Collecting strategies...Tips and Tricks for not going broke

[Armymanis]

Hey guy's! Anyone want to share any collecting strategies and have any tips or tricks for not going broke when collecting video game? I thought this would be a really good thread for people who want to get into our hobby, have a job, but don't want to go broke while doing this fantastic hobby.

[MrNash]

For me, a lot of it is just hunting around. Find the places that sell things cheapest. There are shops out there that try to move product reasonably fast, so they'll price things cheaper to get them out the door. There's one place I got to where I can get a lot of decent games for $5-$15 from past generations, and they've done very well for themselves. Still gotta pay a premium for the rare stuff, of course, but there's good prices to be had on lesser known games. A little while ago, I got stuff like Sub Rebellion, Tokobot Plus, and Harvest Moon: Save the Homeland for about $7 each. Pretty darn good, I thought.

For newer stuff, don't buy games day one. The prices will come down. Why get FFXIII for $60 at launch when you know it'll be $20 a year or so down the road. Some games you do need to grab fast because you know there's a good chance it's a limited print, though. A lot of stuff from companies like Atlus and XSEED can fall under that category.

But yeah, for me anyway, it's mostly patience and checking around a lot. I have friends that are into this stuff too that give me tips when they spot stuff around town that I may be interested in as well, which helps. In the end, it's just the thrill of the hunt, which a lot of the time can be almost as much fun as the games themselves.

[gtmtnbiker]

Get only 1-3 games at a time. Then play until you only have 1 game left in your backlog before buying more. Yeah, it's hard to do but you'll save a lot of money that way. I can't tell you how many games I have that I never played.

[dedalusdedalus]

Don't buy games new. 99.9% of games can be bought more cheaply as a used game.

Buy in large lots, and locally if possible to reduce shipping costs. Trade or sell what you don't want.

[Crabmaster2000]

First thing is to budget yourself so you dont go broke

Pawn Shops, Yard Sales, Craigslist are all places to pick up games cheaply too. Like someone just mentioned big lots of games can be great deals to get you started.

Getting knowledgable about what kinds of games are valuable or good trade items can help you keep your budget in line too. Trading or selling good doubles or unwanteds is a great way to not only get new games that you want, but make some good contacts.

[Goregasm]

collect ps2 games

[o.pwuaioc]

collect ps2 games

Or NES games.

[sevin0seven]

collect ps2 games

Or NES games.

Or sports games.

really depends what library your collecting. always go for the best price possible and have a purchasing limit.

[KDub]

Know what games are worth

Be willing to shop around

Thrift stores/Resale Shops, Goodwill, and Flea Markets are you best friends

Don't buy 100 games all at once because you can. Buy a handful and play them and enjoy them before you buy a few more.

Know what the games are worth

[Dakinggamer87]

Know what games are worth

Be willing to shop around

Thrift stores/Resale Shops, Goodwill, and Flea Markets are you best friends

Don't buy 100 games all at once because you can. Buy a handful and play them and enjoy them before you buy a few more.

Know what the games are worth

Great advice!! It will also help keep your backlog in control.