Being Broke Doesn't Have to Mean Cutting Back on Your Game Time

With console video games getting more expensive by the day, being a gamer can be a very expensive business indeed.
So what is the cash strapped gamer to do? Keep playing the same games over and over again? Beat the same bosses that you have faced a hundred times before? Where is the fun in that? Actually there are a number of ways you can save money and still satisfy your gaming needs.
Renting video games online can be a great way to get your hands on the hottest new titles for console platforms like the Nintendo Wii, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 without having to spend the $50+ it costs to buy them at the store.
There are a growing number of video game rental sites out there, and some of them have monthly plans that start at around $10, with free trials and special offers for new members.
Another great way to game for less is to join a video game swap site. For most gamers once they have beaten a game they are pretty much done with it, and that may only take a couple of days. Then what happens to it? In a lot of cases it simply sits on the entertainment center, gathering dust.
Swap sites let you do something with those games.
There are hundreds of titles available for various console platforms, so chances are that someone else out there has the game you are really looking for next, and is done with it already.

These sites let users exchange games in a controlled environment, and it usually only costs the members the cost of media mail shipping (which is less than $4).

What if you have no money to spend on gaming at all? If you have a broadband internet connection that's no problem.
There are actually hundreds of free games available on line, many of them just as graphically stunning and action packed as any console game. If you like your gaming to have a social element to it you can sign up for one of the many free MMORPG (massively multiplayer online roleplaying game) that are now out in cyberspace.

These games allow you be anything from a bloodsucking vampire to a swashbuckling pirate, and they don't cost a penny.