that's after several other waves of layoffs at the developer in the past three years.

Destiny 2 received its final update, Monument of Triumph, on June 9. Alongside the announcement of the game's effective conclusion, Bungie also released Destiny 2: The Collection, which bundles all of the game's available expansions and content packs into one product.

Game Informer sends its sympathies to the many developers faced with losing their jobs. Bungie's most recent game, Marathon, is one of our highest-rated titles of the year so far.

Fortnite is no stranger to celebrity music artists, having previously featured acts ranging from Travis Scott to Metallica to Chappell Roan, and many others. The next star making her debut is Olivia Rodrigo, who arrives in the popular battle royale tonight at 8 p.m. ET as a playable skin. 

The cosmetic bundle for the Grammy award-winning singer and actress behind hits such as “Drivers License”, “Good 4 U”, and “Vampire” arrives as part of Fortnite’s Icon series. Players can purchase two outfit skins – SOUR and Lover Girl – and a cosmetic set that includes the following items:

• Good 4 U Emote
• Maggots for Brains Emote
• 3 new Jam Tracks ("Drop Dead", "Maggots for Brains", "Deja Vu")
• Olivia's Butterfly Wings Back Bling
• Flammable Sticker Collection Back Bling

These items will be available in the Fortnite Item Shop until July 25. Additionally, Rodrigo appears as an NPC in Fortnite's battle royale mode. The singer joins the game's Chapter 7 Season 3, which recently featured the addition of Rambo.  

Lords of the Fallen II has been delayed to 2027. The sequel, technically the third game in the series, had been slated to launch sometime this year. 

Developer CI Games posted a development update explaining the delay for the upcoming Soulslike action RPG, writing, “As development progresses, we have worked closely with the Gameplay Feedback Team, a dedicated group of seasoned Souls-like veterans within our Launch Creative Team. Their valuable ongoing input, combined with the team’s vision, has identified meaningful opportunities to further refine and strengthen the overall experience. These enhancements will benefit from additional integration, iteration, and polishing time, enabling the team to deliver the highest possible quality at launch.”

CI Games also touches on the strategy behind the new release timing for the title, saying it "strategically positions Lords of the Fallen II outside of a highly competitive holiday period, ensuring the game receives the dedicated attention it deserves.” To CI Games’ point, the 2026 holiday season is already packed with major releases, with a notably busy September and a November that essentially belongs to the highly anticipated Grand Theft Auto VI.

Lords of the Fallen II was first announced at Gamescom 2025. The game is a direct follow-up to 2023’s Lords of the Fallen, which itself was a reboot of the original 2014 game of the same name. Lords of the Fallen II courted controversy in 2025 due to anti-DEI remarks made by the studio’s CEO and global marketing director regarding the game’s "player-first" design philosophy. 

Lords of the Fallen II will launch for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Switch 2, and PC. You can check out every game coming next year with our 2027 Video Game Release Schedule.