To not understand how people afford to play video games

[Birra]

Xbox, PS4, Wii etc. never been interested before but ds has been asking about skylanders so I thought I'd look into it.
I cannot justify that money, how do people do it?
And iPads, iPods?

I got my xBox for £40 from a cheapo second hand shop in Sunderland. And my iPad belongs to my work. I'd LOVE an XBox One but cannot afford it. I guess if it's something people spend a lot of time on and genuinely enjoy, it's worth investing in?

I don't understand your question - how do people afford anything? they save for it - buy it and play it.

My dd2 got an X-box for her birthday from me and used her birthday money to buy Minecraft and Fifia15

It's my main thing and what I spend my play money on. I don't really shop for myself often. Clothes I have to be dragged kicking and screaming for eg

Pre owned is the way to go though as it keeps costs down and you can trade in games/machines for something else if you look after them.

I'm absolutely skint most of the time but I saved for months to buy a ps3 and if there is a game I want I save for it too by cutting out other treats etc.

I buy a lot of games second hand and trade with friends and online.

I really want a ps4 but I'm waiting to see if they come down in price in the sales.

How do people afford to go out for dinner, or go on holiday, or get their nails done, or have shoes?

It depends on your thing. I can't understand the mega pricey handbags or loads of shoes some people are into. But they can justify the money because it's their thing.

You can be sucked in to expenditure. For some things, the basic expenditure seems bearable (a fiver a month, say) but then they all add up - and the cost of 'extras' is horrendous. A cold and hard head is usually needed.

Piracy.

stupid question

I think if you like something enough, you pull together the money for it- assuming you aren't totally skint. Everyone makes decisions about what to do with disposable income- holidays, pets, clothes, hairstyles, shoes, handbags, music, gaming, getting pissed, whatever your priority is!

But my ds would never get that much spent on him, Christmas or birthday.
And I would baulk at the cost because to me that is the cost of a holiday
Obviously it all depends on what's important to you. I don't really get gaming, so maybe that's it.

I think they go to work and earn money. That's how I afford to buy things, anyway.

As another poster said, pre owned is the way forward! I've just bought my husband a pre owned PS3, with 2 controllers and 2 games for £80, and we went to Game the other day where pre owned PS3 games started at 99p and were all on "buy 3 get one free" - he got 6 games for the grand sum of £14!

I don't play games myself (unless you count scrabble... ) but my husband does - but as he's as frugal as me, he doesn't see the point in paying out large amounts for brand new. The chap in front of us in the queue at Game bought a PS4 with various bits and it was over £400! Absolutely his choice but we certainly couldn't ever afford that so second hand all the way for us!

And I think skylanders are really cheap on ebay now.

My boys each have a ipod/iPad, console and games. They also have music lessons which are even more expensive. I have an iPad. We don't have big holidays, eat out, take aways, lots of days away. We don't have designer clothes or fancy cars. Most clothes I buy are charity shop/ebay and I shop in Aldi. These are what we enjoy so that's what we spend our money on.

Many see as an investment.

So say you usually spend £100 each birthday and Xmas, you then spend £300 one Xmas, next birthday just a new game so £30/40, next Xmas another game at £30/40. So you save at other times.

Or

Buy secondhand. Xbox 360 second hand is only about £50-100

I think not getting gaming is indeed 'it'. The prices are eye watering for new out consoles and too games. No Xbox one for my son either, but he got Skylanders for my Xbox 360 last birthday and it was not a bank breaker. We just wait and buy preowned. Second tier consumer! (I may have made that up). In the blockbuster days we rented games.

If you have a PC then the games can be very cheap indeed if you're willing to wait a little while- the new Tomb Raider game was released in 2013 at (I think) £30-£40, but ds got it recently for £3. I'm not sure about consoles, but computer games are nearly all purchased and downloaded online and special deals and sales are constant if you keep an eye open. I asked ds and he says he only gets games when they're 75% off and that happens 'all the time'.

Well obviously you earn and spend accordingly.
I guess my question is more how do you justify it?
I can't ever see me spending £200-£400 on a video game machine.
Can't ever see me buying a fancy handbag either.

How/where would I buy a second hand one?

And the skylanders figures are maybe £5-10, but you still need Wii or whatever, then the game, then the figures!

oh it really doesn't 'depend on what's important to you' it just depends on your disposable income

'Justify it' to who????

The xbox I got my daughter was £129

I paid for it out of my disposable income from my wages after I paid the mortgage and the bills ...no idea who I need to justify that to?

DH has an Xbox 360 and PS3, getting an Xbox One for Christmas. The games are expensive but he has a good income and doesn't spend money on drink or gambling or anything like that so I'm happy for him to spend it on computer games and his bikes (he says games are a winter hobby and biking is for the summertime).
So long as he can afford it and we're not going without I'm happy.

Well no it doesn't, I could buy an Xbox, or a designer handbag, or fancy shoes but I'm not interested in them, and I will not justify it.

okay then ...

It's like any hobby. People don't have to justify spending money on something that provides hours of fun for multiple family members. It probably works out very cheap when you factor in how many hours of gaming people get out of one console.