With economic unrest causing the cost of everything to go up this summer, it’s hard to imagine anyone willing to instead cut their prices anytime soon.

Yet that might be what happens next to gaming consoles if the games that play on them continue selling so well.

As Game Guy noted in his previous post, May was a beautiful month for game makers, with overall sales reaching almost 40 percent higher than those in the month previously. And with gas prices sapping people’s drive for travel, the prospect of a low-cost summer of play in front of a game console has acquired a certain appeal.

Microsoft’s in the best position to make price cuts. Its Xbox 360 can barely match the growing public interest in Nintendo’s Wii. Meanwhile, PlayStation 3 also is gaining ground against its green-ringed rival and expects more help soon from the just-released “Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots.”

But don’t take Game Guy’s word for it. At least one trend analyst thinks MS will trim Xbox 360’s price, perhaps as early as next month, to keep Wii and PS3 at bay. That cut, in turn, could persuade Sony to try offering its own PS3 discount.

How much? Well, in Game Guy’s view, $50 sounds like a nice round figure, and maybe by bundling the discounted consoles with a free game or two the savings will appear even larger. The strategy would tip more buyers who are at the brink of committing to one console or the other already, and it would soothe potential Wii customers who have struggled to get their hands on the motion-sensitive system and are ready to look for something else.

As Game Guy has said, the market for gaming this summer keeps looking better and better. If Microsoft and Sony do as hoped and cut the costs of their hardware, that outlook is certain.