OK so what's the incentive to buy a game at launch anymore?

[kupomogli]

I probably would of had to return the game and bought another copy. I don't believe Fry's has a price-match policy like Best Buy.

Return policy of all new unopened items should be 30 days in all stores. Or atleast most stores.

For example. I purchased Dragon Warrior 3 for the Gameboy Color for $35. I couldn't find a new copy anywhere. Then a week after I purchased it, it was in stock for $20 new. I complained how I just purchased it used, and at first they were like, well prices drop, etc, etc, despite that I told him I purchased it a little over a week ago. So I talked to the manager who saw that and then took the used copy as a return and gave me the new copy.

For used games Gamestop only has a seven day return policy, but thankfully there are some people who put customer service above screwing people over and also had some common sense.

[WCP]

In my old age, I've become a cheap bastard. Back in my younger years, during the 16-bit era, I was buying brand new games on the day of release all the time. Same thing with the 32-bit and 64-bit eras. I was even doing it during the PS2, GameCube and Xbox 1 eras, but not as frequently.

Starting around 2008 or so, my buying habits have changed dramatically. I've basically come to the conclusion that I'm about 2 or 3 years behind the current game releases, and I'm content to stay 2 to 3 years behind. Right now I'm playing games like Fallout 3 and Bioshock. I've got games like Far Cry 2 and Prince of Persia (2008) on my backlog list. The newest game I've bought recently is Bulletstorm, and that game came out earlier in the year. The only reason I snagged it was because it was only $4.99 from Amazon downloads. I bought Dead Space for $5 (Steam) and Assassin's Creed 2 for $5 (Amazon downloads), in the last 24 hours.

I'm way behind current times, and totally ok with it.

If a new Xbox or Playstation console comes out, then that will probably be the first time (in a very long time) that I've bought a brand new game on it's launch day.

[Gamevet]

Return policy of all new unopened items should be 30 days in all stores. Or atleast most stores.

For example. I purchased Dragon Warrior 3 for the Gameboy Color for $35. I couldn't find a new copy anywhere. Then a week after I purchased it, it was in stock for $20 new. I complained how I just purchased it used, and at first they were like, well prices drop, etc, etc, despite that I told him I purchased it a little over a week ago. So I talked to the manager who saw that and then took the used copy as a return and gave me the new copy.

For used games Gamestop only has a seven day return policy, but thankfully there are some people who put customer service above screwing people over and also had some common sense.

Gamestop will have a new game priced lower than a used game, weeks after the price drop.

[Sunnyvale]

Gamestop will have a new game priced lower than a used game, weeks after the price drop.

Seen the same thing at Hastings. It's pretty simple, really, albeit stupid: They buy used games for X, which is generally higher than the price of a new game. But, they get to have one copy of X floating around without dropping $500 on a bulk order, so it makes sense. My brother in law got Battlefront II for $5 less than new (seriously) used, sans manual. To someone who sells his games at times, WTF?!? To him, he saved 5 bucks, read the manual online, yahoo! I watched a copy of Beavis and Butthead Volume 2 DVD (green box, for those of us in the know (Kitsune, looking @ you here)) float around Hastings for over 2 years before they finally marked it down from $17.99 when a new copy (grey box, durp) was only $14.99. Unless Kitsune or I walked in there, they ain't never gonna sell it. But it did sell, and I didn't need it. This is why. A 'minor' variation (like a bonus disc, green box, etc) doesn't add up in the computer system, so all the owner sees is a treand: Used shit sometimes gets more or equal to new. So roll the dice, then mark it down.

[Rickstilwell1]

For me, the most exciting time to buy a new game is during the actual system's launch window. I'm always excited to get new hardware and I have to get at least 1 game with it in order to see how it does.

[Mayhem]

The only time I do is when I really, really want to play something at launch, or there's some sort of special deal going on (usually supermarkets) where you can get one game cheaper when you buy something else that I also wanted.

Similar to this, but if you start playing a game like the next Call of Duty, Battlefield, Killzone 3, etc, you're at a major disadvantage because by the time you start, most of the noobs will have quit playing leaving mostly better players. Players that have studied the maps, have high rankings so have all the best weapons, etc. You may or may not be better than some of the people playing, but you come in at a disadvantage.

Which is why I like the Gears of War series, no extra weapons or perks unlocked for however long you've ground the game into the floor, it's more about skill and teamwork as everyone starts with the same guns.

[Cornelius]

I'm quite cheap, so very rarely buy new games even, let alone new at launch. I have made a lot of exceptions lately, though. Had to get the Wii Super Mario All-Stars, then there was the Dark Souls CE, and most recently the Zelda w/ gold controller bundle. I actually pre-ordered these three, and I'm not sure I've ever pre-ordered anything before. Anyway, glad I did because they aren't super easy to find now.