Video games have always been something I enjoyed for fun and it has always technically been on the expensive side. At the same time, it’s a good way to learn how to save and budget in many ways. But with the Nintendo Switch 2 being released today the prices of the games have gone trough the roof. There were Zelda games priced at $114.99 when usually they would be $79.99 max a as new release. Even extra controllers are up there at $124.99. Not surprisingly, a lot of people looked at that price and said no way.
But it makes you think, do you actually look at the expense overall in pursuing a hobby before jumping into it? Or do you choose what you feel you would like and simply budget accordingly? For example, if you wanted to try skiing for the year do you actually calculate all of the expenses ahead of time such as the equipment and ticket prices? Or do you literally just do it as it is something you want to do?
For myself, if I was trying something new then I wouldn’t tend to be that thorough as it could be like going to an amusement park ride where you may or may not like it. Similar to going to new restaurants. But in these cases where you have to make a substantial investment on the equipment first I do tend to try and see if it makes sense with the budget overall first. Playing the Nintendo Switch could easily be say a $2000 a year expense as an example which can go a long way for just food and utilities.
For myself in this case it’s pretty much part of my lifestyle as I would rather play video games then get drunk on alcohol as an example. But either way, you should look at the overall expense for the year for entertainment purchases like these as you want to still have fun once the bills come in.