How do you rationalize paying a ton of money for a single game?

[doafan]

Even when I haven't purchased a game the day of its release in years the first thing that always cames into my mind is: Do I really need it right now ?, followed by I will have the time to play it ? after that if I have the money and won't gonna use it for another important thing I don't care to pay if not a Ton of money I will pay more the usual, for retro games honestly am only pay more for those that were part of my childhood, for example never played Bucky O' Hare for the NES when I was a kiddo so hell no am not gonna pay an exagerated ammount for this title.

[dreama1]

It's not so bad unless it makes a wife/husband leave. The item doesn't lose its value per say.

If you buy a rare game that in demand chances are you should be able to sell it for the same price  or higher.

But you should feel bad if you spent something that becomes worthless the next day. Fallout 76 is being given away for free in Germany.

You should absolutely feel bad if you spent top dollar on that.

[bikingjahuty]

It's not so bad unless it makes a wife/husband leave. The item doesn't lose its value per say.

If you buy a rare game that in demand chances are you should be able to sell it for the same price  or higher.

But you should feel bad if you spent something that becomes worthless the next day. Fallout 76 is being given away for free in Germany.

You should absolutely feel bad if you spent top dollar on that.

I feel like most Saturn games would probably be a safe investment since many of them will likely never be ported given the complexity of their coding and given how poor Saturn emulation is overall. PDS especially is probably a safe investment since the source code is gone and unless someone develops a full remake of it from the ground up, it will never see release every again. Still, even if that did happen the original would still only be on the Saturn.

[greensoap]

Only game I paid a lot for is Castlevania The New Generation on Mega Drive, because it's my favorite game on the system as well as in the series. Played through it a lot since then to make my moneys worth.

[pzeke]

In this hobby and in any other hobby, really. I used to ask myself this question back when I was collecting comics. Fortunately, other than the occasional back issue, I never spent more than the cover price on a book. but I saw myself tempted many times into buying sought after issues for triple digits.

As far as video games go, I've had opportunities to get certain games I want that would cost me a pretty penny, but I ALWAYS get cold feet. Truth be told, I always get angry for doing so and missing out, but afterward I come to and appreciate I did, because when it comes down to it, no matter how I spin it, I can't rationalize spending three digits on a single video game.

With that said, though, I will get Gotcha Force one of these days. So I guess all that I said up there was just drivel.  =p

[Warmsignal]

There is no rationale. I just close my eyes and smash that BIN button. Well, I tell myself that I'll regret it if I don't, which is usually true. I've never regretted buying something after it's said and done. Only regretted not buying.

After taking nearly a year's break away from even thinking about game collecting, I've got that familiar itch again. But I have to be careful because I don't want to become consumed by it all again, and start spending exorbitant amounts of money as I've done for so many years, on games I might never pop into the system. Because let's face it, if we just wanted to play the damn games, we'd find a way. Emulation, modding, burning, etc. It's about the collectible item. How much does that actually mean to you? For me, it means a pretty great deal.

Recently, I've began a new venture in collecting where all I want to do is just buy original boxes and manuals for my Nintendo 64 games. Just worn out, old pieces of cardboard and dog-eared tissue paper. Why? Because it's cool. I love the original packaging and contents of these games, and the N64 is probably my favorite console of all time. It absolutely won't be cheap, but it means something to me and dammit, I'm going through with it. That's my rationale for weathered cardboard.

I get how much it sucks to spend big on just one item. Hell, some N64 boxes are worth more than an expensive Saturn game complete. On the topic of Saturn, I do still plan to buy Saturn Bomberman and Burning Rangers. Those two I definitely will own, both $300 games, but to me are both really integral to my personal collection. Bomberman especially, because I love the series and want to eventually have all of the Bomberman games. When I come across some additional income, I'll be dropping coin on them for sure. I was thinking of possibly selling some things just to fund the Saturn Bomberman initiative, maybe creating something of a piggy bank just to ease the sting. I don't want to start putting financial strain on myself again for this stuff. It's difficult to believe a single game can be worth so much money, but some of these games really are just exceedingly rare and regarded highly because they really are just good games. I think more than anything, what you're paying out for is a rare slice of blissful history. That's why it's so much. Even though it's just a simple mass marketed product with a barcode, that doesn't serve a ton of function, it's just cool. It brings a smile to your face. I suppose that makes it worth it.

[ignition365]

Subsidizing.  Sometimes I sell some extras or games I no longer want, sometimes I rack up rewards points and use that to offset the cost.  Generally that's coupled with waiting until I can find the game available for under the market value.

[bikingjahuty]

Subsidizing.  Sometimes I sell some extras or games I no longer want, sometimes I rack up rewards points and use that to offset the cost.  Generally that's coupled with waiting until I can find the game available for under the market value.

That's sort of my rational at the moment. I've always resold to buy more, that's the only way I was able to collect video games for years. Using Panzer Dragoon Saga as an example, if I buy it for $750 using money I've accumulated in Paypal from reselling stuff I found for a fraction of what it's worth, I'm only actually out the money I spent the stuff I eventually resold. Let's say that amount is $250 out of pocket for that stuff; essentially I spent $250 since the the extra $500 was pure profit and money I wouldn't have had otherwise.


That might be a bit of logic gymnastics, but it at least makes me feel better about spending that much on a single game.

[bikingjahuty]

There is no rationale. I just close my eyes and smash that BIN button. Well, I tell myself that I'll regret it if I don't, which is usually true. I've never regretted buying something after it's said and done. Only regretted not buying.

After taking nearly a year's break away from even thinking about game collecting, I've got that familiar itch again. But I have to be careful because I don't want to become consumed by it all again, and start spending exorbitant amounts of money as I've done for so many years, on games I might never pop into the system. Because let's face it, if we just wanted to play the damn games, we'd find a way. Emulation, modding, burning, etc. It's about the collectible item. How much does that actually mean to you? For me, it means a pretty great deal.

Recently, I've began a new venture in collecting where all I want to do is just buy original boxes and manuals for my Nintendo 64 games. Just worn out, old pieces of cardboard and dog-eared tissue paper. Why? Because it's cool. I love the original packaging and contents of these games, and the N64 is probably my favorite console of all time. It absolutely won't be cheap, but it means something to me and dammit, I'm going through with it. That's my rationale for weathered cardboard.

I get how much it sucks to spend big on just one item. Hell, some N64 boxes are worth more than an expensive Saturn game complete. On the topic of Saturn, I do still plan to buy Saturn Bomberman and Burning Rangers. Those two I definitely will own, both $300 games, but to me are both really integral to my personal collection. Bomberman especially, because I love the series and want to eventually have all of the Bomberman games. When I come across some additional income, I'll be dropping coin on them for sure. I was thinking of possibly selling some things just to fund the Saturn Bomberman initiative, maybe creating something of a piggy bank just to ease the sting. I don't want to start putting financial strain on myself again for this stuff. It's difficult to believe a single game can be worth so much money, but some of these games really are just exceedingly rare and regarded highly because they really are just good games. I think more than anything, what you're paying out for is a rare slice of blissful history. That's why it's so much. Even though it's just a simple mass marketed product with a barcode, that doesn't serve a ton of function, it's just cool. It brings a smile to your face. I suppose that makes it worth it.

I didn't realize you took a break from collecting. I think that it's sometimes healthy to do so from time to time, and I know when I took a bit of a break I came back with a renewed sense of focus and enthusiasm for it.


But there are only a handful of really, really expensive games I want, let's define that as games that cost over $200. I'm certainly not going to go crazy and buy them all at once, in fact I'll be surprised if I end up buying more than 2 a year from this point on. Hell, if I do end up getting a heavy hitter on the Saturn it will probably be the only one this year since I have some big financial plans around the corner.

[Warmsignal]

There is no rationale. I just close my eyes and smash that BIN button. Well, I tell myself that I'll regret it if I don't, which is usually true. I've never regretted buying something after it's said and done. Only regretted not buying.

After taking nearly a year's break away from even thinking about game collecting, I've got that familiar itch again. But I have to be careful because I don't want to become consumed by it all again, and start spending exorbitant amounts of money as I've done for so many years, on games I might never pop into the system. Because let's face it, if we just wanted to play the damn games, we'd find a way. Emulation, modding, burning, etc. It's about the collectible item. How much does that actually mean to you? For me, it means a pretty great deal.

Recently, I've began a new venture in collecting where all I want to do is just buy original boxes and manuals for my Nintendo 64 games. Just worn out, old pieces of cardboard and dog-eared tissue paper. Why? Because it's cool. I love the original packaging and contents of these games, and the N64 is probably my favorite console of all time. It absolutely won't be cheap, but it means something to me and dammit, I'm going through with it. That's my rationale for weathered cardboard.

I get how much it sucks to spend big on just one item. Hell, some N64 boxes are worth more than an expensive Saturn game complete. On the topic of Saturn, I do still plan to buy Saturn Bomberman and Burning Rangers. Those two I definitely will own, both $300 games, but to me are both really integral to my personal collection. Bomberman especially, because I love the series and want to eventually have all of the Bomberman games. When I come across some additional income, I'll be dropping coin on them for sure. I was thinking of possibly selling some things just to fund the Saturn Bomberman initiative, maybe creating something of a piggy bank just to ease the sting. I don't want to start putting financial strain on myself again for this stuff. It's difficult to believe a single game can be worth so much money, but some of these games really are just exceedingly rare and regarded highly because they really are just good games. I think more than anything, what you're paying out for is a rare slice of blissful history. That's why it's so much. Even though it's just a simple mass marketed product with a barcode, that doesn't serve a ton of function, it's just cool. It brings a smile to your face. I suppose that makes it worth it.

I didn't realize you took a break from collecting. I think that it's sometimes healthy to do so from time to time, and I know when I took a bit of a break I came back with a renewed sense of focus and enthusiasm for it.


But there are only a handful of really, really expensive games I want, let's define that as games that cost over $200. I'm certainly not going to go crazy and buy them all at once, in fact I'll be surprised if I end up buying more than 2 a year from this point on. Hell, if I do end up getting a heavy hitter on the Saturn it will probably be the only one this year since I have some big financial plans around the corner.

Yeah, I had to as I went through a really rough patch in my life last year. But it felt great to get away from this for a little while, and not think about it. I really enjoyed the financial relief, and just the clear-headedness of being away from what is essentially an addiction. I find that I'm already lining up hundreds, if not thousands of dollars to spend already. I really hoped I wouldn't slip backwards into that again, but nothing about my particular interests in this hobby are inexpensive and I doubt they ever will be.

Personally, I don't think I could justify any one piece at $600. I think I really do tap at about $300, even if it's something I have a very close attachment to. To be honest, PDS is really not my type of game, so it would have been wasted on me to even consider purchasing it years ago. Same can be said for most RPGs, so in that sense I've dodged quite a few bullets.

[kashell]

I've seen Burning Rangers mentioned a few times. This is another one that I think is almost worth the price.

All of the game's stage layouts change every time. So, no two games are the same. I think it helps the replay value of it. Also, it has the lovely soundtrack.

[wartoy]

I don't think I've ever payed much over 200 dollars for any game in my collection. I guess that's the high end for me but it's not often I pay that much for any one game. But I have spent over a thousand dollars at once on a bunch of games because I was getting a great deal. It averaged out to about 2 dollars each for little over 700 ps2,ps1,n64 and xbox games. It didn't bother me to spend alot because I knew it was worth it.

[oldgamerz]

The most I ever paid for a console was around $125USD as for a game $40USD for CIB "Banjo Tooie" for Nintendo 64

Plus I gotta a lot of gifts that may have originally cost $60USD from family members