Buying consoles late - does anyone else do it?

Christmas 1999 is when 5 year old me was gifted my first Playstation. Before then, I was accustomed to DOS and Windows 98 gaming, but my childhood since this time was when I started following gaming. After the PS1, came the Gameboy Color, then a PS2, a Gameboy Advance SP, and I saved up to buy a PSP in 7th grade.

But after that, keeping with the console releases just stopped for me.The PS3 was $600, and XBOX 360 had a reputation around my friends, like "Ew, you a Micro-freak." So until further notice, I played games on my PC once again.

But, I found myself getting curious and nostalgic in recent years. I bought myself an SNES/NES/Genesis clone system in 2014, an original XBOX in 2015, a PS Vita in 2016, an XBOX 360 in 2017, and just yesterday I finally brought home a PS3 ultra-slim 500GB model. Hey, it was only $50.

Now I may own way too much gaming stuff now, and all of it is more than a generation old, but... I'm experiencing games that I just couldn't as a minor in high school without a reliable income, and it's a really nice feeling.

Anyone else have similar experiences?

I'm not currently planning to preorder a PS5. The games that come to it will depend on when I get it.

Pretty much this, Only reasons I got the xbox was due to all my digital content from the 360

I don't think that's a problem at all, in the end of a console's lifecycle, you not only get the console at a cheaper price, but you find bundles with awesome games, the best games of the generation in complete versions with all dlc and cheaper than at launch, so, not a problem, really.

I usually get new console a year after launch.

Launch games are usually very poor quality, so there is no point rushing in!

Only console I got at launch was PS1. And the following six months I had like two games to play, because there was so few games at launch!!!

Well I do buy them in their lifetime, but I don't get consoles at launch either.

I usually wait until there is a slim version atleast, and until there are more games. For example for PS4 I'm very glad I waited for the Pro. For the switch I'm waiting for a new SKU, if I ever buy one...

I just don't think buying at launch is a smart move:

- Launch line-up doesn't have alot of games

- A lot of launch games end up sucking: Killzone Shadow Fall. And are overhyped.

- Launch hardware is more prone to faults: RROD

I buy every PlayStation at launch and wait for everything else.

However next gen I am officially done with Xbox and Nintendo. Won’t be buying either. Xbox just pumps out Forza games which I am burnt out on and Nintendo has sucked the past 15 years with Wii/Wii u/switch(aka Wii 3)

I usually do this. Or just wait for the eventual ports to PC.

I do plan on replacing my aging PS3 with a PS4 at some point when the cost is finally low.

Depends on the game on launch but I never regret buying consoles on launch because I know it'll get it's used over it's lifetime.

Kind of all depends, I have bought consoles at launch year, I have waited a few years sometimes I wait till the next console is out just to buy the old one. (i.e. PlayStation)

Recently, I picked up a very early model of the 360, one without an HDMI port.

I bought mine late. Like I bought my PS4 PRO in March of this year. So many exclusives to play.

I did it with PS2, after I graduated college I had a job and my own apartment and money. I got a PS2 and picked up a lot of games for it cheap.

I never got a GameCube but got a Wii at launch, it could play GameCube games so picked up a ton of GC games cheap then too, to catch up on what I missed there.

One obvious advantage of waiting is ability to get this stuff cheap and there being a huge library to pick from. These days though, with so many online games, I feel people would be missing out on games where online activity is dead.

I guess. I got an OG Xbox when the PS3 came out.

its a good idea. you get the console cheaper. any hardware issues should be well ironed out. you have a big selection of games too. a lot to be said for it if you dont mind have a big desire to play certain games soon. even more so if its a console that you wont be using as your primary.

another good thing i have found is to occasionally skip a gen of a certain brand. im thinking about getting a PS4 with spiderman, SOTC, horizon and a few others some time this year....but im kinda humming and hawing about it. i could wait for the PS5 instead, get that at launch then pick up a load of PS4 games as well as a PS5 game or two (assuming the PS5 is BC with the PS4 of course...which it should be). there is always a lull after a consoles launch so having those PS4 games to keep my PS5 busy would be nice.

Games definitely cheaper always better bundles available if you wait as well.

Yup! It makes the most financial sense since I already own over a hundred games that I really enjoy.

I got a PS3 Christmas of 2016 with Last of Us, Uncharted trilogy, Demon's Souls, Dark Souls, Ico+SOTC, Final Fantasy X Remaster, Journey, and the Genesis collection for about $100.

Planning to do the same with PS4 and all future Xbox and Playstation systems.

Yeah, I generally do this with Nintendo consoles. I let it build up enough of a library first, then I'll get into it. I didn't do this with Wii U though. I just couldn't bring myself to get it. I borrowed one for Zelda.

Definitely won't get Xbox 2 day one i always leave it until there's a good enough library.

Yes sometimes I buy Consoles late. All the playstations, all of the Xboxes and All of the Nintendo's Except Nintendo Switch and Xbox one X.

Xbox one X is $599,99 and Nintendo Switch is $399.99 So that would be an additional $1000.00

However I will get Nintendo Switch once Ultimate Super Smash Brothers comes out. Since it has every fighter from all of the previous Smash Bros games. Along with Super Mario "Odd S sea" and the legend of Zelda Breathe of the wild. Finally there are 3 "Nintendo only" games that I want.

The Nintendo Switch is finally worthwhile for me. Xbox One X is getting there. I currently have the original Xbox one and Xbox one S

But Some Consoles are Day one purchases PlayStation 4 PlayStation 2, Nintendo Wii u, Nintendo 64, Xbox 360, Super Nintendo.

Videogaming is an expensive hobby, So some consoles are brought late. But sometimes cheaper like the fabled PS3 60 Giger for only $250.00 instead of $599.99 at launch. My first PS3 was the PS3 40 Giger $400.00 on it's debut.

so being late is Ok...Sometimes.

Depends. If I see more than enough games on the system and the pricing is right, I'll buy it. I never buy at launch.

1. I got the PS3 slim in August 2009 after a price drop
2. I got the original PS4 in 2015 when it came down to $349 USD
3. I gave that away to a nephew and bought the Pro in 2016

I buy Sony consoles towards the end of a generation and catch up on the exclusives I missed. I don’t like their UI, online service, or controller. so it’s not a good primary console for me.

And since all of their good exclusives are SP, it doesn’t matter if I wait. Plenty of other stuff to play.

I've usually purchased one console at launch and another way into the gen when the catalog is tip top.

Also, and this will sadly be an unpopular choice, but I rarely buy the same company first each gen...

I'll go Nintendo first one gen, followed by Sony first, followed by Xbox first... Its a wonderful way to game and focus on the franchises of different companies.

There really isn't a system war any longer... Well if your iq is above 40 there isn't. There is only great and varied experiences to be had.

Late within a gen? Sure. Especially if I'm buying a 2nd or 3rd console. I had Wii and PS3 somewhat early, didn't get my 360 till like 2011 last gen. This gen not sure I'll bother with XB1 at all unless they start giving them away, but I'll probably get a Switch at some point.

Years after a gen ends? Not really. I mean if I came upon a fully functioning SNES and games at a yard sale, I'd probably grab it (all my SNES controllers are dead). But I've never really gone out of my way looking for older consoles.

You're not alone OP, I'm usually late to the party also. Had a PS2 all through last gen, a Wii right at the end of its life cycle, and haven't been tempted to jump into this current round of consoles either. Well I got a Switch this time around fairly early on, so kind of broke the habit there I guess. Always been more of a handheld gamer.

I'm actually considering saving up for a PS Vita now, after doing some research, and being surprised at how many great games it has in its library. If only the memory cards weren't so friggin expensive.

No, I buy a console a few weeks after it comes out. (To make sure there isn't any factory malfunction). I think buying middle of the generation is the best. Buying at the end is just sad.

I will buy ps5 or xbox scarllet few months after release (the first time they reduce its price in 50 and add a free game I buy).

Normally ive bought with in the first year, this is likely the first generation I wont buy at all.

As a primarily PC gamer with plenty to play there’s no reason to buy consoles anywhere near launch date. Usually if one has desirable exclusives I’ll get the console 4 or more years after. That way prices have dropped, new revisions have been made, and a larger library of exclusives have been built up.

This generation though all my favorite JRPG series are also releasing on PC, so no need for a PS4 so far.

Being a gen or 2 behind is the way to go, instead of wasting all that money on the newshit.

When you're a kid you don't realize this, because you're always trying to keep up with your friends, have the newest toys, ect...

Then you grow up and don't give 2 shits about these things. Well some ppl anyway.

It's a good way to go if you are patient. You get the console hardware much cheaper, and you don't have to deal with high game prices or long wait times between exclusives as everything has been released already.

If I want a system, I will make sure I have it at launch. I usually preorder them as soon as possible and I import a system if I need to (like the PSV which released in Japan first). I don't care that later versions of the hardware are better since I usually buy later models anyway, if they are worth it. (Like I went from the og 3DS to XL, then another XL and then a new 3DS XL)

Don't really have a specific time frame when I buy consoles. Gotten a few things close to launch, gotten somethings years after launch. (PSP in 2013 for example) I'm usually not dying in anticipation for any particular game these days so I can wait

I bought a slim PS4 early last year. If the PS5 has all of the Pro's functionality I might buy it at launch, otherwise I'll just get a Pro and wait.

Probably gonna get the Scorpio around black friday, I really like the bc it has.

Nintendo can suck it, so I'll buy a used Switch sometime down the line and rent from gamefly or get its games used as well.

Plus I'm planning to play more on PC going forward, which will make waiting for cheap consoles even easier.

I tend to wait a few years until a game releases that I just must play. I got a PS4 in early 2017 because it was my birthday and I wanted to play FFXV. For $239 I got PS4, FFXV, and Uncharted 4 with 2 year warranty. And other games were cheaper too

I don't preorder anything, especially not consoles. I wait a year, see how the wind is blowing with regard to support for the platform, let some good games come out, maybe get bundled in... then I'll bite

I always wait until a game appears that I actually want to play that isn’t available on pc. From ps2 onwards, that time frame has been getting longer and longer with each new generation.

No, but that's about the smartest thing you can do with consoles. Wait at least a gen, and you can get the console plus a heap of games for nearly nothing. Buying consoles for 600 bucks and the games for 60 bucks each is pretty fucked up. Continue doing what you're doing dude.

I waited a year after launch to get a PS4. The RROD and YLOD fiasco made me wary of buying a launch version of any console.

I got a PS4 like a month ago. Not a bad toy. Not bad at all. Horizon: Zero Dawn is pretty much the only game I've played so far, need to get some more in the mail.

I hope Bloodborne and God of War are among those you have in the mail :)

Welcome back!

God of War, yes.

Bloodborne, no...is it like Dark Souls? Not a fan of Dark Souls/Nioh/The Surge type games

If there is a game I want on the system then I'm buying it

I picked up a 2ds xl 5 months ago. It's at the end of it's cycle. Don't regret at all, there are so many games for the 3ds I want to play.

I never buy consoles late because in a year or two a new console comes out and I want the latest technology. I usually get consoles midway through its lifecycle.

Yeah, it's pretty much a Souls game.

I don't have a PS4, Xbone or Switch yet. Don't really want any of them aside from the Switch (but I don't want to pay $90.39 CAD for a single game after tax).

Being a gen or two behind? I don't think that's really necessary unless you are really trying to minimize expenditures to almost nothing. I've found that games drop pretty cheap within a year or two, and lots of ridiculously cheap games in PSN sales.

Plus unless you are playing 100% solo, being "a gen or two behind"means you basically can't play any online at all. I like to mix it up between single player experiences and multiplayer (and I'm hardly a pro gamer, but I like at least playing shooters and racing online).

I think it's smart to wait a year or two for most gaming purchases, whether that is console or the software. Beyond that seems a bit silly IMO.

This is the ideal way to go. Usually wait at least a year if not longer. Never bought a console at launch in my life (unless we count buying PS3 slim on it's launch day, because I was waiting for that one,but of course that was waiting for a hardware revision not waiting for a "next gen").

I think maybe I bought Wii and PS4 in less than 12 months from launch, but that's about it. Usually I'm only looking if there are holiday bundles or black friday type deals after a few years.