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Gaming Budgets... Do you have one? Do you stick with it?

J-Cat

Shared on Sun, 03/14/2010 - 13:10

Both this gaming season and last gaming season, I created a gmaing budget and, for hte most part I stuck with it. I found that I was wasting lots of money on games I didn't *love*. What I found worse than losing money was losing time. I don't game as much as some (most?) of the folks on this site. If i can get 3 hours a night in I am SO lucky... but that doesn't happen too often. I'm looking at 2 hours usually. I never game Fridays, and rarely Saturday nights (unless I'm sick) and usually during the week I get somewhere between 2-4 nights in. Sometimes it's none. Considering I swear some of you are on all night, every night: my gaming time is tight. So all this translates into something from 4-12 hours in a week. Again, unless I'm sick and it's just what I want to do instead of feeling miserable with a cup of tea and a book.

So, in light of my tight time budget, I decided to not purchase games that I wouldn't have time for in order to make time for the genres and game that I would love. This means FPS games have all but gone from my library. Last year, if I remember correctly, I budgeted for Fallout 3, and Batman Arkham Asylum. I know there was one more, but I can't remember it. But after all was said and done, my man said to me... "Hun, Fable 2 has a dog... you KNOW you want it..." And since I had the time... I went against my buget. Lo and behold, I did love Fable 2. So it wasn't a waste of my time.

This year on my budget I have Mass Effect 2, Dragon's Age: Origins, Final Fantasy XIII and Spliinter Cell: Conviction as well as their respective DLC. So that means I have eaten up my budget my mid-April... and next "season" doesn't start until fall. That is it for moi.

So... how do you guys (and gals) set a gaming budget? Or do you? Is it $ that is the driver, or time? When do you create this budget? Is it like me, where I know at the start of the year what games I will purchase, or do you day "I get one game a month." and wait and see what tickles your fancy at that time?

 

EdIT: Dammit... I wanted to change my avatar... but my pic is too small... gotta go crop it. In the meantime, ya'll get pixelated moi

Comments

DLogan's picture
Submitted by DLogan on Mon, 03/15/2010 - 20:55
I used to buy games because I was just bored. I ended up with a lot of unfinished games that way. Now I watch E3 very carefully, read reviews, listen to podcasts and talk to friend. I do my research and by holiday season I pretty much know what games I am going to buy for the next year. If two games come out at the same time I will only buy one since I can't really get fully into more than one game at a time. That saves me money because by the time I'm ready for that 2nd game it's usually available at a discount. I have to really be into a game to buy it brand new anymore. So far this year I've only gotten Mass Effect 2. I was thinking about Super Mario Brother Wii but by the time I get it it will be in the discount bin of course. I also look for online specials. Many stores will have deals when a game comes out or at Christmas. I think that is when I buy the most games at once. I got Left 4 Dead 2 brand new for $35. Even though I wasn't ready to play it I figured I wouldn't get it cheaper than that anytime soon. Speaking of which...I need to find someone to play that with. OK...time for more ME2.
Falelorn's picture
Submitted by Falelorn on Sun, 03/14/2010 - 13:22
I do have one and I often go over it... this month I had budgeted enough for God of War 3, Metro 2033, Supreme Commander 2 and Dragon Age Origins Awakenings... needless to say upping GOW3 to the Legendary pack, Batman AA for PC, Wireless 360 controller for my PC and then there is Red Steel 2 and Just Cause 2 at the end of the month to also buy... plus a couple of other RPGs that I am moving to next month... thankfully next month is slower game release wise...
SoylentWhite's picture
Submitted by SoylentWhite on Sun, 03/14/2010 - 13:24
Curse you J-Cat, I was going to talk about this in one of my blog posts in the near future. I try not to set a budget. For me it tends to be whatever suits my fancy at the time. To offset costs I try to play the trade-in game or stay behind the curve. I don't have to have that hot new release the day it launches with very few exceptions (Tom Clancy games being one of them). Hell, I still don't have MW2. I wanted Brutal Legend pretty bad after playing the demo but I've been patient. Now, I'll be picking it up for the price of $20 (less if I find it used). For me it's all about quantity. I can get so many more games if I don't buy them on launch day. Plus, it leaves me the money for that on must-have game every quarter or so. I spend a lot of money on DLC too. For what some people pay for a new game each month I can usually get two or three older games plus a few rock band songs and a car pack for Forza. To me, that's a much better deal than one new game.
Falelorn's picture
Submitted by Falelorn on Sun, 03/14/2010 - 13:34
I have to start trading in games.... I have a good 8 or 10 games that are doubles on the same platform (review copies) and then games on other platforms that I play on the 360 (Wet, Fallout 3, Batman AA, etc) I wish trade in places took older PS2, Xbox, GC games... I have a TON of them, 300 or so games at least...
MutusLetum's picture
Submitted by MutusLetum on Sun, 03/14/2010 - 14:16
I am on a budget of a game every other month. Any more than that, and I don't feel like I've gotten my money's worth or that I've spent enough time with the game. Sometimes, I will forego several months (usually the summer) when I know that a crazy season is coming up (usually the pre-holiday rush). I also try to avoid games that are shorter experiences unless it's a year or more after the game's release when I can pick it up cheap. I always try to evaluate hours of entertainment per dollar spent, and I have to know when I buy a game that it will be at least a 1:1 ratio. Going by that, it's a pretty cheap form of entertainment. This year, it has been ME2 in January, and Bad Company 2 in March. I don't have a game slated for May yet, because BC2 has me hooked. I could see myself playing that all summer long.
ArminK's picture
Submitted by ArminK on Sun, 03/14/2010 - 14:52
Though I don't technically have a budget, I often/always do a cost to entertainment ratio to decide when to buy a game(used) or new. As an example....take an RPG and DLC and say it costs $100....and 100 hrs of play...at $1 an hour, THAT is good cheap entertainment. So games with short campaigns with no co op and a shoddy MP don't see me any time soon.....hope that helps---doubt it----- BTW congrats on the soon to be addition to your family!
Gatsu's picture
Submitted by Gatsu on Sun, 03/14/2010 - 15:26
Its not technically a budget. Jules and I plan on what games we're gonna buy each month, and then save accordingly. Some months theres nothing we want, some months there's 3-4 titles we both want. So we compromise, figure out which ones we wanna spend $60 on and which ones we can wait on and just go from there.
BlowMonkey's picture
Submitted by BlowMonkey on Sun, 03/14/2010 - 17:24
I spend as much as humanly possible while remaining married. I really have no other vices; don't drink, don't smoke; don't hangout with friends....nothing so I figure I'm entitled :) so far so good lol
Fish66's picture
Submitted by Fish66 on Sun, 03/14/2010 - 19:23
No budget at all, but I don't buy games just to have them. If it's the next in a series I like, I get it. But that's usually years apart. I research any others first, by then they are usually cheaper, most of the time they don't peek my interest, one of the reasons there are 19 games on my Game Card, three of those my kids played. Hardware is a different story, I blew my load on a big screen, surround-sound and wireless headset.
TANK's picture
Submitted by TANK on Sun, 03/14/2010 - 19:25
I don't have a budget per say but I do cut my out of pocket expenses by at least 50% by actively trading or selling games when i'm done with them rather than collecting them.
POWERROB_3000's picture
Submitted by POWERROB_3000 on Sun, 03/14/2010 - 20:38
Gamefly !!! I love it, the one game membership is cheaper than the cost of three games a year and gives you the freedom to try games you may not have otherwise played.. You arent in a losing situation if you grow tired of a game or if it blows, just send it back. Another bonus to gamefly is member perks are accumulated for new and used purchases on games you buy.
RhyoOhki's picture
Submitted by RhyoOhki on Sun, 03/14/2010 - 21:10
I don't usually have a gaming budget, but since I got married and we are expecting a baby, there is a budget now, so I wait for the games to be used in the store or have to trade some games toward it. So it has to be a game I really want like Batman AA 2 or the Lunar release on PS. Falelorn... you might try Gamestop, we take all PS2 games and some are still taking GC games. you might not get a whole lot but we sometimes have deals where you get an extra percent toward a reserve or something like that.
Automan21k's picture
Submitted by Automan21k on Sun, 03/14/2010 - 21:20
With both me and my wife being accountant we have budgets for EVERYTHING. though with signing up for gamefly, I think we'll be under budget this year....meaning we are adding on to our game room.
Joker961's picture
Submitted by Joker961 on Mon, 03/15/2010 - 08:38
It's relatively easy for me: I can only be married to one game at a time. If I want to play something else, especially multiplayer, I have to give up my current game and move on. I get all discombobulated moving back and forth between games. I usually only play 1 or 2 games, one multiplayer shooter and one single-player shooter.
Relic's picture
Submitted by Relic on Mon, 03/15/2010 - 10:44
No fixed budget, but I'm frugal by nature, so I'm always looking to keep costs low even if I don't need to. Over the last 7.5 years, since I bought the 180 on 11/27/02, I've spent ~$2000 on game related purchases. That includes the 180 and 360, but not the TVs, surround sound etc. Yeah...I track it. So I guess you could say my "budget" is about $270 a year so far. I could/should add the cost of my three tags, but I've never tracked that, and that will probably go down to just one by the end of this year. It still totals out to less than a dollar a day.

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