A new leak claims to have revealed the Xbox 25th Anniversary Controller release date and pricing. If true, players will reportedly be able to pre-order the nostalgic peripheral in August at Gamescom 2026.
Xbox 25th Anniversary Controller Price Reportedly Leaked
The Xbox 25th Anniversary Controller will reportedly cost $79.99, and Microsoft will start opening orders on October 20, 2026. This latest rumor comes from leak account ‘eXtas1s,’ who made the claim in a post on X. Although it should be pointed out that the popular leaker posted the European prices of 79.99 € / 74.99 £. However, based on recent special edition controllers sold in the US, it’s assumed the price will translate $79 USD.
“The Xbox 25th Anniversary Controller will go on sale on October 20, 2026, at a price of 79.99 € / 74.99 £.”
Interestingly, eXtas1s then claims that the Xbox 25th Anniversary Controller pre-orders will go live in August 2026 at Gamescom. “Reservations are expected to open during Gamescom 2026.” As far as whether this leak is legitimate or not, I would take it with a grain of salt. For starters, the official trailer for the Xbox 25th Anniversary Controller had a “November 2026” date on it.
So the leaked date being a few weeks earlier is a bit odd. Although perhaps he means Microsoft will start taking orders in October, and then ship it in November. On the other hand, Microsoft also revealed pre-order details for the Xbox ROG Ally X at Gamescom 2025, so that would also line up with how they’ve handled releases before.
When Is the Xbox 25th Anniversary Console Release Date?
According to Microsoft, the Xbox 25th Anniversary Console release date is November 2026. At the time of writing, we still do not have an actual release date for the retro-styled hardware. However, with GTA 6 launching on November 19, it would seem likely that the Xbox Series X edition would launch earlier in the month before it.
When fans pressed eXtas1s on whether he knew the release date for the console, he also said he didn’t have any updates on that. What makes this interesting is Microsoft are selling the Xbox 25th Anniversary Controller separately, as well as in a bundle with the console. So it’s not entirely clear whether both will have the same release date or not.
As I mentioned above, the leaker also isn’t clear on whether the October 20 date is when Microsoft are taking direct orders, or if that’s its actual release date at retailers. Regardless, if this latest rumor is true, players can expect to pay around $79 for it, and pre-orders will reportedly go live around August 26 to August 30 during the Gamescom conference.