Your take on pre-owned games.

[The Unworthy Gentleman]

Well, today I managed to pick up 4 games (Gears of War, Gears of War 22, Halo 3 and Fable 2) for £21. I managed to do this by buying them as pre-owned games, rather than buying them new at a much higher price. I'm not afraid to buy them as pre-owned because I know that if they don't work, I can send them back for a refund. I also trust the place I get them from enough to think that their test to make sure they work is good enough.

So, what do you think about pre-owned games? Do you think they're a safe buy or aren't worth the bother?

Note: All games were bought for XBOX360.

 

[Pielikey]

They're great, but I can't buy them because I'm a PC gamer. I bought used games all the time on PS2.

EDIT: although I dunno how safe they are, I went to sell some of my used games and he basically opened them up, looked at the CD and said "Yup, looks like a CD" and closed it up and put it on the shelf.

 

[ohgodalex]

I'd go for them. Oftentimes I don't bother to buy games upon release, so it's nice when I can pick them up for 20 bucks at a later date.

 

[AvsJoe]

Most of the games I buy are used (or "pre-owned", "previously enjoyed", etc...). Occasionally I buy a new one if the price is right (x <= $20) but used games make up the bulk of my collection.

 

[Scizophrenic Llama]

Pretty much any place that sells them has a standard to check all disks before trading in for scratches before accepting them. I can't say if they are tested, but they generally are.

I prefer my games new, but if money is short I won't hesitate to go for a used copy. I know that GameStop offers a year warranty on most used games for not too much extra.

 

[The Unworthy Gentleman]

They're great, but I can't buy them because I'm a PC gamer. I bought used games all the time on PS2.

EDIT: although I dunno how safe they are, I went to sell some of my used games and he basically opened them up, looked at the CD and said "Yup, looks like a CD" and closed it up and put it on the shelf.

Yeah, that is the downside to PC gaming (kinda) but there's a certain pride and joy that comes from a new game.

 

[Natmonkey]

I have no problems with pre-owned games. Only had one bad experience though; my FF8 crapped out on me at the end of disc 3. Dammit.

 

[rookie.of.the.year]

They're great, but I can't buy them because I'm a PC gamer. I bought used games all the time on PS2.

PC games are cheaper in general though, currently downloading Knights of the Old Republic from steam, was £6.99

I'm a huge pre-owned buyer, I just cant afford the prices of new games, noting how similar our last shopping shopping sprees were on the 360

(Gears of War, Gears of War 22, Halo 3 and Fable 2) for £21.

I got Gears 1 & 2, Halo 3, Kane and lynch and Lego batman for a very similar price

 

[migo]

I had bad luck once getting a used game from EB. Since then I always check the discs for scratches. Buying from craigslist I've never had a problem though. I very rarely, if ever, buy a game new.

 

[number2301]

I've just recently given up buying second hand games, partly because of the whole 'bigger problem than piracy' thing, but mainly because I've found you can buy games a few months old for about £20-30 if you look around (or check gamestracker).

So yeah, I don't mind paying that, then I can keep them as well and actually have a collection instead of trading them in all the time.

 

[Zaik]

wouldn't buy them if i couldn't take it back if it turned out broken, but otherwise there's no reason not to.

 

[Eliam_Dar]

No problem with them, I actually own several pre-owned games, among them I have:

PS3
Lair
Grid

XBOX 360

GoldenAxe
Banjo Kazooie
Tales of Vesperia

 

[Skratt]

It is a very rare occasion that I pay full price for a game anymore. I wait until PC games are on a discount and buy console games exclusively pre-owned. I also don't buy as many games as I used to. It's not that I think the games aren't worth full price (some very truly are) I just have a hard time justifying the cost to myself knowing that if I am patient the games will go on sale and I will have just as much fun for less money.

 

[Cabisco]

For new games I'll just get the new copy that way I know the developer is getting some sort of profit from it. I also would buy new because of project ten dollar (which i'm a fan of) and just the reasurance my game won't be scratched and won't be able to play a level right at end of the game (which has happened before).

 

[The Unworthy Gentleman]

I had bad luck once getting a used game from EB. Since then I always check the discs for scratches. Buying from craigslist I've never had a problem though. I very rarely, if ever, buy a game new.

Oh, I wouldn't risk craigslist... also it's not in big use where I live, or so it seems. I prefer to get mine from a Game. It's pretty much my favorite game shop. Along with cheap pre-owned game I get a free next day delivery (unless I order on a friday, saturday or sunday). The only bad experience I have had with them is that Oblivion sometimes takes a while to load the game but this may be the actual game rather than it being pre-owned.

 

[Flamezdudes]

I like them, although i'm finding it frustrating at the moment because i wanna buy FF6, FF7 and FF8. I've played 7 but i can't remember what happened to my last one and i haven't played the other two. Where the hell are PS1 preowned games in the UK?

 

[The Unworthy Gentleman]

I just think its hilarious people can be anti-piracy but pro used-games for profit.

I'm not anti-pirate though, just to be clear. The only people losing out on money with pirating is the stores themselves. But they buy the games for a cheap price or store credit and then they sell them so it's completely different to pirating.