No doubt, the temptation to abuse this cheap ass power runs strong in mere mortals. Indeed, I found at my first game clearance sale, thoughts of my own gaming needs were brushed aside in favor of money signs and thoughts of eBay. The thought of obtaining a veritable catalog of current PlayStation 2, XBox and GameCube games at prices as low as $5 per game can do that to any red-blooded gamer, and this is doubly true to a starving student like myself.
But, curiously, there is honor among cheap asses. Rather than use their cheap ass information to encourage a feeding frenzy of clearance titles in stores nationwide, Cheap Ass Gamers frown on buying up obscene amounts of clearance games with the intent to resell - after all, their fellow Cheap Ass Gamers can't buy Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes for $9 if an earlier Cheap Ass Gamer snapped up all the copies to sell on eBay for $20 apiece. "'Hoarding' is taking advantage of sales to turn a profit on eBay - or elsewhere. Unlike other "deal sites," on CAG, hoarding is considered bad form," David IMs. "The CAGs view these sales as opportunities to purchase and play games that they wouldn't otherwise have had the opportunity to enjoy. They view games as more than just a commodity."
Instead, CAGs will take requests from other CAGs who, for whatever reason, can't make it to the sales, with the understanding that the recipient of the favor will return the favor at their next opportunity. Indeed, the Cheap Ass Gamer experience doesn't end at the checkout aisle. CAGs are encouraged to pick up multiple copies of popular titles for use as "trade fodder" - that is, games that aren't their personal domain, but can be traded to another CAG for a game that strikes their fancy, enabling CAGs who aren't catered to by their local stores to get in on the cheap ass gaming action.
But what happens when a trade goes afoul? CheapyD explains, "For the most part, it has been relatively smooth sailing. The community has been very good about policing itself and it is not unusual to see the CAGs help each other out when things go wrong. Recently, someone got ripped off and a CAG who was local to the bad trader actually made a house call." I raise my eyebrows in surprise. He can't see that, of course, but I suppose my shock was apparent. "Nobody got their ass kicked or anything like that. I believe the bad trader's parents were informed of their child's wrongdoings."
Phew. Kicking someone's ass in the name of affordable, accessible gaming just doesn't sound right, somehow.
My chat with Mr. Abrams doesn't go much further from here. We talk a little bit about his noble efforts to get a CAG contribution to Child's Play that eventually came in at over $3,000; I can only imagine how hard it was to milk three grand out of a bunch of self-identified cheap asses. But in the end, it's not really just about saving money. "The focus will always be on the community - that's really the most important thing," David tells me, and somehow, even over the impersonal medium of instant messaging, I get the feeling that I should have known that the whole time.
Wow.
Appearances really are deceiving.
Pat Miller has been doing this for way too long.
