Comprehensive Video Game System Buyers Guide

Comprehensive Video System Buyers Guide by 1Busyman's Budget Video Games, Inc.



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There are many different video game systems on the market and buyers must choose carefully. For starters there are Playstation 2 or PS2, Playstation or PS1, Nintendo Gamecube, Microsoft Xbox, and Xbox 360, Nintendo Gameboy Advance or GBA SP, Nintendo DS and SONY PSP to name the more popular ones. Also some new systems will be out soon including Sony Playstation 3 or PS3 and Nintendo Wii. The basic purpose of a video game system is for entertainment. Therefore in my opinion the value of the system really lies in the available software of games for the system. The prices of video game systems have come down quite a bit of late as a new generation of systems has been launched or about to be launched. But also keep in mind beyond the cost of the basic system is the extra controllers, memory cards, and games.

There are also 2 types of systems, console or home systems that hook up to your television set, and handheld or portable systems. Let's explore some of the now available choices and soon to be choices.

But first let me tell you who we are what we sell. We are 1Busyman's Budget Video Games, Inc. We sell video games for all systems. All of our games are brand new and sealed and we sell games for all major video game systems right here on ebay. We buy our game direct from manufacturers and also from major distributors and we get our games from the same places all major brick and mortar retailers get there games from. We specialize in what we call budget video games.

Budget video games are in essence games that have been out on the market for 2 months or more. You see for console systems like Playstation 2, Nintendo Gamecube, and Microsoft Xbox when a new game is released to the market the MSRP or manufacturers suggested retail price is nearly always $49.99. Please note most new generation systems like Microsoft Xbox 360 and soon to be released Playstation 3 most games will have a $59.99 retail price. Despite what a lot of consumers believe there is a very small profit margin in selling brand new games, whether they are new releases or budget games. New release games with a $49.99 MSRP are bought buy most retailers for $42.00 to $44.00 wholesale. So after associated ebay fees, postage, supplies, paypal fees, and handling charges it leaves very little if any profit to be made selling new release games. If you see sellers selling brand new releases games for under $40.00 you best look twice as it may be a scam because there is no way the seller can turn a profit.

Now back to my definition of budget video games. As we already explained most new release console games sell for $49.99 MSRP. So lets say a new game comes to market Spongebob Episode 1. It will retail for $49.99, and of course there is a huge demand for newly released games in the first couple weeks after its release. Eventually sometime in the future Spongebob episode 2 will be released and all Spongebob episode 1 still left in the manufacturer, wholesale and retail levels will be sold at big discounts. But do you really care if you buy Spongebob 1 even if the game is 1 year old if it is brand new and sealed? If you do not own the game now it is still new to you. I know I would much rather buy Spongebob 1 for $20 then Spongebob 2 for $50 and will get similar enjoyment from each game, but Spongebob 1 comes with a $30 cheaper price tag. I will personally wait to buy Spongebob 2 until Spongebob 3 is out. After that demand slows considerably for most games except the rare blockbuster game like a Kingdom Hearts or Halo or a new Super Mario Brothers game as some typical examples of blockbuster hits. In fact there is a saying in the industry the average shelf life of a video game is 2 weeks. So the longer time goes on after a release of a game the less the game is usually worth because consumer demands slows.


The Console Systems

Playstation 2 also know as PS2

Sony makes the Playstation 2 or PS2 system and it is by far the most popular choice of all game systems on the market. It wide range of available games from children's games to hard core gamers games like RPG games or Role Playing Games make this the system of choice for most people. There are more available games for Playstation 2 then any other system on the market. Additionally the Ps2 is backwards compatible and will also allow you play any PS1 game on it. I would recommend this game system for anyone as you cannot go wrong buying a playstation 2 system. There are many games available brand new and sealed on ebay at prices far below what major brick and mortar retailers sell identical games for. We here at 1Busyman's Budget Video Games, Inc. sell more games for PS2 then any other game system by far.

Nintendo Gamecube

The Nintendo Gamecube is an outstanding system in many ways, but especially so as far as available games and choosing a system for entertainment value. Nintendo publishes some outstanding proprietary games or games exclusive to GameCube so they are not available on any other system. To mention a few of these it is games like Super Mario Brothers, Zelda, Donkey Kong, and Pikmin,. Additionally several other publishers make games exclusive to GameCube and these are favorites amongst RPG players. These would be games like Skies of Arcadia and Tales of Symphonia to name a couple. Also Gamecube has a wide variety of children's games available and has a large assortment of budget video games for sale on ebay. The GameCube is our #2 system as far as volume of games sold, which tells me it owners of GameCube enjoy their game system as they continue making software purchases. GameCube is relatively inexpensive as well. Nintendo offers package deals for $99.00 at the time of writing this guide, where you get the system, an extra controller, a memory card, and a game. The system alone sells for $99.00 with 1 controller only, so this package deal is a great deal. This makes the GameCube a great choice for most families as it has a low entry price point and a large assortment of available budget video games, as well as the terrific exclusive games made only for GameCube. It also makes a great choice for those families looking for a second game system. We carry a large assortment of GameCube games here at 1Busyman's Budget Video Games.

Microsoft Xbox

The Xbox made by Microsoft had a lot of buzz surrounding its introduction. The system did sell well here in the USA. The reasons I believe is because it promised better graphics never seen before in any system. The fact of the matter is as I stated early on it is games that make systems what they are and not the hardware itself . With this said Xbox by far is the worst system for us here at 1Busyman's Budget Video Games as far as number of games sold. This tells me the Xbox is the least played system, not necessarily the least owned but the least played and that is because there is no great proprietary games made for Xbox. The only proprietary game made for Xbox that did sell well is Halo and Halo 2. Just about every other must have blockbuster game was also made for PS2 and/or GameCube making the need to won an Xbox less desirable. Even now distributors and manufacturers are offering some terrific deals on Xbox games just to move all the dead inventory. However even with lower prices the Xbox games for the most part are hard to sell. Also noteworthy the library of available children's games is small and the available number of RPG games is small. I honestly cannot think of to many good reasons to own an Xbox.

Xbox 360

Xbox 360 is the first of the new generation systems to be released. Soon to be followed by Sony PS3 and Nintendo Wii (more on those later). Xbox 360 offers high definition graphics and available 720P and 1080i. I am not a techie so I will not go into technical details, but think of it as similar to high definition TV. As of now the 360 offers the best available graphics of any game system, however this is soon to be eclipsed by the PS3. The 360 while being a new generation system it really offers nothing new in the way of available games making the system worth the price for the average family or person. Only the true hard core gamer would want to go out and spend the money to buy this system in my opinion. One must at least purchase a premium system which sells for $399.00. You will also need accessories still like an extra controller, then there are the games and most of which have a $59.99 MSRP. To date there is no blockbuster 360 game out there. In fact the opposite as there are a lot of games manufacturers and distributors are offering way below cost on 360 because of the so far lack luster results in sales and slow demand. The 360 is also backwards compatible as well and will allow you to play many Xbox games on it. However not all games are backwards compatible. I have a list of what games are as known to date. That list is here Backwards Compatible Xbox Games for X-Box 360.

Playstation 3 or PS3

The PS3 is set to debut later in 2006 or early 2007. More details will be provided immediately prior to or after release. The MSRP is now set at $599.00 which will price it out of the market for the average family or person until such time the price point drops which may be 1-2 years after release. The PS3 will be offering a Blu-ray high definition DVD player and 1080P compatible. Therefore the graphics will eclipse that of the Xbox 360. Plus you can count on some great available games. The PS3 will be backwards compatible and allow you to play PS2 and PS1 games on it.

Nintendo Wii

There was a tremendous amount of excitement surrounding the Nintendo Wii at this years E3 (Video game show). Not because Nintendo was trying boast and say they had the best graphics or the fastest processor, but because they went back to basics and what made they great and that was great games and providing great family entertainment. . Nintendo believes the complexities of today's games make it difficult at best for the average person to really enjoy them (myself included even though I sell games, many are to complex for me to enjoy) Give me my Super Nintendo and I am happy. The Wii is targeted for anyone at any age and comes with a unique controller system. But with this they have not forgot about the true hard core games, and I believe Wii with is rumored $199 price point with be a huge success. Nintendo designed the Wii Remote to be the most unique gaming device ever. You can use it as a golf club and swing it like a golf club in one game and use it as a tennis racket and swing it like a tennis racket in another. Already Nintendo has great proprietary games with a new Zelda game, Mario Brothers, Metroid, and Wario Ware games planned. Plus expect a lot of great games from other publishers as well. Release is rumored to be 4th quarter 2006. The Wii will also allow you to play GameCubes game on it as it has a GameCube CD Slot and controller ports.

The Portable Systems

Gameboy Advance/Gameboy Micro/GBA SP

Nintendo Gameboy Advance or also known as GBA use cartridges called Gameboy Advance. You will see on the front of the box a silver band on the left side with the words Gameboy Advance. You also have the game system known as GBA SP. The GBA SP uses the same games as the Gameboy Advance or GBA. The GBA SP is not a different system then the Gameboy Advance or GBA nor are there different games made. No game will ever say GBA SP on it. You will only see the words Gameboy Advance as a GBA SP is actually a Gameboy Advance. Now if Nintendo did not confuse consumers enough last year they came out with Gameboy Micro. Well again the Gameboy Micro uses the same games as the Gameboy Advance or GBA . The Gameboy Micro is not a different system then the Gameboy Advance or GBA or GBA SP as far as what games are used. This is by far the best selling of all the portable systems and has the largest assortment of available games. There is a huge assortment of brand new games here on ebay and most at very low price points of under $20 with shipping. The system is suitable for those of all ages. In summary the Gameboy Advance or also know as GBA , the GBA SP and the Gameboy Micro all use the same games and these are called Gameboy Advance games. As a side note the GameBoy Advance System is backwards compatible and you can play your old GameBoy or Gameboy color games on it. The GBA SP retails for $79.99.

Sony PSP

The PSP is Sony's answer to the portable gaming market that until its entry into the market the portable system market was totally dominated by Nintendo with the Gameboy Advance. The PSP is expensive compared to a GBA and the MSRP is $199.00. Also the PSP is a delicate system where if dropped it can break easily. From my perspective the PSP has not been a huge success as it is limited with available software and has a high price point for entry. My opinion for most folks who want only 1 portable system would be to go with a Nintendo DS, described below. Plus the games all have a $39.99 to $49.99 MSRP.

Nintendo DS

The Nintendo DS or Dual Screen is the latest portable game system from Nintendo. It has a $129.99 MSRP. The really great thing about the DS is it has 2 cartridge slots, 1 for DS games and another for Gameboy advance games. So if you are a former owner of the GBA your games can be played on the DS eliminating the need to carry with you 2 systems to play your favorite old GBA games. Even if you never owned a GBA you have the option of buying GBA games now with the DS. All the DS games use the dual screen while the GBA games take advantage of only using one of the two screens. As we mentioned before with all the other Nintendo systems is the fact Nintendo makes some great proprietary games and the same holds true for the DS as well. The games have a $29.99 - $34.99 MSRP and some games are now available as budget. I would highly recommend this system for anyone looking for a portable system.

I hope you found this guide helpful and any comments would also be welcome and appreciated. Remember we sell brand new and sealed games for every major video game system and are always adding new products. We are one of the largest seller of video games on ebay. You can find all your gaming needs here at 1Busyman's Budget Video Games.

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Orignal From: Comprehensive Video Game System Buyers Guide