Sony Reckons That $399 Is the 'Magic Price' for PS4

PlayStation 4 pre-orders are staggeringly high. Back at GamesCom in August, manufacturer Sony announced that it had already accrued one million deposits for its next generation console – and Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter now believes that the number has surpassed 1.5 million. But what’s been the secret to the system’s success? Well, the price certainly isn’t hurting.

Chatting with Business Spectator, executive Masayasu Ito confirmed speculation that the firm had originally planned to bundle the machine with its upgraded PlayStation Eye camera, but decided against the move in order to hit the magic price point of $399. According to the suit, management prevented the platform holder from including the optical accessory for the same sum, as that would have added to the device’s cost.

According to the report, the Japanese giant will lose an estimated $60 per console sold, but it hopes to make that money back almost instantly through peripherals, software, and services. We suspect that once a consumer has purchased a PlayStation Plus subscription – which is more or less mandated – and a game, the firm will be back in the green. That’s a significant improvement over the PlayStation 3, which almost bankrupt the company less than a decade ago.

While the firm had planned to include the camera, Sony Computer Entertainment group president Andrew House isn’t overly upset about its absence. “Certainly for the earlier part of the lifecycle, the vast majority of the audience that we speak to tells us that their primary wish is for the full controller interface, and there's not necessarily a huge emphasis being placed on camera interaction,” he explained.

However, as the machine matures – and costs decrease – the company will be able to “adjust its messaging” to more prominently include the camera. In other words, a couple of years down the line, you probably won’t be able to buy a PS4 without the PlayStation Eye. For now, though, you could always pick up a bundle if you’re eager to get the peripheral cheap – if you've been offered one, of course.