By Jon Scarr
Games are getting more expensive, but something more interesting is happening. According to a new Boston Consulting Group report, almost half of surveyed gamers say they wait for discounts before buying, and about a third will skip purchases if prices go up. That sounds like bad news for publishers, yet it feels less like people are spending less and more like they are spending smarter.
Gaming has moved past impulse buys for many of us. We read reviews, compare notes, and weigh our backlogs before opening our wallets. Services like Game Pass, Ubisoft Plus, PlayStation Extra, and Epic giveaways also changed how people look at value. Why drop full price for one game when you already have ten untouched titles sitting in your library? We explored that idea in our editorial Do Game Subscriptions Like Game Pass Devalue Games?, and BCG’s new data lines up with many of the points raised there.
The takeaway feels pretty clear. Gamers are not pulling away from the hobby. They are becoming more selective. With pricier games, huge catalogues, and busy lives, a purchase has to feel worth the time as much as the money. That shift is shaping how and why we buy games today.
The Discount Wait Has Become Normal
Waiting for a discount was once something you did to stretch a tight budget. Now it is just how many of us buy games. BCG’s finding that nearly half of gamers hold off until prices drop does not feel surprising. With so many releases stacking up, there is rarely a reason to pay day-one pricing unless you are truly excited.
Digital storefronts made this behaviour easier. Deals appear constantly, wishlists light up with notifications, and seasonal sales have been conditioned into our buying habits. We wait for Black Friday, Spring sales, or publisher promos before diving in. It has turned the idea of paying full price into an exception instead of a default.
It is also a response to uncertainty. Games launch big, but they do not always launch well. Early patches, balance adjustments, and content updates encourage waiting a bit. Why risk disappointment at $90 or $99 when waiting a month could give you a lower price and a better version of the game?
This trend does not point to gamers being cheap. It speaks to gamers being thoughtful. Paying full price needs justification now. Time, quality, and backlog pressure all factor into each purchase. That shift is reshaping how releases land and how we decide when to hit buy.
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| BCG data shows nearly half of gamers wait for discounts and many use strategies to limit spending, reinforcing the shift toward selective buying. |
Subscriptions Quietly Changed How We See Value
Subscriptions did not just give people more games. They reshaped what a single game is worth. When you can try dozens of titles for the cost of one monthly fee, full price purchases start to feel optional. You get used to sampling games instead of committing to them, and it shifts your expectations for what a purchase should deliver.
We explored this in our “Do Game Subscriptions Like Game Pass Devalue Games?” editorial, and BCG’s findings back that conversation up. People are not rejecting premium games. They are comparing them to a library of content they already have access to. If something does not stand out or feel urgent, it waits until a discount or slides into the backlog.
It is not just Game Pass either. Ubisoft Plus, PlayStation Extra, Epic’s weekly giveaways, Steam bundles, and cloud libraries all contribute to a sense that games are abundant. When abundance rises, urgency drops. You can still buy the game you love, but the impulse fades because you know you have choices elsewhere.
This new value perception does not kill big releases, but it does challenge them. A $90 or even $99 game now has to justify both its price and its place in your limited free time. That is a higher bar than gaming had a decade ago, and it shows in how people decide what to buy and when.
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| BCG’s data shows games offer one of the lowest costs per hour of entertainment, and inflation-adjusted AAA prices have stayed mostly flat for two decades. |
The Backlog Era Is Real
It is hard to talk about spending habits without mentioning backlogs. Everyone seems to have one now. A pile of untouched Steam games, a digital shelf waiting on a console, or a cloud queue where curiosity sparked faster than commitment. BCG’s data makes our quiet reality a little louder. People are not short on games. They are short on time.
Backlogs change how we buy. When you know you already have five or ten games waiting, hitting purchase on another one feels indulgent. It can even feel stressful. So waiting for discounts becomes easier. Skipping games becomes easier. You tell yourself you will get to them eventually, and by the time you do, they might be cheaper or even included in a subscription.
This is not a sign of fading interest. It is a sign of abundance. Games became easier to access across platforms and services, and that abundance makes us selective. The backlog era is not about hoarding. It is about choice paralysis. When everything is available, you start to pick carefully, sometimes too carefully.
The backlog did not make us less passionate. It made us more deliberate. And publishers are starting to feel that shift in how they plan releases, price drops, and post-launch updates.
Studios Feel This Shift Too
Publishers are adjusting to this new reality even if they do not always say it outright. Longer sales cycles, extended discount windows, and heavier post launch marketing are not accidents. They are a response to gamers buying later, not earlier. A game’s second or third month can matter more than its first week, which is a pretty big change from how things used to work.
Live service models and season passes also exist partly because of this behaviour. If a studio can keep people returning months later, it helps smooth out slower initial sales. Deluxe editions, loyalty perks, and preorder bonuses all try to pull urgency back into the buying decision. Sometimes it works. Sometimes people just wait anyway.
BCG’s numbers do not paint this as doom. They read more like evolution. Publishers cannot rely on hype alone. They have to earn attention long enough for people to buy. Game quality, community, replay hooks, and value all matter more because gamers have options and are thinking twice before paying full price.
Buying less often is not a crisis. It is a maturity curve. Gamers have grown up, have less time, and want more out of the money they spend. Studios adjusting to that is simply the industry catching up to the audience it built.
BCG’s data also highlights how differently generations approach games, which adds another layer to how studios plan releases and pricing.
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| BCG’s survey shows clear generational differences in game preferences, from live-service formats to subscription access, which influence how publishers shape release strategies. |
Spending Smarter Does Not Mean Caring Less
BCG’s research suggests gamers have not lost interest. They just want purchases that feel worth their time and money. That tracks with life. We grew up, our schedules shrank, and our libraries grew. Buying fewer games does not signal fading passion. If anything, it shows how much we value the ones we choose.
This shift might say more about gaming’s maturity than any sales chart. We learned to wait for deals, lean on services, and guard our time. Games have to earn their place now. That is not bad. It is a sign that gamers know what they want, and they are willing to wait for it.
So I am curious where you fall. Do you buy fewer new releases because you have options already waiting, or are sales and subscriptions changing how you approach purchases altogether? Either way, it feels like the hobby has reached a point where thinking before buying is just part of being a gamer today.