The Cost of Gaming in 2015

It has occurred to me that the console wars do no exist because of fanboyism but its rather the by-product of the immense cost and financial strain required to game in 2015. I've been told gaming is a relatively inexpensive hobby however upon a quick number crunch it can be one of life's great stresses!

Down payment: PS4 ($400), Xbox One ($350), Wii U ($300) Modest Gaming Rig $750.00 = $1850 + ~$250 tax = $1950.00
Annual gaming fees: 5 console exclusive games ($60 each) per system a year = $1200 + ~$200 tax = $1700.00
Memberships: PS Plus + Xbox Live = $110 + ~$15 tax = $125.00
Total annual cost to game in 2015 = $3775.00 ~taxes in.
~may vary by region

This means that hypothetically to get the full 'Best-Gaming-Experience-of-2015-Experience' it will set an individual back approximately $4k, let alone including the cost of a 4k TV ;)

Thoughts?

Well, the cost of gaming in general actually becomes cheaper as the years go by, assuming gaming is not impacted by inflation, as it pretty much hasn't been for the past three decades (I remember seeing a Genesis game go for as much as 100 bucks, I believe it was Virtua Racing).

Gaming only seems more expensive, because we want more of it.

It's practically nothing. I've bought 20 games this year and spent $54.4

Your problem is that you want to keep up with contemporary hardware and software and that's your downfall. There's no reason to spend money on new consoles, online memberships, and new games when there is a backlog of old games that can be bought and played on cheap consoles for $1-10, waiting just a few months for games to drop in price or go on clearance sales helps to immensely alleviate costs. For example, even if you want to keep up with contemporary releases, waiting a few days or a month can be the difference between paying $60 or $30.

It's flexible, it can be as inexpensive or as expensive as you want it to be. You don't have to have all the systems, subscriptions, games, etc. and there's many deals and discounts to be had.

I am wondering are you also the type that yells about companies making DLC and the like?

No, why?

I know a guy that says the same thing and get mad when the companies does anything like DLC. In other words he want everything from the company and get made when the company tries to make money to pay their employees.

@thelipshiiter: As mentioned, buying every new AAA game on each console is of course expensive. I have over 700 games in my Steam library, but I sure as hell didn't spend $60 on each one. While consoles tend to take a while to drop in price, the software for them does not in most cases and can drop to as little as $5 less than a year after a game is released depending on how well it sells.

There are other factors, too. New indie titles might release for $20 or less. Also, F2P games where payment is completely optional are becoming more and more common. Those PSN and XBLsubscriptions also come with free games as the months go on.

Also, it's cheaper than it has been in the past. When the Atari 2600 first came out in 77 it was released for $200. In adjusted dollars that's equivilent to over $750 today.

-Byshop

@wiouds:

I'm not opposed to DLC; I rarely buy it, but I'm not oppose to it, just like I'm not opposed to remasters; however, it doesn't make me want to buy games on the first day of release when I can wait a year and get and up-res'ed version with everything on disc and a price that I'm comfortable spending money on, which again isn't much. I'm not opposed to paying $60 for a game, but I'm not going to if there's no incentive to, and because most games don't retain value, the industry and market have given me no incentive to.

I guess you're implying that it's my consumer practices that drove the industry into a direction that a lot of people on forums would deem "bad business" because I "don't support developers by buying their game at full price." It's possible; I don't really care, but it's possible. Although I'd argue that the industry would probably move towards the current business trends due to extremely high development costs and time, and the industry's devaluation of games through the multitude of online-marketplaces with seasonal sales. While some blame might be placed on me for doing what a consumer should do, finding the best deal offered to them, you should also place blame on the industry for helping to create the climate that allows me to buy 4 games for $1.

Totally agree, you just have to be a smart consumer! Ebay, Amazon and Best Buys always have great deals on games and game related products.

I own a home and I have a girlfriend, so you know I have to be smart with my hard earned money!

At the end of it all, The ones creating the product wants as much money for it as possible while the one consuming the product want it for as little money as possible.

Gaming is literally the cheapest it's even been.

Threads like this just point out the creator's lack of knowledge

I have the 3 current consoles of the 8th Generation. with 36 retail releases between them. But not a 4K Television or a Gaming PC. Still Gaming is an expensive hobby. But that is the way is has been for every generation of games.

While there are some ways to save money on games and other things like Xbox live. Overall gaming is costly pastime. But worth it and I still enjoy it.

@Minishdriveby: I am not saying anything bad about you. I am saying I know a number of gamers that buy games as cheap as they can and still scream about how the companies is ripping them off because DLC. I just find they are placing the gaming companies between a rock and hard place. Where gamers want ever thing cheap for them while expecting the top of the line stuff.

@thelipshiiter: I beat you:

Wii U 650 bucks, PS4 750 bucks, Xbox 850 bucks

Games 120 bucks, PS Plus 80 bucks, Xbox Live 80 bucks

Gaming is expensive as ****

Can you compare it to miniature wargamming?

I think it is fucking expensive

For example, if you want to see some decent graphic, upgrading you PC spend hell lot of money. Those next gen game have no mercy .

Or you can stick you your old setup and go all the way low, or simply can't run it at all.

Console wise, PS4 and Xbox one have a ridiculous price tag, which isn't everybody is happy to pull this amount of money out of their pocket.

The most important part is, HELL, thanks EA, new games are overall fucking expensive now.

Cost is one of the main reasons I generally stick with one console throughout a generation (usually)... especially since we have to pay for online subscriptions. Having only one, I can buy whatever I want on it and not feel guilty (and poor).

It is one of the cheapest hobbies around... if you are smart about it.

Buying games on day-one, paying for online multiplayer and buying the next greatest console that has yet to prove itself in terms of software isn't smart. That's the luxury side of gaming.

But when you actually crunch some real numbers, it brings it's cost into perspective:

• $65/month for cable TV (assuming average 3 hours watching per day) = $0.72 per hour
• $20 for a used or older game of 15-25 hours length = $0.80-1.33 per hour
• $10 for a 6 hour novel (for an average sized novel for the average reader) = $1.67 per hour
• $60 for a 10-15 hour game = $4.00-6.00 per hour
• $15 for a 90 minute movie = $10.00 per hour
• $45/month for a gym membership (average person attends once per week) = $11.25 per hour
• $50 for a 4 hour golf game (not including club cost or cart rental) = $12.50 per hour
• $14 for a CD (or $0.99 per song for 14 songs) with less than 1 hour of music = $14.00+ per hour

Now take a look at a Humble Bundle. Upwards of 10-12 games, of an average of anywhere from 5-15 hours long, for as little as $8-12 (assuming you pay the minimum to get all the games)... you are looking at a staggering $0.04-$0.24 per hour for your entertainment.

Gaming is easily one of the cheapest hobbies out there. The only thing I could think would be cheaper, would probably be buying used novels from $1 bins. But even then, that's still $0.16 per hour (assuming the average length for the average reader).

Hopefully this might also put into perspective people who cheap out and give only $1 for Humble Bundles.

Also, I totally forgot to mention inflation.

Those $60 games you are buying now? How would you have liked to have spent $80-120 on a game in the late 1990's? Those existed in Canada and the US.

For example: in 1998 when Ocarina of Time released, there were versions in Canada going for as much as $120 (and I've heard stories of $80 copies in the US). In today's money? $115.20 for an $80 game in the US and $165.36 for a $120 game in Canada.

Feel privileged that you only pay $60 these days. Hell, games are $70 here in Canada right now because our dollar sucks. Even on Steam.

EDIT: For even more reference sake: the NES released in 1985 for $199.99 USD. Which would be $436.26 USD today. And the MSRP for the Panasonic 3DO was $699.99 USD in 1993. That's $1137.05 USD. Shit son.

Gaming is the cheapest of my hobbies, largemouth bass fishing and dog showing are a lot more expensive.

I don't think you're really winning or beating anyone in this scenario...

Yes i do, because gaming is more expensive here, he has nothing really to complain about

hi all, i have made a video on this thred about the cost of gaming let me know if you wana see it and i will post it on here,

i think that we have just got more greedy, and game are not more expensive

Don't buy everything. Simple huh? Also, don't buy every hyped new game that comes out on day one, problem solved.