Top 10 Ways To Save Money On Games

Got to have that new game on the first day of release? Totally ‘blown away’ by the cover art? Can’t wait to start shooting any zombie Nazis that might have escaped last time?

If so, not to worry, there are millions of fellow sufferers. The games industry’s ‘marketing men’ have disengaged your higher thought processes by plugging directly into your more primitive reward systems. The companies, and the media that serve them, are promising novelty, devastating in-game artwork and ‘guaranteed’ in-game success. Resistance is futile.

It’s difficult to save on brand new titles like Final Fantasy 13

As it happens, resistance isn’t futile but it does require us to take a step away from the relentless advertising and think about what we’re buying. Some gamers manage to escape the costs through piracy but that’s not an option for us. We’re happy to pay to see more good titles appear, so long as we get value for our money.

The points that follow are what we consider our best defences against paying a fortune for games, including some we don’t want or won’t enjoy:

Be Patient

The minute a game is released its value starts to drop. The speed at which the price goes down depends on each title’s success and its availability in the second hand market. One of our local superstores is currently selling the first Assassin’s Creed game for roughly $5. I paid the best part of $30 when Assassin’s Creed was released. There are plenty more bargains out there for players prepared to delay a purchase and/ or shop around for the best deal.

Try Before You Buy

Videogames are fairly unusual in allowing players to try out demo versions and there are plenty of game review sites that look at videogames from a variety of different angles. Buying a game without at least looking at detailed previews or consulting a source that you trust before you buy puts you completely in the hands of the game’s marketing campaign.

Final Fantasy 13 on Amazon US at $59.99 with delivery and a $10 account credit

Gameplay

Try before you buy works best if you download a demo and try out the actual gameplay for yourself. When using previews, reviews and demo discs it’s, perhaps, worth asking whether or not the gameplay has anything new to offer. You may still end up going for the predictable gameplay of a standard ‘shooter’ but you’ll be making an informed choice when you do so.

Gametime

Zelda: Twilight Princess for the Wii still sells for close to full price years after release, because it offers many more hours of continuous gaming than most other Wii titles. Along similar lines, Final Fantasy 13 may not offer a great deal of genuine innovation but it’s graphically beautiful and delivers 50-60 hours of solid RPG entertainment. Both titles are, therefore, excellent value compared to many that offer less than 20 hours of gameplay for the same price. So, even if you check nothing else at online review sites, be sure to find out how many hours you’re getting for your cash.

Final Fantasy 13 for the PS3 at GoGamer.com for  $53:90 plus $2.99 US delivery

Bargains

There are some pretty obvious places to go bargain hunting but there’s only so much time anyone wants to spend looking for good deals. For those who like eBay and similar sites there may be bargains worth having. We tend to check Amazon for a rough price and any deals, as well as a price comparison site. It’s also always worth keeping an eye on the Steam download service and publishers’ sites for short term offers. Otherwise, trade-ins and second hand titles from local stores can offer consistent savings.

Timing

Working out when you’ll get the time to play a title and whether or not your mates could be sharing the costs can bring major savings. If you’re going on holiday for a month or have a stack of games that you haven’t finished there’s not a lot of point in buying immediately. Along similar lines, if you know you’re not going to be free to play a new title why not split the cost with a friend and let them have first go.

Final Fantasy 13 for the PS3 on Amazon.ca at CDN$59.99/ $55.82 plus US delivery

Free or Low Cost Alternatives

Our post on free games identified a few titles which offer decent gameplay and respectable graphics. They might not be the equal of the latest titles but they could keep you busy while you delay or cancel a purchase to save up for something better. The same applies to some discounted titles, which can deliver good gameplay without being the No. 1 brand. For example, even at full price Torchlight offers an excellent alternative to more expensive ‘dungeon-crawlers’.

Get Help

Games can sit collecting dust for a variety of reasons. The most expensive ‘shelving’ involves titles that are either just a bit too repetitive to play through or simply not what you expected. The longer these ‘shelf-huggers’ sit there the less they’re worth, so trade them in, sell them on or give them to a mate. The second group of games that need a dust down are titles which are proving slightly too tricky to complete. It’s not cheating to visit YouTube or IGN‘s lavish walkthroughs to beat a game-breaking obstacle and get value for your $50.

Amazon US  look good this time but the options increase as soon as a title is released

Celebrate

Remember to celebrate every time you get a game at a discount or trade-in a title for something better. Each success makes us much more likely to think before we act next time round. Better still, spread the good news when you see a decent offer and connect with a pool of other gamers who want to get the best games at the best price.

Visit Thistle Games

We don’t do turkeys, not even for Christmas. That’s because we’re quite clear about what we’re looking for, i.e. games which are innovative, demanding and, ultimately, rewarding.