Gamers buy even if they're broke

If people are penny-pinching, it's not obvious at the video game store. Games and consoles continue to disappear off store-shelves nationally, despite a slow economy. U.S. video game sales increased by 53 percent in June according to data from market researcher NPD Group. The sales were lead by the Nintendo Wii and DS gaming systems.

Sales are expected to continue to rise for the next four years. The 2008 edition of "Global Entertainment and Media Outlook," put out by PricewaterhouseCoopers, projects a 6.3 percent increase in console and handheld games by 2012. The report states, "In the US, the console video game market is being driven by the newest generation of platforms."

Kris Stock is a Weber State University student and the manager at Game Crazy in Ogden. He said sales go up every year but this year has been even bigger. He contributed this growth to the Nintendo Wii.

"Pretty much ever since the Wii hit there has been a huge surge," Stock said.

One reason game sales have increased is because people are going out for entertainment less often. Steven Pope, a WSU communications senior, said he thinks video games are a better investment than a movie ticket, and they are more convenient.

Pope, who said he calls himself a gamer, said, "Video games are so much cheaper. You can pay 50 bucks for a good game that you can play for over 100 hours. Compare that to 8 bucks for a two-hour investment. Even that requires the effort of getting out of my chair."

Games can cost anywhere from $50 to $200, which seems expensive, but Stock said that even if parents stop buying games, children and students will find ways to get them. Companies like Game Crazy promote trading for that very reason.

"People who can't afford games will bring in old games they aren't playing anymore," Stock said.

Stock said he expects trades to become even more popular if the economy gets worse.

"If people have less money," Stock said, "they will start selling everything they can, so they can get the hot new game. If you spend 500 dollars on a system you don't want to have it just sit there. You want to get games for it."

Samantha Hyde, a WSU English teaching junior, said she thinks that, compared to other rising prices, games are cheap.

"I think people will still buy video games," she said, "more to keep themselves occupied than anything else. If things get much worse, buying video games will be cheaper than gas."

The main reason games are gaining popularity may be the expanding demographic of gamers. Gender-neutral games and games for all ages are becoming more numerous. Stock said more people of all age groups are playing video games like the Wii.

According to Stock, Game Crazy is expecting big sales on upcoming titles like Gears of War 2, Fable 2 and Killzone 2.

For the Wii he said, "Wii doesn't have much but they don't need it. Whatever comes out on the Wii sells."