Variant: Convince Me to Buy, Not to Buy…
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Recently, I had two different friends ask me for assistance in game buying. One asked me to help convince him to buy Mage Knight. As a pricey game, a little friendly push was needed in order for him to pull the trigger on something he really enjoys. Unrelated to that, another friend asked for help convincing him not to buy Netrunner. I did a pretty good job there as well. But why did they need convincing in the first place?
On the negative side, I completely understand. I’ve admitted on numerous occasions that I tend to worship in the cult of the new, so sometimes I’ll hear the hype behind a game and I immediately start desiring it. My greed for games starts ramping up and, left unchecked, I’ll eventually be able to rationalize any purchase. “Car payments are overrated. After all, cars don’t come with punchboards and minis!”
Often I’ll scour the interwebs specifically looking for negative reviews of games. Sometimes that will be enough to calm me down. It I can see all of the game’s flaws, then it becomes easy for me to pass on it, or try to acquire it through trade rather than by direct purchase. On the other hand, it occasionally backfires, such as when the aspects that made the reviewer go negative are things I don’t care about or even embrace. And, lets face it, hobby games aren’t exactly inexpensive. Over the long haul, on a per-play basis, they can be very cheap, but the up front cost definitely has to get factored in to the family budget. Sometimes it’s best to pass up a game or two.
Generally, based on price, sometimes it can be hard to click the purchase button, or bring it up to store counter, when you know you will soon be parting with a wad of cash. But it’s important to remember that games can bring hours of enjoyment to you and your friends, and that they can give experiences unlike any other form of entertainment. And, if a little nudge is needed, I apparently can provide it.
This isn’t a unique occurrence. For some reason, I think game players still require validation to make purchases and having a voice reassure them can help. It’s not a “waste” of money to buy a board game. Similarly, people who are deep in the hobby sometimes need a steady hand to make sure they continue to buy games they enjoy – and not a game that will simply end up on the trade list.
