Gaming On A Budget #3

I know you are tempted to sell your Xbox system in order to get some extra money so you can buy something new, but I highly recommend you don't. For starters, backwards compatibility on the Xbox 360 isn't 100% and you are likely to have a stack of Xbox games that won't even work on the new system (at least not yet). I have always regretted it every time I sold off an old system to buy something new and I learned my lesson over the last couple of generations. Finally, we are entering what I like to call the golden age of Xbox collecting.

You will be able to find pretty much every Xbox game you could ever want for dirt cheap prices thanks to the silly people that will be rushing out to sell their Xbox and games in order to upgrade to the 360. EBGames, GameStop, and other retailers that take trade ins will be flooded with Xbox games. Pawn shops and local game stores will also have them piled up to the rafters (because, as I said in previous Gaming on a Budget articles, you tend to get more money for games at these places than the dedicated retailers). Demand will be down and inventory will be way up so prices should go down. We can use this knowledge to our benefit by knowing when and where to shop in order to get as many games as possible for a little cash as possible.

How do I know this will happen? Because this is what always happens when a new system is introduced. People are so desperate for the newest gadget that they seem to forget that there is already 500+ games out there they could be playing for a system they already have. We saw it with Nintendo's systems, we saw it with the PlayStation 1, we saw it with the death of the Dreamcast, and I fully expect it to happen once again with the Xbox. In fact, go search GameStop.com right now for Xbox games under $10. You'll find hundreds. And it is the same for the other last-gen systems as well.

From now until at least the launch of the Xbox 3 (hopefully 5 years down the line) Xbox games will be cheap and plentiful and building a nice collection will be a breeze. Ultimately, this Xbox gaming smorgasbord is the result of using the tips I presented in the first two Gaming on a Budget articles. Click to read GoaB #1 and GoaB #2 to find out where the best places to buy, sell, and trade are in order to get the best bang for your buck.

Now you should have all of the information you need to know how, where, and when to sell, buy, and trade in order to build a very nice collection of not just Xbox games but all games.