totallyterrificpants Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 My aim is $10 a week. $20 max. Luckily most Atari games are pretty cheap. I used to collect Genesis games and even the worst games were average $15-20 while most of the best Atari games were common so a lot are $6 tops. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skippy B. Coyote Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 For me it's $50 a month, unless I sell something that I've grown tired of for some extra cash or convince the misses to pitch in on a game or system that she might have fun with too. It's not much, but at this point I'm mostly collecting Game Boy and Game Boy Color games and they usually run $2 to $8 each, so I can still pick up a good number of games each month. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
0078265317 Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 Ideally zero dollars a week. Realistically I don't know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoenixdownita Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 For me it's $50 a month, unless I sell something that I've grown tired of for some extra cash or convince the misses to pitch in on a game or system that she might have fun with too. It's not much, but at this point I'm mostly collecting Game Boy and Game Boy Color games and they usually run $2 to $8 each, so I can still pick up a good number of games each month. Just saying but you do know that a GB Everdrive is less than 90US$ -> less than 2 months of your budget. Not ALL GB/GBC games work but it may allow you to focus on very very few actual releases. Me, I didn't have a buget per se but once I reached 500US$ one month I knew it was too much .... in the end I've been collecting for around 10Y and I estimate the expenses at around 10K (give or take) including flash carts, mod components (Svideo this, RGB that), complementary cables, all in one power supplies, XRGB mini, all the various joysticks/joypads (I ended up with 15 Saturn pads and something like 10 for N64) .... so ~1K a year so ~100US$ a month average. Truth be told the worst months were when a new system was bought (FM Towns Marty -> 400US$ ouch, NeoGeo CDZ 250US$, etc...etc...), for the rest the second worst months were the flash carts launch months (MegaED -> 145US$, SD2SNES -> 190US$ oooouch). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skippy B. Coyote Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 Just saying but you do know that a GB Everdrive is less than 90US$ -> less than 2 months of your budget. Not ALL GB/GBC games work but it may allow you to focus on very very few actual releases. I'm very aware of EverDrives and other flash carts like the Harmony cart, and I really like them for systems that I don't actively collect for (the NES, Genesis, Atari 2600 in my case). But for me the Game Boy/Color are really special systems with a lot of sentimental value, so I like to collect original cartridges for them. I still plan on picking up an EverDrive GB at some point, just for the convenience of having all my games with me when traveling and such, but the GB/GBC are definitely some of the few systems that I like to collect original cartridges for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jason_Atari Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 I guess your budget should just be in the limits of what you can afford. Some weeks i spend $5, the next $200, it all just depends what i come across. Just noticed you're from australia like me, where do you mainly buy stuff from? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSG Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 As close to zero as possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lazzeri Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 Being all the way across the world, having a taste for the bizarre pre-crash systems and relying primarily on eBay, it hugely relies on what pops up online. Sadly for me, shipment costs alone tipically goes above what most of you guys are saying your budget is. And that makes me a sad panda. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flojomojo Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 A dollar spent on something enjoyable is never wasted. My "budget for retro gaming" is whatever I want it to be. I like old and old style stuff best. Most of the time it's very little, and mostly for GOG, Steam, and App Store stuff. When that Atari flashback 7 comes along it will be mine. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 I generally try to keep it under $100 a month, usually closer to $50-75. Some months go better than others in that regard. My budget's kind of busted for a little while, though, due to some recent hardware purchases (just paid off a Bally Arcade, finally pulled the trigger on a long-wanted Apple II+ last week, and I've got a deal pending with a buddy of mine for a Vectrex).So no more gaming stuff for me for a few weeks. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hizzy Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 Shipping can be steep, and, if you're Canadian, the currency exchange is brutal! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IsARealBoy88 Posted August 30, 2016 Share Posted August 30, 2016 I'm pretty new to collecting but I usually won't do more then $10 a week, but there's also not a lot of retro game shops around me lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bixler Posted August 30, 2016 Share Posted August 30, 2016 I would say about $25 a month between video games and comic books. But I'm a poor student, so hopefully that number will rise over time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted August 30, 2016 Share Posted August 30, 2016 I go back and forth. I think I just try to keep it reasonable, whatever that means in a given month. I cycle through different hobbies and whatever I spend on one is money I try not to spend on another. It's a zero-sum game. Recently I've been spending about $200 a month on retro gaming. But that's basically my entire entertainment budget. I haven't been spending any money on modern games or any of my other hobbies in that time. I think $200 per month is probably my max for *all* my hobbies, and depending on what I'm into at a given moment, some hobbies get more or less of that money. Right now classic gaming is getting basically all of it, but that'll probably change again at some point. I do agree that if it's something you like, it's not a waste of money. I tell myself that whenever I start to feel guilty about what I spend. Life shouldn't be only about putting food on the table. (Although I know for some people it has to be, and I feel thankful that I have a little extra to spend on stuff like games.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professor Gull Posted August 30, 2016 Share Posted August 30, 2016 I fluctuate between $10 some months and $200 others. It really depends on whats available and what I run into. For now though I have stopped actively looking and gone back to "what falls in your lap" deals. Really though enjoy what you are after and help out fellow gaming buds as well that's all I got. Damn you Steel Battalion for taking my money. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhd Posted August 30, 2016 Share Posted August 30, 2016 I refuse to shop online, so I am limited by whatever I can find at retail -- though I do travel quite a bit, so I am not stuck with just the shops in one city. I do not have a monthly budget, per se, but I am reluctant to spend more than Cdn$20 for a single game. I doubt that I would ever spend more than Cdn$50 for a single title -- and that would have to be one of a very few RPGs that I really want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+sramirez2008 Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 I fluctuate between $10 some months and $200 others. It really depends on whats available and what I run into. For now though I have stopped actively looking and gone back to "what falls in your lap" deals. Really though enjoy what you are after and help out fellow gaming buds as well that's all I got. Damn you Steel Battalion for taking my money. That thing is sick, but in a good way! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professor Gull Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 That thing is sick, but in a good way! Its only in my possession temporarily thankfully. I have an Xbox collector friend who wanted it but the guy who sold it was iffy about keeping it. Money did the talking though ....well that and his wife standing behind him going " Really you are going to keep that?" My wife though was more like. " What are they asking for that? Ok keep it under X and you get it." So funds in mind having a supportive spouse helps for game and system buying. She just spends her fun money on beauty stuff which I constantly remind her she does not need cause she is naturally beautiful. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
helmsm Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 I don't have a weekly or monthly budget, but I (mainly) won't pay more than $20 for a cart Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atari181 Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 No limit, wherevwr the monto takes me. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+sramirez2008 Posted September 1, 2016 Share Posted September 1, 2016 Its only in my possession temporarily thankfully. I have an Xbox collector friend who wanted it but the guy who sold it was iffy about keeping it. Money did the talking though ....well that and his wife standing behind him going " Really you are going to keep that?" My wife though was more like. " What are they asking for that? Ok keep it under X and you get it." So funds in mind having a supportive spouse helps for game and system buying. She just spends her fun money on beauty stuff which I constantly remind her she does not need cause she is naturally beautiful. Yup...my wife is supportive too, especially since 7800 Centipede Trak-Ball arrived! Dual Player Competition and Team Play have become our favorite versions to play together. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtariLeaf Posted September 1, 2016 Share Posted September 1, 2016 Zero for me right now since I'm not actively collecting. That could change but I've been taking a break from collecting and have been spending more time playing. Other than the occasional homebrew that pops up, I'm not seeing anything out there grabbing my attention. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Theunknown Posted September 5, 2016 Share Posted September 5, 2016 I don't have any set budget. I try not to go over board, though sometimes I do(lol) I trying keep it in the low hundreds(100-200). I very rarely pay more then that for a single item, but I have. Sometimes when I'm at a retro video game store or flea market I get a little carried away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flojomojo Posted September 6, 2016 Share Posted September 6, 2016 I just stumbled onto this online and it seemed appropriate to share it here. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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