Console bundles: how to tell a real saving from a repackaged full price

Console bundles look like an easy win: console plus game plus controller for less than the sum of the parts. Sometimes they are. The trick is knowing what the parts are actually worth.

Do the sum yourself

Price the console alone at today's price. Price the game at the price it sells for now, not its launch price — a game released a year ago is likely £25 to £35, not £60. Price the extra controller at the going rate. Add them up. If the bundle is below that, it's a saving. If it's below only when you use the game's launch price, it isn't.

Digital vs disc

Digital-edition consoles are cheaper but lock you into buying games from the maker's store at the maker's price. Disc consoles let you buy physical games at retail discounts and sell them on. Over a console's life the disc version usually costs less in total despite the higher ticket.

When prices move

Consoles don't discount much outside two windows: the run-up to Christmas, when bundles multiply, and immediately after, when retailers clear them. A price cut on the console itself happens rarely and is announced; a new model (slim, pro) pushes the old one down within weeks. If a revision is rumoured, wait.

Retailer matters

Argos, Game, Smyths and Amazon compete on console bundles specifically. Currys occasionally. Prices are within a few pounds of each other on the console alone; the bundles are where they differ. Compare the bundle contents, not the headline.