Sunday, July 4, 2010

Project $720

I'm making a challenge for myself that is related to gaming, but does not involve the playing of games directly. From July 1, 2010 to July 1, 2011, I'm aiming to see if I can go a full year spending $720 or less on video games. The 720 number comes from the $60 price of a new retail game (before tax) multiplied by 12, or one retail game a month for a year. The challenge is to see how much gaming I can get in with my gaming dollars (not just to be a tight wad, cheap ass, miser, you pick).

Nothing wrong with people spending their hard earned cash on their favorite hobby, but I sometimes think we're not aware of how much it all adds up to. The point of this challenge isn't to not spend money, but see just how much gaming I can get for the price of 12 retail titles.

So, what are the rules? It's simple enough: every game purchase counts towards the dollar total. The cost of renting games, or services like Gamefly would count. Buying more Microsoft Points counts. However, any money made from selling games from my collection can be spent on more games without going against the 720 total. Recycling is good for both the environment and my gaming budget.

How can I get a lot of gaming in? Raid bargain bins, scour ebay, and trading games with others comes to mind. If I borrow a game from someone, the only cost I'd incur is the postage to/from the sender. So, I may be looking for volunteers to participate in my game loaning / trading operation. I can be counted on to return what I borrow, and send out games as well. Ask Bishop, Dark Tharen, or Sabre, who have all done business with me in the past.

Now, in the interest of honesty and total disclosure, I have Halo Reach paid in full already, so that's one $60 game that won't show up in the costs of this challenge. Also, I have 12,000 Microsoft points purchased from a Walmart.com deal a while back, so I can buy $150 worth of DLC or arcade games before Microsoft point purchases would become a part of this challenge. So, I admit I have an advantage here. Though, to be fair, those games will not appear in the "What I did with $720 list I will be making."

For the price of 12 new retail games, let's see just how much gaming I can actually do. There will be an ongoing list further down on the right side of this blog. Who wants to help me make this list as long as possible? =)

Oh, and 4 posts in 3 days... definitely back from the dead.

2 comments:

  1. Without bragging to much I can safely say I've spent less than that much every year I've owned an Xbox, which is over 4 years now.....

    You're complete right when you say people don't realise how much they are spending, they don't. I don't have a job as I'm in education therefore I'm constantly aware of the little amount of money I have to spend. Sure I miss out on playing some games at release which I'd like to (Green Day Rock Band) but I deal with it and I'm happy with what I do get.

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  2. Hey man. That's a good challenge. I think it will be quite easy. Quite often I will buy a game on special, and then later sell it used at the price I paid. Here in New Zealand, I bought red dead redemption for $96, and sold it three weeks later for $90. (retail titles are normally about $100ea)

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