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General discussion (archive)How do you get your games?(40 posts)(40 posts)
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This is my favourite topic
Posted July 25, 2014
When I was still in school my main way of getting games was by asking for them as birthday or christmas gift. Or by convincing my Mum that she would like to play the game as well. Yes I am lucky to have a Mum who plays computer games :D

During university I only bought games on sales since there was not much money. That means I was normally not playing recent games, but games that were at least 3+ years old and therefore quite cheap. I think in all the years during university I only bought 2 games when they were realised and that only by saving money beforehand.
I also entered some giveaways for games I really wanted and I think giveaways are a great oppertunity for someone who is short of cash for whatever reasons.

When I found a job, I started buying some more games and also to do some giveaways to give something back to this awesome community. But it is quite "funny", when you get a job you think "whoa cool, more games" but then I realized how much more expensive everything is where I live now and that there are like a thousand things you need to pay for... so yeah, I am back to buying games mostly on sales, but with a slightly higher budget :D

Regarding the "backlog", I did not count how big it is, since I normally what for games I want to go on sale and then buying a bunch of them. That leaves me with enough games to tide me over times where I am not buying anything.
Posted July 25, 2014
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jamyskis: I have them shipped to me from Santa's Workshop by reindeer :)

Seriously, most of my games I buy on disc, either from retail stores or Amazon. If there's something I specifically want, I'll usually order it online, although if I feel the compelling urge to leave the house (for food shopping or just to get out and about, as I work from home), I'll pop down to my nearest electronics market. I tend to give GameStop a wide berth unless I happen to be there.

My usual reaction with GameStop is to go in, snort indignantly at the prices and leave. I used to find their secondhand PS2 ranges halfway interesting, but a while ago they stopped buying in used PS2 games, which means that their shelves are now just full of half-baked wrestling games, ancient EA Sports instalments, numerous crappy kids' movie-licensed games and Midas Entertainment shovelware - basically the stuff nobody wants.

I get secondhand retro stuff from Amazon, fleamarkets or, as a last resort, eBay. I also keep an eye out for private ads in newspapers and eBay Classifieds because secondhand stores and commercial traders at fleamarkets tend to have rather *ahem* utopian prices for their secondhand wares (including the rather bizarre practice of heavily marking up any game with Mario in it due to their supposed rarity, even though every trader and his dog seems to have several copies of them)

I get PC indie games that aren't available on disc and old games that I can't get for a reasonable price from GOG or Humble Store (HS if both DRM-free and a Steam key is offered, but GOG if the HS version is Steam-only).

I generally only buy Steam-only games or games directly from Steam if (a) it is VERY cheap, which is a rarity nowadays, (b) if the game is not available anywhere else. I have on occasion bought a console version of a game on release and bought the Steam version for a few bucks later on. I think around 98% of my Steam games have been bundle keys over the past year.
Ooh, physical copies of games! Do they still make these :D ?

Now this is something I truly love. I will never consider my digital library as an actual collection, but my disc based games will always be treasured. I even have a 5 disc based copy of Riven, that I don't think works anymore (disc 2 or 3 was damaged in some domestic accident I think), but I still have it and will keep it for as much as possible.
Posted July 25, 2014
I am married and my wife and I live on our own. We are both gamers, but we typically don't like the same types of games. The amount that we spend on games varies depending on the amount of disposable income combined with new game releases and sales/discounts. If I had to average it out, I would say it's probably around $20 a week as there are weeks where we spend nothing and then weeks where we spend $80-100.

Regardless, we never break the bank with our frivolous purchases. There is always a set amount of money going into our savings account before we spend any money on games or other entertainment. Games are definitely the thing that we spend the most on, followed by action figures for me and arts/crafts for my wife.

When I buy games, I prefer physical copies of games when it is possible. Aside from my GOG library, I don't really have too many PC games. Console games are my main focus. Many of the games I buy nowadays are games that are on sale. There are still some games that I will buy at full price, but those are games that I usually pre-order. I almost always pre-order through GameStop because then I can pay a little at a time and, by the time the game is released, I have either paid it off or only owe a small amount.

As for backlogs, I love what Enebias had to say:

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Enebias: About "backlog": it is a word I neither like nor use. In my digital library, I only have games I played and games I still have to play. For me, gaming is a pleasure, not a chore, hence I have no "backlog".
I probably have over 100 games in my backlog and it doesn't affect my purchase decisions in the least. Every game I buy is something I am interested in playing. I have every intention of playing them all eventually. If not soon, there's always retirement! :P
Posted July 25, 2014
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Sage103082: I am 31 years old and today is my two month wedding anniversary with my husband - though we have been together 10 years and 8 months =) We have no kids and they are not in the plains.
If you have no kids, they aren't going to be anywhere, not just absent from the plains.

I'd also be very careful with how you word things because someone might get the wrong idea about this:
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Sage103082: I also work at the dealership though mine is under the table.
Post edited July 25, 2014 by tx3000
Posted July 25, 2014
I mostly buy them. Once in a while, when my upstairs neighbor goes on vacation, I take care of her mail while she is gone and sometimes she'll give me a gift card, so at those times I use it on Amazon to buy console games.

I can't afford to buy everything I want (I don't want much - just all the games!), and I do have about ten favorites that I play on a regular basis, so I don't worry about it too much. I don't buy too many games these days, though, unless there's a ridiculous sale of something for a few bucks.

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Emob78: I have a friend that works in the intelligence community. Once a month he dons a trench coat and sunglasses and delivers my games in an unmarked paper bag on a specific gray bench in the local park. On Friday nights... after 9 PM, I will then dye my hair a random color, put on a nondescript jogging suit and make my way to the park. I walk past the bench very calmly and retrieve the bag with the games. I then make my way home, making sure not to make eye contact with any pedestrians. After safely locking my doors and checking the room for bugs, I then install the games on my offline, tinfoil covered desktop computer that has the webcam taped over. Hopefully, without too much interruptions from the Russians, I can then enjoy my games for a few hours.
Hmm, perhaps it would be better if he just left a mark on the bench indicating there are new games to be had, and leave them in a secure location. I always make it a point of taking any unmarked paper bags lying around on park benches. I, too, was in the intelligence community.
Post edited July 25, 2014 by DieRuhe
Posted July 25, 2014
edit. Not going to even go there.
Post edited July 25, 2014 by Sage103082
Posted July 25, 2014
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Sage103082: edit. Not going to even go there.
That's best thing to ignore posts like done by tx3000, people like that are not worth ur time.
Posted July 25, 2014
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Ganni1987: I'm 27, semi-crippled for life due to an accident in 2006 which means I can't stand on my feet for a very long time and prevents me from doing every kind of job. I currently live with my mother, helping her with normal day life and occasionally do freelance work as a PC Tech as my main source of income, at least till I get a job suitable for my condition.
There is no shame in living at home..I know plenty of people that do. The people that were supposed to be my parents threw me out when I was 7 so when this person people call their father died, I had about as much emotion and caring as you caring about me friend's car that got a flat tire. Nothing to feel bad about it's just the way it is...accept it and move on.

Anyway This economy is screwed you do what you have to and screw what anyone thinks! I'm so sick of people being able to get any job they want no matter because they get lucky or know someone, then using that to looking down on people saying well I got a job so can you..it's sickening.
Posted July 25, 2014
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Ganni1987: I'm 27, semi-crippled for life due to an accident in 2006 which means I can't stand on my feet for a very long time and prevents me from doing every kind of job. I currently live with my mother, helping her with normal day life and occasionally do freelance work as a PC Tech as my main source of income, at least till I get a job suitable for my condition.
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tx3000: There is no shame in living at home..I know plenty of people that do. The people that were supposed to be my parents threw me out when I was 7 so when this person people call their father died, I had about as much emotion and caring as you caring about me friend's car that got a flat tire. Nothing to feel bad about it's just the way it is...accept it and move on.

Anyway This economy is screwed you do what you have to and screw what anyone thinks! I'm so sick of people being able to get any job they want no matter because they get lucky or know someone, then using that to looking down on people saying well I got a job so can you..it's sickening.
I'm sorry about your hardships and hope you are managing to prove the saying "like father, like son" wrong. With that being said, I would like to remind you that the point of this thread is not to look down on and/or judge people, but just to share some points of view on the questions asked. Would you kindly (did you see what I did there?) refrain from derailing it from it's original idea? If you feel the need to continue discussing these other issues, please do so elsewhere.

Thank you in advance and all the best!
Posted July 26, 2014
I get my games bad and bug ridden.
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General discussion (archive)How do you get your games?(40 posts)(40 posts)
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