Rolling in dough, or cheap-o

[Emily]

What kind of gamer/collector are you? Do you throw down $50 minimum on a new game? Do you laugh maniacly at anyone without a Neo-Geo AES gold system?
Im the kind of person who is undeniably cheap, but not because I have to be,but because Ebay and the "wild" taught me ...stuff.And Im unbelievably lucky sometmes :D Ive scored an arcade machine with two Jamma Boards for $25 at a yard sale; $2 for a bunch uncommon games + Intellivision 2 :-P
A Top-Loader-$20 at my favorite thrift. I know this insnt a super good price but, I feel good about the price for Ebay: Vectrex for $75 shipped because to dude thought it was broken, the brightness was up too high and just had to be turned down( all the vectrexors here know what I mean)

Scored a Master System on the big E for $4,and found a working, oval button Saturn for $1+ tons of accessories.
I wont even go into all the steals Ive assossiated with Genesis, and N64 consoles, i just have too many of them...

I wish I could spend tons on games and systems ( vectrex Polar Rescue...droool)but I guess Ill just coast along waiting for my next noteworthy score..

[Cryomancer]

Yeah, I'm freakishly poor as well. My vextrex is only here because i found it in the rain while working at goodwill one morning. I had to give it a good home. 9 times out of 10, I HAVE to wait for a good deal on something before I can have it.

eBay needs to have like, "free shipping day" so I can load up on cheap sega cd games from stores 8/

[Flack]

Cheap-O for sure here. I've passed on loose Atari games for $2-$3 because I'm sure I can get them for a buck somewhere else.

Part of that comes from being a PC and computer games for so long ... you get so used to downloading games for free that spending $50 for ANY game feels outrageous.

[davidleeroth]

I'm as cheap as they come. I laugh my ass off at everyone who puts down $80 (the going rate here) for a new game. I mean, it's stupid.

However, $80 for some good oldies goldies is entirely different. :P

[maxlords]

I'm broke as hell most of the time. However, I tend to drop whatever it takes to get some games, when I suddenly feel compelled to own them. I guess I'm both :hmm:

[Howie6925]

yea im a cheap skate when it comes to games, under $20 dollars is my limit for ps2/xbox/GCN(used).The most expensive game I bought was 80 bucks for RPGmaker2 and I only played it once.

[AB Positive]

I'm one of the "Find stuff and resell to get the expensive stuff" kind of folks. I'll only plunk down about $20 or so of my own cash on a game. However if I make some good paypal/ebay deals I can afford bigger things.

I'm looking at restarting a MVS collection again, so I sort of fly from one extreme to the other.

-AG

[Nature Boy]

I'm both.

If I'm excited enough about the game I'll buy it just after it's released. But not without making sure I'm getting it for the best deal possible (it's an easy $5-$10 saved by checking Walmart/EB/Microplay before plunking down my dough).

When it comes to getting the retro stuff I'm as cheap as can be. Even if it's a game I've wanted for *months* I'm not plopping down more $$$ than I think it's worth.

[max 330 mega]

im broke all the time, but have quite a taste for expensive games, i buy and resell so that i can afford to fuel my neo geo aes collection.

[djbeatmongrel]

i'm a mixture of both. every once in a while i'll pick up a new game upon release *waiting for xenosaga 2* and i'll plunk down a bit for games i've wanted fora while but if i am just looking through bargin bins i try to find odd cheap titles

[Aussie2B]

I'm a game collector, I'm a college student, I have no job, and I survive off of ramen.

All signs point to poor. :P I attempt to buy stuff to resell for a profit, but I find more often than not I'm tempted to keep what I buy if it's not something I already own or if it's a system in really nice condition. However, I think I do pretty good sometimes. Just recently I bought Legend of Mana and Castlevania Chronicles from an online marketplace for about $40 total. Then I sold Castlevania Chronicles for $40, getting Legend of Mana for nearly free.

So yeah, I'm very cheap out of necessity, but I bet even if I was financially comfortable, I'd probably still be a cheapskate.

[Barbarianoutkast85]

Cheap if i usually dont buy anything thats more then 20 dollars new I just picked up Need for speed underground because its 20 new now because the 2nd one came out.

[Sothy]

Im so poor I cant affiord to pay attention.




"5 dollars for this sealed Final Fantasy II!? Ill give you 3 bux."

[Gapporin]

I have never spent more than $30 for a single game. Ever.

Yeah, I'd say I'm a cheapie.

[ubersaurus]

I usually tend to wait for stuff to get cheap to pick it up, though that policy will probably be broken for Samurai Shodown Special, which I want pretty freakin bad.

[bargora]

Ha. I used to be rolling in dough. No longer. Now I am ultra-cheap. Fortunately, I built up a large enough collection during the salad days to keep me playing for a few years, I think. That doesn't mean that I don't long to play Doom 3. But I've been around long enough to internalize this (near) fact: All Games Become Cheap One Day. I think that I bought one new game and fewer than a dozen used games last year.

To adapt the stoner's credo: Games will get you through the times of no money better than money will get you through the times of no games.

Being a graduate student, my major luxury is ingredients for cooking nice meals (not poor enough to have to go all-ramen all-the-time yet). But there is one weakness, one Achilles' Heel that could send me to the grocery store only to return with Bumble Bee, Maruchan and Miller High Life: giant robots with guns--online!

[slip81]

It depends on my financial situation. When I'm broke (as I am now), like most, I'm cheap, but when I have money, or if I save up for a particular thing I have no problem spending a lot at one time, or on a particular game.

For instance, right now I'm saving a little out of every paycheck untill June, at which time I'm buying Suikoden II and Shining Force III, and I'll probably spend about $200-250 for the two, and that'll be fine.

[Aussie2B]

Gah, not Maruchan. x_x I could never eat that stuff. The flavoring is all wrong.

I go for Top Ramen. When it's on sale or I want to "splurge", I buy Cup Noodle (which we call "Cup o' Noodle") since I think it tastes better and I like the little peas and corn and stuff. My boyfriend likes these Chinese noodle bowls that cost a dollar each. They're actually pretty authentic and nice, but I don't care for how spicy they are, nor the flavors.

... yeah... I totally went off topic there. :P

[ECWSandmanECW]

Ill pay $50 if it's a game I really want. Usually ill wait for a price drop or 2.

[Ed Oscuro]

Do you laugh maniacly at anyone without a Neo-Geo AES gold system?
I think people would laugh when they found out how much I paid for it...NG collectors included LOL

I've got no limit on individual titles, but of course that means I have to save up for a while to get them.

[Raccoon Lad]

I've got more than enough money, but I'll usually cheap out and pass on anything I feel is too expensive.

It just tears me up inside to see something I want, and can EASILY afford, but I just can't bear to part with my money.

[Nez]

I am right in the middle, I've spent loads of cash just for a game, Panzer Dragoon Saga, but thats becouse I know I will play it.

Same with new games I rarely buy new games , and only do becouse I WILL play it.

Most games I try to be cheap I wont usually pay over 20 for a game that I know will have no play time.

[tuxedojoe]

Gah, not Maruchan. x_x I could never eat that stuff. The flavoring is all wrong.

I go for Top Ramen. When it's on sale or I want to "splurge", I buy Cup Noodle (which we call "Cup o' Noodle") since I think it tastes better and I like the little peas and corn and stuff. My boyfriend likes these Chinese noodle bowls that cost a dollar each. They're actually pretty authentic and nice, but I don't care for how spicy they are, nor the flavors.

... yeah... I totally went off topic there. :P

Cup Noodle is made by Maruchan, just so ya know ;) . I go for the regular square stuff in the bag myself (only the oriental flavor, however. I am a vegetarian, and it's about the only flavor without animal fat).

Back on topic, I am normally cheap, but I do indeed make exceptions. If a new game comes out that I have been looking forward to for ages, then I may pick it up. On the other hand, I may wait. I wanted Advanced Wars 2 since the day it came out, but never got around to buying it. Yesterday, I found it in Best Buy for $10. I win!

[Aussie2B]

Then they really need to put the Cup Noodle flavoring in the block packs. o_O

[tuxedojoe]

Then they really need to put the Cup Noodle flavoring in the block packs. o_O

I concur.

[Ed Oscuro]

Cup Noodle is made by Maruchan, just so ya know ;) . I go for the regular square stuff in the bag myself (only the oriental flavor, however. I am a vegetarian, and it's about the only flavor without animal fat).
Baha, your loss! Oh wait, that wasn't appropriate. Still...no fish? I would go crazy if I had to eat that pickled stuff... o_O Sushi and sashimi = where it's at. Imo.

Thanks for the info by the way :)

[MetroidFan1164]

Cheap - more money for more games! ;)

[neschamp]

WOW! We sure do have a lot of cheapass people on this board. Although, everybody has the right to delegate their funds in whatever way they deem appropriate. Myself, I waver back and forth between being frugal and more free with my money. This is mostly due to me being a flat broke college student working a shitty part-time job to pay for tuition, books and a car payment. Otherwise I would probably buy more expensive items more frequently than I do now.

I basically evaluate each game (or whatever else I am looking at buying) on the level of enjoyment I will be getting out of it. If I have been anticipating a game for a while, such was the case with Halo 2 and Resident Evil 4, I will buy them when they come out. I actually bought both of these Special Editions and didn't really bat an eye at the cost I was paying for them. Keeping with that same line of reasoning, I will wait for games I have less interest in to come down in price and pick them up later (like I recently did for Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes). Other times, I'll just find a good deal on ebay and can't pass it up. Such as when I found a sealed copy of Deathrow for Xbox for 6 bucks! It's all relative. Right now, I am cheap out of necessity. Overall, I am not a cheap person.

[Keir]

Cheap-O!

I have more than enough quality games to keep me entertained for life, so it's all about the collecting for me. Quantity = only buy the cheap stuff.

[aaron7]

I can never afford games... but I get them anyway, usually regardless if it's a good deal or not (I collect just NES, and if I don't have it... I want it!)

So I'm always broke or owing a friend or family member LOL

[le geek]

I guess I'm in the middle. I've been paring down my collection to go for quality instead of quantity/completeness.

I try to avoid buying current games at full price, knowing full well they'll be $20 or less sooner or later. I did just pick up Suikoden IV though as well as a DS. Still haven't picked up an Xbox and at this point I figure I'll hold out for another price drop.

I have thrown too much money at classic and Neo Geo MVS games, particularly in the past when I was single and making "dotcom" money. :P

I guess it comes down to budgeting and not spending more than you can afford/justify to your significant other!

Cheers,
Ben

[imanerd0011]

It really depends on what I am buying. When it comes to most games I am a cheapo, and hate paying more than $3 a cart for common NES games, but I also would drop some seroius cash on items that I think I won't find again.

[anagrama]

I'm another committed cheapskate. Unless something is *ultra* rare, I'd much rather wait and pick up a cheaper one later.
I'm currently 4 games away from a complete Euro SMS collection (280 titles) and there's less than a dozen that I've paid more than £10 for, and only 1 (Smurfs 2) that I've paid more than £16 for. The 4 games I still need aren't *that* rare, but often get relatively pricey, so I'm just waiting for cheapish copies to appear.

[Gunstar_Hero UK]

Id say im both.

I pay full price for new current-gen games & interesting imports yet, Im really tight when it comes to retro stuff as i know in the back of my mind i'll get this game in the wild dirt cheap someday.. Very odd..

Joe. :)

[Cmosfm]

Oh man, talk about cheap! I'm as cheap as they come, just ask anyone that's dealt with me online.

Thing is, I don't like spending ANYTHING, but I always want more more more! But if something comes along that's a great deal, I'll plop down the cash.

I actually spend a lot more if it's in my face, like at the markets and thrifts, that's when I get really hurt.

[SegaAges]

Im so poor I cant affiord to pay attention.




"5 dollars for this sealed Final Fantasy II!? Ill give you 3 bux."

I do stuff like that all the time. Why pay 5 when you can pay 3.

The funny thing is, I am on both ends in a way. I will buy new games now if I want them. I always check blockbuster first though. I bought tony hawk underground 2 for 45 and was happy that i saved 5 on it. i usually don't buy new games.

when it comes to old games, hell man, the cheaper the better. even if i want the game bad, i won't throw down alot of money. hell, there are not many other games i feel i need anyway, just a buttload of games i really want.

[Nesmaster]

for the most part i am a cheapo. but i have plunked down serious $ on some games that i wanted badly to play, as well as have them in my collection :P