Five Tips to Keep you Gaming Through the Recession

[RaychelSnr]

Most news headlines serve as a daily reminder of the current economic crisis. So, it can be hard (and expensive) to be a gaming enthusiast. It may be even harder for sports gamers, as the genre features annual titles that retain very little value. To help, here are five tips to help maximize your gaming dollar.

1. Game and Trade

For years, I traded games at my local Gamestop and did not care how much I got back. I figured that any money I got in exchange for a game that I would never play again was worth it. While this may be technically correct, I soon figured out it was hardly fair. I once witnessed an employee take my game, credit me with $10, print a new sticker with a used price of $55, and stick it on the shelf. Thus, 30 seconds of work resulted in a potential Gamestop profit of $45.

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[boomhauertjs]

Good tips. I've built up a bunch of points on Goozex, but haven't bought anything from there yet. It did help me get rid of some games that I would never play again.

[Ruffy]

Good tips for sure. I'm a former EB/Gamestop employee and I still trade them there as I buy my games new. Most of the time you are getting ripped off especially on sports titles, but I can understand really who are these people that buy last years sports games when in most cases the new one on the shelf for 10 bucks more is better.

Sports games you need to unload a few months before the next season comes out to get a decent trade in value for the most part. I traded Madden 09 away this year about a month after having still got $35 trade credit for it so it wasnt soo bad. I figured $24 for a months use.

I look at it this way too. If I'm never going to play it again ever then trading it in for whatever amount I get is better than zip.

So if its a non sports title where I beat it and plan never to play it again then I trade it in. COD4 i traded in because I knew I'd never play it once Socom came out.

Non-sports games its a good idea to buy different titles than a friend then you can swap them to beat them later.

[stlstudios189]

I usually don't even trade in my old sports games anymore. I was offered 80 cents for Madden 08 this past November.

[Trini G1aDiaToR]

I'm all about Gamefly these days. In the days when I would buy exclusively, I'd only buy 2 or 3 games per year and I would rarely take chances on something that didn't get great reviews or wasn't a sports game that I already loved. Then I'd play them forever...

Now that I use Gamefly I play a game till I'm bored of it and then send it back for another. I've tried many games that I wouldn't have considered if I had to pay $45 - $60 to purchase. If I really like a game and I want to keep playing it for more than a month or so, I use the "Keep It" feature and buy it for a lot less than retail price.

I don't mean to sound like an ad, but I'm pretty pleased with the whole set-up. The downside of course is that I play a lot more games now... something my wife isn't too pleased about.

[matt8204]

Yeah, it's hard to get much for old sports games once the new version is out. Most people want the new edition unless the game took a big step back from last year, so it's highly possible that the '08 sports game you trade in will never be sold by Gamestop. That's why they can't give you much for it.

[buzzguy]

I am a HUGE fan of Goozex! It has saved me so much money, and prevented bad buying decisions...I love it!
It's a little confusing, and restrictive, when you first start using it. After a couple of games have been sent out, it all makes sense. You start getting good feedback, which opens-up more trade slots, which lets you get more games!
I can't recommend it enough, and I'm only trading within Canada. Trading in the USA opens-up way more trading options. Check it out!

[thudias]

Thanks for the advice