Discount Video Games

The bad news is that the newest hot video game releases are often the same price no matter where you go. Since retailers know that everyone is clamoring for them, they keep the price steady at suggested retail for as long as possible. However, do not despair. It is possible to get good deals on discount video games.

How to Find The Deals

New Releases in Stores

While I said it is difficult to get the newest video games at a discount, it is not impossible. If you want to shop at a brick and mortar video game store (remember to include shipping in what you will pay if you order online, although you may be able to save money on tax if your online retailer does not have any physical operations in the state in which you live) make sure you are on your favorite retailers' mailing list; often they will send special offers or preview specials to customers who sign up for physical or e-mail product mailings. In addition, check the local advertising inserts in the newspaper on Sunday for specials. Many major retailers periodically do promotions on hot titles in order to entice you into their store (where you are likely to stock up on even more games, CDs and DVDs). In addition, sellers like Toys R Us routinely offer coupons that allow you to take $5 or $10 off any new video game title or 20% off any single purchase. Other times, they offer discounts for people buying multiple games or add extras (like t-shirts, strategy guides or other swag) for preferred customers (that would be you once you get on their mailing list or sign up for their credit card.) You can use these offers to your advantage if you are willing to do some searching and you have a little patience.

Finding New Games Online

While many online sites advertise discount or cheap video games, the range in prices is not as wide as you might think or hope. Searching for "discount video games" does not usually yield the best results. Instead, look for one of the online price comparison web sites that services video gamers. Price comparison sites gather the current selling price for a game from tens or hundreds of online video game sites and let you know the best price you can get for the game you want. Simply visit the price comparison site of your choice (try PriceGrabber or CNET's My Simon to get you started) and use the search box to enter the game of your choice. You will see a selection of prices offered by different video game sites. Make sure you check the shipping and handling charges for each site, since a few unscrupulous e-tailers undercut their competitors, then make up for it with overblown shipping costs.

Older Video Game Titles

If you are just looking for good fun and do not have a specific game in mind, you may be in luck. The cheapest video games are classic titles that have sold well over the years and have been re-released at a lower price point. Cruise the lists of video game bestsellers from recent years to see what games you might have missed out on when they were at full price. Or think back to your favorite video game rentals; now may be the time to pick up your very own copies of those gems. You can often pick up these legends for as little as $15 or $20 and get hours worth of gameplay for which many of your peers happily paid full price. Also, many games (especially sports games) are updated annually. As soon as the new version of a game comes out, the prior year's game is discounted. If you do not care about having the current season's teams and the newest tweeks to player controls, you will probably be just as happy with the previous iteration.