Making the Best Buy...

The decision was before me. PSM (now the official Play Station Magazine and a great source) has convinced me of the numerous titles that are coming out in the next 3 to 6 months that look superb. This plays right into...

YEOJI'S MAIN REASON #1 FOR BUYING A PS3:
The games look fantastic. The Wii started off strong, but I have not seen any real major games (except for Super Mario Galaxy which is astounding) that are doing anything for me. It may be cheaper, but the games just are not showing up. The 360 is in stride right now, with Bio Shock and the popular Halo 3 on its way. But outside of the shooter genre, I do not see many games that are doing much more.

I also now have the money (thanks to a temporary teaching job and an announcing job that is fantastic) now it is just which system to buy.

Even with that previous fact, the price drop was incentive enough. It was the beginning of November when I seriously pursued my PS3. My friend Chewy had made the decision at the end of the summer and he was greatly impressed and happy (something that if you knew Chewy and his critical nature would be a solid recommendation). I was going to get one as well...

Then, my previously discussed Ebay weakness almost got in the way...

While procrastinating one night, I became enthralled with the idea of buying Packer vs. Viking tickets in Lambeau field. It has always been a dream of mine and my dad's to make the trip to see a game in Green Bay, and seeing as how I have some money now, I thought maybe now was the time. Luckily, I lost out on some tickets that were a little too pricey (and as a Viking fan, the game was not very interesting at all).

So, back to the PS3. I perused the store websites (Target, Best Buy, and Walmart) and noticed some different systems. This was where I first encountered the multiple versions that were available. A 40GB version boxed with the Blue Ray of Spiderman 3 for $399 (what a price!), an 80 GB version bundled together with Motorstorm for $499, and then the 60 GB version that seems to be out of stock.

After some digging, I learned (what I think is true) that the 60 GB version has been discontinued and is the only version that is fully (hardware-wise) backwards compatible. This goes against...

YEOJI'S MAIN REASON #2 FOR BUYING A PS3:
My fantastic PS2 (now 6 years old) no longer plays any CD based PS or PS2 game. It will only play the DVD based games. I have had the largest craving to play through the Final Fantasy games from I through XII, but have not been able to thanks to my wonderful PS2. So the backwards compatibility is a must. I cannot have a software emulation that might make it work.

So I decided that I would avoid the confusion of the stores and people that do not know what they are talking about. And that is when my computer started speaking to me in that raspy voice similar to a drug dealer that gargles hot gravel every morning and has smoked 3 packs a day for 35 years. It continues to mutter, "You can do it EEEEEEEEbayyyyy."

My vice calls me once again...

I begin my search and find many options. Too many. It is early on that I see the fact that there are tons of options to buy just a system, and really the price is right around that of a new for a used system. No depreciation.

But, after some searching (both of the site and my soul) I find a few auctions that are selling me more...games, controllers, cables...along with the system. I soon realize this is the way to go. I look through the lists and only click on the systems that have multiple games. I then get rid of the systems that are coming with games that I do not wish to play. I am able to separate the selection into 4-6 auctions that are right for me-- fantastic, I am getting that much closer to my PS3.

My patience soon wore thin. It was Friday and I had some downtime at school and I decided that I couldn't wait. I needed "Buy it now." I narrowed my auctions down to two with Buy it Now prices. The one auction came with 5 games (Motorstorm, Resistance: Fall of Man, MLB: The Show, NBA 2K7, and Oblivion) for a price of $599.99. The other auction caught me by surprise, and had me going against every decision I previously made. It was a brand-spanking new 80GB Motorstorm packaged PS3 for $450.00--$50.00 cheaper than retail and no shipping cost added on!!! I was ecstatic, and also a little worried about this setup. Something smelled fishy. I decided to sleep on the decision and make it on Saturday.

That morning, browsing my Ebay, I noticed something peculiar. The Buy it Now price for the 80GB system had changed...to $465.00. What was going on? I was a little confused by this. This, ultimately, is what swayed me (that and the sealed copy of Oblivion with the Used system). So, I went back to my plan, and made my purchase for about $630.00 including shipping. I payed right away with my GM Credit Card (to earn points towards a car...smart financially) via PayPal and that was that. Now it was just the waiting game...