If you’re still thinking with your wallet, you might want to wait until new games go on sale. Pre-ordering a game means that you’re guaranteed to pay full price for it, no matter how much you enjoy it. Games go on sale all the time, in different ways and for different reasons. Humble Bundle frequently sells games for a very discounted price, with most of the proceeds going to charity. Online game storefronts also sometimes offer games for free, but you have to have the patience to hold off on playing the latest and greatest games.
If you’re willing to wait in order to score a deal, you might want to hold off on buying new games, including pre-ordering games, in order to see what sorts of sales happen in the coming months. Games often drastically reduce in price once they’ve been out for a little while, making pre-ordering unnecessary if you’d like to save a few bucks.
Whether you want to save money or see if a game lives up to the hype, pre-ordering doesn’t help anyone except game companies. While pre-ordering does have some benefits, like being part of the cultural conversation about a game as soon as it’s released, most of the time you’re better off waiting a bit before snagging that new game.
