Do you have a price point system for most games you buy?

S0DA POPINSKI

S0DA POPINSKI

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Just wondering, because I imagine a lot of you do.

Mines a 5 price point system*:

Full Price - Researved for my favorite series or games I have been hyped for for months. These are always games I buy on release day. I will look for preorder deals, but it doesn't matter, it's mine when it comes out. More recent games bought release day - Fable 3 (regret), Forza 3, Uncharted 2, Red Dead Redemption.

$40-50 - Games that I thought looked good, came out, and worth of mouth is getting to me. Friends telling me its a most own. I buy with in one month that its out. Recent games within one month at this PP Mortal Kombat, Batman Arkham Asylum, Heavy Rain

$30ish - Games like above that I can get with in like 2-3 months of release if i really want them. I normally wait for $20. can't really think of any atm.

$20ish - Like above, but mainly just waiting for the cheaper cost. Marval Ultimate Alliance, Punch-Out & Sims 3 come to mind.

10ish - Games I missed out on, B1G1 deals that I'm just like screw it, Games I played and sold but wanted to play again. Halo 3, Orange Box, Bioshock, all of which I bough new and sold..



So whats yours?

*I never buy Limited, Special Editions or whatever at launch so I didn't include these. They may push me $5 up from the 4 other catogorys. Only SE's I ever bought full price where Oblivion & Halo 2.
 
If it's a game I'm excited about, I'll pay whatever the price is for it since there's only a few of these for me every year.

For anything else I'm interested in, I'll wait until it's under $20.

For stuff I'm not sure about, I wait until the next generation of consoles come out and buy it on eBay when everyone is trying to make money for the new stuff.
 
First off, I pretty much buy all my games new online, at Amazon or Newegg. I hate paying sales tax as it sours most deals from B&M stores, not to mention the fact that Amazon almost always matches any good B&M deal, even on Black Friday.

Over $60: The only game I payed over 60 bucks for in recent memory is the Tales of Vesperia Special Edition in the SteelBook case, and only because I had a feeling it would be fairly limited and gain value, which it has.

$50-60: I only pay this much if it's a AAA title that I get on day one to play over XBOX Live with my friends and if there's an amazon credit. (ex: Halo: Reach, Gears of War 2, Resident Evil 5, Modern Warfare 2)

$30-40: I only pay this much for a fairly new game that I really want, this often happens between black friday and xmas where amazon will discount new releases to this price point. (ex: Portal 2, Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, Fallout 3)

$10-20: I buy most games at this price point. These consist mostly of single player action games, JRPGs, Sports, Racing and Fighting among others. This price point also includes all PS3 games and handheld games. (ex: Bayonetta, Vanquish, Devil May Cry 4, Just Cause 2, Eternal Sonata, Lost Odyssey, The Last Remnant, Star Ocean 4, Blue Dragon, Demon's Souls, Metal Gear Solid 4, Valkyria Chronicles, Uncharted, Disgaea 3, Soul Calibur IV, Tekken 6, Virtua Fighter 5, Street Fighter IV, Dissidia 012)
 
Full Price - ONLY LE/CE/SE or exclusive editions of games I think will be harder to find mint later or have low print runs (which lately haven't been many). Also games that have limited or exclusive bonuses for pre-order/day one purchasing such as LoZ:OoT and the cd from Club Nintendo. In the past couple of years, only this year has a game(s) come out that I HAVE to purchase because I want to play it day one and those would be Resident Evil Mercenaries (3DS) and Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon (X360), already paid for:bouncy:

$40-$50 - LE/CE/SE that have dropped in price and Nintendo games only. I don't play online and prefer local multi-player so games like Portal 2, Brink, La Noire, etc. that don't have special editions will never see my dollars til they hit $19.99 or lower. I can always wait on these.

$30ish - Games that I deem obscure like Trackamania (Wii) (recently purchased) or Tatsunoko vs. Capcom, that I see starting to disappear from store shelves. Also Nintendo games when I find a B2G1 or similar deal making them $33ish.

$20ish - $60 games with no physical pre-order bonus or special edition like the above mentioned, that I've waited on. Quantum Theory, Alpha Protocol, Nier, Lost Planet 2, Crackdown 2, come to mind to name just a few. Nothing like walking into Wal-Mart months later and seeing something like La Noire for $19.99!

$10ish - Games that I've honestly just forgot about or slipped my radar for some reason. Also games that I wouldn't normally purchase unless I see it this low such as the Disney Sing It's w/ mic Best Buy had on sale for $9.99 a piece last month. I mean, once it hits the single digit pricing strata, I'm hard-pressed not to get it, no matter how awful the game. Had to convince myself twice not to purchase Shawn Johnson Gymnastics (NDS) the other day at Target since its was only $4.98, but I left it there!

I can honestly say I collect games now way more than I play them, so obtaining a mint copy or y-seal is more important to me and I base when I buy on those metrics mostly. For instance, I just started playing Halo 3 this weekend and having a blast thus far, while I'm sure most gamers are experts on Reach by now. Not to mention I've never played any of the Halo's before, yet have them all sealed! Even worse, I bought it from Target for $19.99 because I didn't want to open my Legendary Edition, so I may not be the best example of a true CAG:oops:
 
My system is (i) if the game in question is above $40, do not buy under any circumstances; (ii) if the game in question is (a) less than $40 but more than $20 and (b) a AAA franchise that I love, wait until I have enough store credit or gift cards from surveys to cover the cost; or (iii) wait until the game in question hits $20 or less.
 
$35-40 for a game I really want to play and know I will like.

And then for a bunch of games I hear good things about that I think I may like I will pay $10-15 for.

Usually I just try to buy it for about the price I can sell it used for. That way I can play all the games I want for basically the cost of shipping.
 
Lately it's $15 or less, unless I have credit or can get in on some good deal. I thought I had cut way back on buying games, but in the past 2 weeks I've somehow managed to purchase 6 games. All were way below $15, but still...
 
Full price for me is reserved almost exclusively for Pokemon RPG games, these are mine on the day they come out. Since sometimes there is less than one a year it does not break the bank at all. I don't care about the other Pokemon games just the RPG's. I haven't bought any other games at full price on release day in a long time.

I can get a lot of DS games on ebay for $5-15, so that is the price point I try to keep for DS games, it has to be really good (if its not a Pokemon RPG) for me to pay more than $15 for it.

If there is an exception it would be for a game that I think is going to go out of print really fast. These are games like the original Electroplankton or if I know there are going to be limited amounts of a game made. In the case of electroplankton I got one just to keep sealed and profit off of, and it worked since I sold mine for around $95 at one point. These are rare exceptions though that come up about once every 5 years or so.
 
Full price :Favorite series, SE/CE, GC for purchase.

$40-$50 :Credits to use.

$1-$30 :B2G1, Credits to use.

Steam : almost any game < $10
 
There is rarely a game I will buy at full price. I may buy 1 or 2 titles a year at full retail.

Besides those rare titles, I go for the $30 price range for newer releases and below $30 (but more likely below $20) for anything else I'm interested it.

I think most of the games in my collection were bought in the $15-$25 range, and VERY few over $35.
 
20 bucks is the sweet spot for games that I really want to play. If its some random game that I hear is good but isn't on my radar then 10 bucks and under is what I'll pay.

My back log is just too big to buy games at launch.
 
Good responses guys. Some of you have way more patience then me to always wait for sub-$20. I wish I could do that, but if I really want it I can't. Plus some games I get for the online play so I like to be in the first couple months that its out.
 
I am guessing that most of us, myself included, have so many games that we can't justify paying more than $30 for a game we might not get to right away. Because if we pay $60 and it sits on our shelf for a year without being played that is like wasting money since the game is depreciating in value as it sits there. You are better off purchasing the game for less money when you are ready to play it.

If its a game with online multiplayer or a big game like Pokemon or Call of Duty that has a lot of online functions I think most people would buy it right away if they want it and start playing it right away.

If you have one system and are just playing games as you buy them then I can see why you would not want to wait, especially if you are finished with all the games you already have.
 
I guess I'm not much of a CAG. $40 is typically my buy-in point for games I really want. I haven't paid full price for a game in a long time, but I will for niche games with long play times (eg. lesser known RPGs with limited releases). Some games I would otherwise ignore I may pick up if I see them in a $20-or-less bargain bin.
 
Full price: Only games that I've read/seen a ton of info on that I think are going to be amazing(RDR) or series that I really like(GTA).

Otherwise most everything is $20 or less before I buy.
 
Because I tend to play through games one at a time, and have a modest backlog, I very, very rarely play a game on release day so there is on point for me to pay $60 to get it right away. The one exception to this will likely be Forza 4 since it's one of those "ongoing" types of games where there really isn't a story mode to play through, it just kind of goes on and on, and I can play it in parallel with any other game. I intend to buy the game on release, probably the LCE if it's good- but I have about $65 in GS Credit that I will use to offset the cost.

Really I don't have a specific set price point for games. If it's a game I want to play right then, and available at a reasonable price, I will get it. It doesn't happen often though since I usually have a backlog and thus can wait for lower prices. I'd say I end up picking up most my purchases around $30 or so. I did buy a few LCE at higher prices last year but even then- I enjoyed the contents so did not really feel too bad about the price. Nowadays though I am more reserved about picking up LEs but will jump on a deal even if I know it will be a while before I play the actual game (example I picked up the FONV CE for $30 at GS).

Ruahrc
 
$13 or 650 points on Goozex. I only make exceptions if I don't have a backlog (which hasn't happened yet) or if it's a game to be shared/played with family.
 
Out of curiosity, what made you think Fable 3 would even be remotely worth full price? O_O

Fable was absolutely awesome. Fable 2 was a failure compared to the first. It was "so-so" at best. Then, Peter Molyneux starts his bullshit spew about how Fable 3 will be better than Fable 2 because of "character interaction" or w/e bullshit he said. At that point, it was just a repeat of the Fable 2 marketing. All promises. No results.
 
What SaraAB said. I play a multitude of online games with my friends, so I hardly play single player games at all anymore. only if the series is one of my favorites or looks amazing will I buy a game for full price. I havent bought a full price game in 2 years or so though, since many are unappealing to me at launch...

Woulda got OoT for 3DS if I dindt have to buy the hardware:p I want ghost recon as well but I cant justify the price at the moment.

Of note, however, is that I have Dark Souls and TES: Skyrim fully reserved right now.
 
If it reaches less than $15 and it's a highly reviewed game, then I'll consider getting it.
Between $15 and $25, I'll get it if I've really been wanting it.
$25 and up is impulse buys, or like Kerig said, games that can be played with others ("fun" games.)

There have been few exceptions to that, such as games I've bought on release day (Banjo-Kazooie N&B, SSBB, MKW, Endless Ocean 2, and Portal 2 are the only ones I can think of) and the one game that I've ever spent $60 on (Skate 2, of which I got my money's worth.)
 
Don't buy full price on any game anymore; this used to be reserved for Zelda and Mario only but now I just wait until I get a better deal. Fact is games at one point were collectible but now since the industry is so mainstream, fact is I can usually wait and get a great deal. Also, I just don't have time to play much at all anymore so there's little incentive/reason to buy anything at launch.

The most I pay for games now is ~$20 and even that is reserved for the Big N's core titles. I seldom ever pay more than $15 for my games.
 
Wii:
1st Party Nintendo (real games, not shit like FlingSmash and Wii Party, Music, Play, etc. - Full price if significant credit given, otherwise $30 or less (Biggest regrets: Conduit (I know, not first party), Metroid: Other M - both dropped in price like sacks of bricks)
For all other games, $15 or less. Usually aim for $10 and under if its not rare.

DS:
$20ish if it is first party Nintendo title or other really rare title
$15 is my upper limit for most games
$10 and less is my ideal spot and what I most frequently aim for.

Steam:
$5 and under if possible. Per game. For any type of game. My average Steam price per game is under $3, including things like the DiRt racing series, PoP series, all GTAs, L4D 1 and 2, etc.

Old consoles like Xbox and GameCube with titles I'm still buying this generation:
Xbox: $5 unless its rare, then $10
GameCube: $20 and less if its a really rare game, $15 is the upper limit for stuff like Nintendo first party, $10 and less is the main price point with most trickling down close to $5.

Obviously with huge backlogs it makes the most sense to wait out any purchases if you're not going to play them any time soon. But at a certain point, games are going to reach a floor in price, especially with online purchases and shipping costs. So I think its fine to add to the backlog then if you've determined a certain game isn't going to go much lower.
 
I only spend retail on games I really, really want as half the time I regret it. Right now, it's pretty much limited to the Left 4 Dead titles. I had picked up ODST and Reach on launch. Got my money out of Reach for the most part. If it hadn't been for getting the discounts from amazon on ODST and the Halo 3 maps, I'd have been more disappointed.

$40-ish is sort of rare too. These are games I hear glowing reviews from friends or really wanna play. Stuff like Mass Effect 2, Borderlands and Assassin's Creed II.

$20-$30 is where I aim for new games. As much as I enjoyed playing say Fable 2, Mass Effect or Oblivion, I waited to get in after they packaged the DLC with it. As long as game companies keep angering fanboys like with the Forza 3 reissue, I'll just sit back and wait. Besides, a lot of these I'm not big on the online mode anyway.

$5-$15 is what I shoot for when it comes to used stuff, niche stuff (Rock Band addons, Guitar Hero titles) and backlog stuff.
 
As of now I get a lot of games to review but even if I didn't I'd still do what I do. I buy most of my stuff with credit (GS/Amazon), get it on Goozex or trade here/or Craigslist. Like a good CAG I also try to take advantage of b2g1 sales etc.

$50-$60 it has to be a series I've loved or that a bunch of my friends are playing online. Currently Uncharted 3 may be the only game I get day one this fall. Recent example include Fallout New Vegas which I got when it was brand new or MK 2011 due to online play.

$40-$50-I rarely buy games at this price point. If its $40 why not wait for the price to drop in another month? I guess like pyoobez mentioned if the game has got really good reviews. Portal 2 would be a good example

$30 This is usually reserved for games that have been out a few months. An example is Heavy Rain. This price point is also reserved for most Wii games, although getting first party Nintendo games at this price can be a challenge.

$20 or less games I may have wanted for a 6 months to a year or longer and I'm just going to wait. A few that I've picked up include Alpha Protocol for $12, Wolverine's Revenge for $11, Bioshock for $10. DS games are also bought at this price once in a great while.
 
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Since most games I can get on goozex for under $20 (including new releases) I'd say that is the about the price point I aim for.

I have such a large backlog there is no need to go over this price limit. I have literally over 10 high quality games per console (Wii/360/PS3) that I need to start let alone finish.

The only time I might cave in is if amazon has a $20 gift card attached to a new release and I have a strong interest in it.
 
DS/PSP
$39.99 - Nothing but Pokemon RPGs, 999 + Watch, and KH BBS.(Not the Dungeon Crawlers Pokemon or the rangers)

$29.99+ - A PSP/DS CE/Limited/First-Run-Only-CE game that I actually want since handheld CEs usually don't drop much. (Luminous Arc 2+SoundtracK only example of a game for DS I did this with)

$19.99+ - A PSP/DS game I wanted, but didn't want to pay MSRP for. (A lot like Phantom Hourglass, Bowsers Inside Story, Half Minute Hero, etc.)

$9.99 to $14.99 - A PSP/DS game I wasn't sure I wanted, but has received good reviews. (TWEWY, Star Ocean: First Departure, etc.)

$5.99 and lower - Almost anything, if it's in a genre I like or received good decent reviews. (Patapon, LocoRoco, etc)

360/PS3:
$59.99+(MSRP) - A game I've been looking forward to for a long time and I want it launch day or a CE I THINK won't drop in price. ( Dead Space 2 CE, Bioshock CE, Read Dead Redemption, LA Noire)

$49.99 to $54.99 - Nothing. If I waited for a $10 price drop I can wait for a $20.

$39.99 to $44.99 - Game I want, but didn't want to pay MSRP. (Assassins Creed: Brother Hood, Valkyria Chronicles, Alan Wake CE, etc.)

$29.99 to $34.99 - If I didn't want it bad enough for $39.99 or $44.99, it goes here. (Not much, just Majin and Far Cry 2)

$14.99 to $24.99 - Game that received high praise, but wasn't really on my "wishlist" of games or I was iffy if I would like it. (Just Cause 2, Enslaved, DMC4, etc)

$0 to $9.99 - Almost anything. If it got decent to mixed reviews, as long as it wasn't totally terrible. I won't buy games just for trophies/achievements, though. (Singularity, Kane and Lynch 2, Hawx 2, etc.)

Wii:

$49.99 - Only a very select few got me to pay this. (LoZ:TP, SMG1, SMG 2, MP: Trilogy, and SSBB)

$39.99 to $44.99 - No. (All Stars is all, or was All Stars $29.99?)

$29.99 to $34.99 - No.

$0 to $19.99 - If it's a really good game or a Nintendo first party game I didn't want before. ( No more Heroes, Zack and Wiki, House of the Death, etc).

Of course all that pricing stuff, except the $9.99 or lower category, goes out the window if I see my backlog is too large, or I'm low on money.
 
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I do not pay retail
$60 games, dont happen anymore. CAG is awesome :)

$30 games i really want, cant wait any longer for (most recent Portal 2 with gift cards, coupons, sale etc)
$20 medium interest in, been waiting for a while most games in this category just get shifted down to the nest one down (most recent purchase from this caregory was fallout vegas)

$10 interested but i have such a big backlog it can wait (most recent Bayonetta)

less then $10 anything with even a mild interest/maybe an interesting concept but bad reviews these are few and far between (last one was Viking for ps3 for like $4 or something....)
 
$60+ : Nothing. Sometimes (Gears of War 2 w/RC Tank, I'm looking at you) my wife will buy me something LE/CE for the holidays or the like.

$31-$60 : See above.

$25-30: Must-have new release special deals (Red Dead Redemption deal from Gamestop right after release). The odd CE/LE deal.

$16-24: Not much. Anything defined above. The odd AAA title.

$5-15: Current gen new games. If I can't find it in this price zone, I don't need it. Patience is a virtue when you want to be cheap.

>$5 Last gen new, current gen used. Last gen used if rare.

>$1 Last gen used.
 
[quote name='kodave']Wii:
1st Party Nintendo (real games, not shit like FlingSmash and Wii Party, Music, Play, etc. - Full price if significant credit given, otherwise $30 or less (Biggest regrets: Conduit (I know, not first party), Metroid: Other M - both dropped in price like sacks of bricks)
For all other games, $15 or less. Usually aim for $10 and under if its not rare.

DS:
$20ish if it is first party Nintendo title or other really rare title
$15 is my upper limit for most games
$10 and less is my ideal spot and what I most frequently aim for.

Steam:
$5 and under if possible. Per game. For any type of game. My average Steam price per game is under $3, including things like the DiRt racing series, PoP series, all GTAs, L4D 1 and 2, etc.

Old consoles like Xbox and GameCube with titles I'm still buying this generation:
Xbox: $5 unless its rare, then $10
GameCube: $20 and less if its a really rare game, $15 is the upper limit for stuff like Nintendo first party, $10 and less is the main price point with most trickling down close to $5.

Obviously with huge backlogs it makes the most sense to wait out any purchases if you're not going to play them any time soon. But at a certain point, games are going to reach a floor in price, especially with online purchases and shipping costs. So I think its fine to add to the backlog then if you've determined a certain game isn't going to go much lower.[/QUOTE]

If I find a $10 and under game that I want to play I usually just buy it at that price point because at the $10 price point you aren't gonna lose much money either way especially if its a brand new game. As you say games will hit a floor price. These types of purchases for me are usually from impulse clearance buys that I find while I am shopping. If you end up with a whole bunch of games that you paid $10 for and played through and that are now worthless and you want to get rid of them you can always sell them off in a group on ebay and you will probably get at least half your money back which IMO is not a bad trade off considering you originally only paid $10 for each game.

I usually try to justify it by saying that that $10 game I am buying now used to cost $50 and most of the time I am right about that, there is someone out there who once paid $50 for the same game I am about to pay $10 for.

The trick is to not buy every $10 or less game you see on the clearance racks, but just to purchase the ones you want to play.

But overall there are a lot worse things you could be putting your money into then $10 games.... I wouldn't sweat it too much unless you are in massive debt (sadly I know people who are in massive debt and they continue to spend and spend and spend).
 
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