Old Games, Collectables or up for Trade?
There’s only so many hours you can play a game before it inevitably hits the shelf, never to see the light of day, or inside of a console again. So begs the questions what should you do with these games? Are they worth hanging on to as a collectable, or on the off chance that you’ll wake up one morning with a desire to play them again? Or should they make way for the latest and greatest games, by being traded or sold?
What you do with your old games is ultimately going to be determined by your financial status before anything else. Back in the days of the Nintendo 64, before I had a job (and when $1 was a ludicrous price for an ice-cream) if I wanted a new game old games had to be moved on, it was a way of life. Introduce an income and the equation changes, all of a sudden it is no longer necessary to trade in played games, although does that mean you shouldn’t?
Personally I have kept all the games that I have purchased this generation, however I know many people who don’t. After all they are just going to be sitting there, rarely played if at all so what’s the point in keeping them when they can fund new additions to our hobby? For me it comes down to value, just a few weeks into the lifespan of a ‘new release’ title it’s worth no where near what you payed for it. Grand Theft Auto IV was one of the best games of 2008, but would I even get half of what I payed for it if I were to sell it now?
The loophole in the trading in of games is an interesting concept, and one offered to us by EB Games, who have a mixed reputation among gamers to say the least. They offer a 7-day return policy, where you can return a game that you have actually played as long as it is in full working condition for a full refund. Although I do not condone abusing this offer, it’s definitely done. Those with some spare time on their hands pick up a game, give it a speed run and return it within the 7-day period. I’ve only ever returned one game using this offer (mostly due to the fact I don’t shop at EB) and I image if you were doing it on a weekly basis they would call you on it, but then again it is there policy.
For those who follow the ‘out with the old in with the new’ philosophy that still leaves the question of trade-in to a store such as EB Games or JB Hi-Fi, or sell on eBay or privately. Trading in is ultimately a quick and painless process, but you’re almost guaranteed to be ripped off. In saying that JB’s trade in 3 games and get a new release free can be beneficial if your games aren’t as valuable as they used to be. Generally speaking eBay will get you a greater return on your old titles as you cut out the middle man. But this means more work for you and occasionally there are some not so friendly people buying and selling on the Internet that you will most likely unpleasantly encounter at some stage.
Many people like myself do hang onto most of their games. There’s the diehard collectors who would never even consider selling a game, heaven forbid a console. There’s also the people like me, who can’t really justify selling too many old games due to their value crashing down to Earth almost instantly after it’s purchased. I used to sell a lot on eBay, but now don’t really have the time, and even if I did can’t be bothered doing that on a constant basis.
What do you do with your old games? Keep them in case you want to play them again, or for collecting purposes? Or do you sell or trade them to fund your gaming collection?
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