Would you rather...?

[meegis]

Ok, so here's the question that gets me thinking EVERY time I contemplate looking for my 2nd machine.

Do I spend money on a lower end game that I would enjoy and play for now?

or

Do I hold out, and save my money for a bigger purchase later down the line?


I see machines I like all the time, but many of my *wishlist* games are higher value (Family Guy, TSPP, CV, TOTAN) some obviously more than others. This constantly makes me wonder about the purchase I can make immediate or eventually.

Do I go and get a B-List game for 1k-2k total, or do I hold off on the purchase and play the waiting game? Also, if I consider spending $2500, how far am I really from a $3500-$4000 game?

Keep in mind I doubt I will be buying very frequently, and especially less frequently with any larger purchase.

So I am wondering what your mindsets are? I know we all have different situations and all "collect" in different ways, just testing waters to get some secondary unbiased advice.




TL;DR

Buy a game for $1k-$2k NOW, or hold off and spend $3k-$4k later?


hmmmmmmmmmmm

 

[Vengeance]

do what I do and just buy everything

 

[meegis]

do what I do and just buy everything

Spot me a few bucks and I will

 

[Menace]

Well, the one thing with pinball is they hold their value relatively well as long as you don't overpay on the way in. This being said, you could buy the cheaper title now and enjoy it while you save $$ for one on the wishlist, and then sell the cheaper game when you're ready to pull the trigger on the more expensive game to help top up your savings.

Win-win!

D

 

[meegis]

Good point to the value adder, just not sure if I am buying a cheaper game to fill a void or if I really want it. I feel like I will like the game but have automatic buyers remorse.


A couple games I had (father had when I was younger) that Id love to get back include D.E. Star Wars, and Pinbot, but I dont know if Id buy them to own, or just want to play them again for the nostalgia.

I hate my brain, I over-analyze EVERYTHING

 

[frolic]

Whatever you do, take what you learn from here and don't overpay for a pin. Then you can turn and burn through them and not have to eat a loss, no matter what the game.

For me, besides playing, I do have a "pride of ownership" with my games. That is part of the equation, so I won't buy just anything.

But in the end, they have to be games I will play. a lot.

 

[Menace]

I also agree with what Chris is saying... don't buy just for the sake of buying, be smart about it and it'll all work out.

D

 

[meegis]

I wouldn't buy for the sake of buying, but I may get something on the cheaper end more easily just because it is "affordable". Im just afraid I may regret it soon thereafter. If I did buy any B-Listers, Id only get something I would enjoy and would play.

For example, my R&B, it wasn't a cheap game, but it sure isnt expensive, and I love going down to play it whenever I want to.

 

[mwong168]

Don't worry and just work your way up slowly. I remember when I first started 3 years ago I said to myself $1500-1600 is the most I would ever spend on a pinball machine and these other collectors I know who spend $2500-3000 on a DMD title are nuts. Then my next game was $2000, $2500, $3000, $4500, $5000, $6000, etc.... It's amazing how quickly you get desensitized to pricing in this hobby the longer you stay in it.

The problem with waiting to buy later can be the case where if you don't buy now it might be out of reach financially in the next 6-12 months due to "pinflation" aka "that's pinball baby!" as movingpictures would say. The key is to do your homework and see what they are going for currently to make sure you are not over paying and cosmetic condition because this will hurt or make it harder to re-sell in the future. Always ask for advice from friends or other collectors who have been in the hobby longer then you, they can relate and sometimes help you avoid making the same costly mistakes they made when they were green.

There are tons of affordable games within the $2000-2500 price range such as Demolition Man, Judge Dredd, Johnny Mnemonic, No Fear, Fish Tales, Jurassic Park, Tales from the Crypt, The Flintstones, World Cup Soccer '94, and WWF Royal Rumble. These have been relatively stable in terms of pricing in the past 2 years and all great bang for buck pins. My other advice would be join TOPL or meet other collectors and play their games to get a better idea of what games you really like so you can avoid buyer's remorse. I have made this mistake a few times, bought a game only to sell it 2 months or sometimes even 2 weeks later.

 

[Menace]

I have made this mistake a few times, bought a game only to sell it 2 months or sometimes even 2 weeks later.

Or in your case 72 hours... poor High Speed. :FP:

:lol:

D

 

[tim.sanderson]

Personally, I am having a ton of fun with my B list (C list?) R911 machine. I will be very happy to get another game of similar value.
To put it in simpler terms, I'd rather have three $1000 machines, than have one that was $3000.

 

[meegis]

Lots of great input here...

My shortlist is such a wide variance, that searching for games is almost annoying, in that I'll see one and think, why not afford the other(s).

 

[Menace]

Personally, I am having a ton of fun with my B list (C list?) R911 machine. I will be very happy to get another game of similar value.
To put it in simpler terms, I'd rather have three $1000 machines, than have one that was $3000.

Yep, I think we all started out saying the same thing... but as Mike mentioned the longer you're in the hobby you tend to rationalize spending more on less. Also your skill level increases as well and you begin to recognize why some games command more than others (notice I didn't say all?) and it's usually due to game play and features, and ultimately you find yourself pulling the trigger at least once on a high priced game... And once that happens all hell breaks loose. :FP:

D

 

[tim.sanderson]

I guess once the novelty of having my own machine wears off I may move on to other more expensive games. However seeing as this is a 'what would I rather' question, for now I stick to believing I would rather have 3 'B's than just one 'almost A'.

 

[mwong168]

I have made this mistake a few times, bought a game only to sell it 2 months or sometimes even 2 weeks later.

Or in your case 72 hours... poor High Speed. :FP:

:lol:

D

That's Sys11 baby!

High Speed was my first pin, only took me all of 9-10 months and exchanged over 500 emails with my mentor and original enabler monkeybug with a million questions daily/hourly on whether this game was fun or not, is it over priced, etc... Visiting his place for the first time was a real eye opener and I had never seen someone have such a big pinball collection in their home. I remember I was all excited driving up thinking how great it would be to play Theater of Magic again and sadly when I found out it was a $2500-3000 title at the time I was like effff-that! I can buy a pool table, jitz or build a custom MAME for a third of that. Also running in the back of my mind, this guy has all these expensive pins in an unfinished basement and stands on these to play his games? Talk about priorities :lol:

One nice thing after I left Chris' was that it opened my eyes up to many games I had no idea existed or were so much fun, I always remember Theater of Magic being the best pin when I use to play the occasional game. As Doug already I sold my High Speed after 72 hours and because I never played one before I had buyer's remorse after the first day. Lucky for me that same weekend someone on kijiji had posted they were looking for a High Speed so I sold it. Prior to this I had been exchanging a few emails with a kijiji seller who had his Johnny Mnemonic listed a few weeks ago and when I asked if it was still available and he said it was sold. We started chatting and I mentioned how much I enjoyed playing Demolition Man at monkeybug's house and the guy told me he has a friend who might have one for sale and sure enough a week later I brought home my very first DMD. I haven't looked back ever since and has been a very slippery slope! Trust me, for 2012 there was not a single month where a pinball didn't come in or go out of my place. I was on a tear right after I sold my pool table and thought I would be good for space for at least another year.... less then 2 months later outta room!

meegis, what is your budget and what titles are you currently interested in? I'm very good a enabling others by spending their hard earned money and finding space for more pins at home :twisted:

 

[DRANO]

I sort of collected in reverse to most people.
It took me a bit longer, but I saved up and collected the games I wanted the most firsts. It hurt a lot to pay $2500 (retail!) for my TAF and then $3500 for my IJ... and it really sucked to pay $6500 for my MM

I guess what I'm saying is that, if I had waited to get these titles, I may not have been able to afford them at today's prices. Fast forward 7-8 years and I earn a bit more than before so I've been able to grow the collection exponentially in the last year or two. Now, with my keepers all resting comfortably in my collection, I can experiment with some B/C titles, and I've also grabbed up a bunch of EM and early SS games too... but these games don't break the bank.

In the end, I'm really happy that I had patience and got most of my keepers a while ago.
The good side is that I have seen massive increases in the value of those games.
The bad side is that it prevented me from cycling in 15-20 games a year and getting more overall exposure to different games... something I'm trying to remedy now

Just an alternate point of view
Good luck in your hunt. What titles are you considering?

 

[meegis]

I have nothing against being enabled, and Im always ears on what may be avaiable.

First and easy thing to get out of the way is space. I have tons of space and full allowance from the wife to use it so Im not worried about that.

Now, the machines.
My short list, as mentioned is a bit jumbled in values, and as for what I can/will spend is dependent on game and condition. (I dont need cq, just playable) I will say low maintenance, but what I mean is, I want something I can bring home and play, not bring home a project game.


As for the list... in no particular order

Cirqus Voltaire
Family Guy
Simpsosns (both D.E. and Stern)
FishTales
Tron

Others I enjoy, but may not be priority:

AC/DC
Iron Man
TOTAN
D.E. Star Wars (father owned it back in the 90s)
Indiana Jones (both)
No Good Go'fers
Scared Stiff
Transformers
X-Men

and probably a few Im forgetting... (yes, the list is lenghty)

Aside from the D.E. Simpsons, Id like to stick to DMD if I can, as I find it adds A LOT to gameplay.

 

[Honey Badger]

Ok, so here's the question that gets me thinking EVERY time I contemplate looking for my 2nd machine.


Do I go and get a B-List game for 1k-2k total

Sorry to tell you this but B list titles are not in that price range only C!

 

[Honey Badger]

do what I do and just buy everything

I have a Sinbad for sale!

 

[meegis]

Owned a Sinbad in the mid 80's. Not what I want at all.

So far you have two posts in here and both have not been of much assistance.