By The ramifications of Donald Trump's proposed 25 per cent tariffs on $250 billion (£196.6 billion) of imports from China aren't particularly popular with quite a lot of people, and according to Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo they could end up making the PS5, Xbox Scarlett and new Nintendo Switch far more expensive than anyone expected.
The next generation of consoles has been teased as being relatively affordable - some analysts even reckon they might have come in under £400 apiece - but the Trump administration's new tariff would blow that out of the water.
A seven-page letter to the Office of the United States Trade Representative co-signed by Linda K Norman from Microsoft, Devon Pritchard from Nintendo and Jennifer Liu from Sony Interactive Entertainment points out that the extra cost would "injure consumers, video game developers, retailers and console manufacturers".
It also says that in America, 96 per cent of all consoles sold in 2018 were made in China, and that the tariff could lump consumers with an extra $840 million on their bill this Christmas (not each, cumulatively.)
"Microsoft, Nintendo, and [Sony Interactive Entertainment] collectively invest billions of dollars in research and development in the U.S. to develop and deliver inventive consoles and next-generation technology to our customers," the letter reads.
"Microsoft, for instance, has over 2,000 issued and pending U.S. patents for innovations originally created for gaming. Instituting tariffs would lead to reduced [research and development] investment, as console makers scale back on revolutionary new technologies."
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Best PlayStation 4 Accessories
Sony Gold Wireless Headset
If you’re going to get relentlessly heckled in broken English by awful teenagers, you might as well do it in brilliant 7.1 Virtual Surround Sound. Sony’s official headset is also optimised to comfortable fit over PSVR headsets and, what’s more, game developers worked with the tech giants to create bespoke audio modes for different titles.
Seagate 2TB External Hard Drive
You’ve possibly been downloading PlayStation 4 for five years now, and games are only getting bigger. Make sure you don’t run out of space with this Seagate 2TB external hard drive, which you simply plug into your console.
PSVR
After a slow start, PSVR has racked up a formidable library of genuinely transcendent titles including Moss and Firewall: Zero Hour. This is set to be another big year for the big, glowing headset.
Limited Edition DualShock 4 Controller
Sony released this limited-edition controller to celebrate selling 55 million PlayStation consoles worldwide. Its translucent dark blue cover lets you peer into the springs and doohickeys inside the handset
DualShock 4 Charging Station
PlayStation 4 controllers run out of puff much too often. Make sure they’re always powered up with this DualShock 4 station, which is able to charge two controllers at a rapid pace for quick changeover
