Games are $70 now, but you don't really have to pay that

Sony and Microsoft are now selling first-party games for $70, and many triple-A third-party developers are likely to follow suit. That's not good news for gamers in these tough economic times, but do you really have to pay that much for games?

Be patient, pay less

Games can cost $70 on release day, but the first discounts or price cuts for digital copies are likely only a few months away. If you can deal with FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) and wait a bit, you'll likely pick up the game for a lot less than the original asking price.

In many cases, the first small price drop happens in just a few weeks, especially if the release is close to one of the big annual sales that happen on platforms like Steam or the console's digital storefronts.

Physical games are often on sale as well

Although physical games may eventually follow the path of the dinosaurs on current-gen consoles, they are still with us and offer potential savings. While the $70 digital versions will sell for this, retailers may decide to cut a few dollars off the price to entice gamers to buy from them instead.

Whether it's a brick-and-mortar store or an online retailer selling physical games, you might find that there's always someone willing to cut their profit margin a little to hijack sales. to his store. So why not accept the offer and get your games cheaper?

Used games are always great value

While physical games are still with us on consoles, it's still possible to sell your old games and buy used copies for a discount compared to a new shrink-wrapped box. Game publishers have tried several ways to discourage sales of used games, including single-use codes for in-box downloads that you'll have to pay for again if you buy a used copy.

Luckily, that's rare, so in almost all cases you'll get the same content in a used copy of a game as if you were buying a new copy. For large single-player games, you can expect used copies to hit the shelves a few days after the game's release. This happens when players try to sell or trade the game immediately after getting it. done to get most of their money back.

The closer to release a used copy you buy, the higher the price, but it's still likely to be significantly lower than the recommended retail price of $70.

Subscription services also bring discounts

We live in the age of gaming subscription services like PlayStation Plus and Game Pass for PC or Xbox. As with video streaming services, you pay a monthly fee and get access to a library of games. Some games may be permanent installations and others run regularly.

Game Pass in particular is an interesting example, as all of Microsoft's first-party games are permanently available (barring a few legacy deletions) and can be played on launch day. Thus, indeed, if a new Halo or Force came out with a price tag of $70, no one has any reason to pay that much. If you already have a Game Pass subscription, you can just play the games. If you don't, it's a nominal amount to buy a month of service and complete the game.

Even if you want to own the game, you can get a 20% discount on any game currently on Game Pass by being a subscriber. Games that release on the day and date can only get this discount after a set period to prevent people from subscribing just for the discount, but both of you will be able to play the game immediately and have access to this discount price. purchase reduced as soon as possible.

With PlayStation Plus, things don't quite work that way currently, but there are plenty of first-party games on the service that still sell for the new, higher price when there's no sale going on. PlayStation Plus also regularly offers deep member-only discounts.

Even though Nintendo hasn't joined the proprietary $70 gaming club yet, you have access to the discounted ticket offer if you subscribe to Nintendo Online. Here you pay a fixed amount for digital vouchers which can be redeemed for any game from a curated list. These are mostly first- and second-party Nintendo games, and you'll get a decent guaranteed discount if you choose your games wisely. Perhaps most importantly, you can hold onto your tickets for a period of time (they expire) and use them to purchase future games, regardless of their introductory price.

It's cheaper on PC

While the $70 launch price has taken hold of current-gen console games, in the PC world few games have dared to launch at that price, and even $60 is an amount that rarely anyone can afford. one actually pays.

Thanks to the open and competitive market that exists in the PC world, there are many digital retailers to choose from when launching a new game, so you'll almost certainly find a copy below. Game prices drop fast on PC, and there's almost always a sale going on, so list the games you want and wait for that email alert to let you know it's going for a song now.