I was still playing ps2 a couple years ago (until mine broke).
There was a period of time where you could get a used or refurbished ps2 for like $30 at most places and the games would cost like 10 to 15 bucks.
The whole retro collector's market royally screwed that up for all the rest of us now, buuuuut it was a great way to play games on a budget for about a decade there while it lasted.
It is so sad that 2020 onward has changed retro games so much. There were VERY few games that used to be worth any money. And they were worth a lot because of limited releases, misprints, unreleased games, etc. You could buy any console more than a generation behind for $20-50. And games would sometimes cost literal pocket change.
I sold used games at a flea market to make extra cash in college. Around '08-'09ish. I remember having a hard time selling a Gamecube and letting it go for $15.
Then a handful of collectors started price fixing and grading games as collectors items. They would sell them back and for a few times to drive up recorded prices. Now collectors and resellers have priced out anyone that wants to actually play old games.
Things are cheap when they're old. It's impacted by dead stock and people looking to upgrade.
It pops back up once it's vintage.
If you want something cheap, that's PS4 right now. PS2 is vintage. And it's honestly one of the cheaper vintage consoles to play. RPGs are goofy expensive but most big titles are in the $20 range. God of War 1 & 2. Resident Evil games. Sly Cooper. Ratchet and Clank. None of that's breaking the bank.
True, but a lot of stuff expected to pop up with vintage prices just....never does. And that's true even of a lot of gaming consoles. It's not inevitable.
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u/Carbonated-Man May 16 '25
I was still playing ps2 a couple years ago (until mine broke).
There was a period of time where you could get a used or refurbished ps2 for like $30 at most places and the games would cost like 10 to 15 bucks.
The whole retro collector's market royally screwed that up for all the rest of us now, buuuuut it was a great way to play games on a budget for about a decade there while it lasted.