This Christmas season will be an expensive one for gamers. They all are of course, but this time there's a new console, or two (depending on your inclinations). As well as those great DS games coming, the Wii is launcing, and we know you'll be kitting yourself out in suitable grab for it - we will. And for those who have to be on the 'cutting edge' the latest effort from Sony is touching on American and Japanese shores. For the ideal version Stateside it'll be $600. Ouch. How many books can you buy for $600? With all this expected spending in mind, we ask...

Is gaming worth the money?

Javid:

I think it's all relative. I mean, there's no reason why casual gamers can't afford to get say, one game a month, even if it does cost �50. That is of course presuming they already have the console and are of an age where they earn money. I often find the ones who are always complaining are those that don't, and granted, a huge percentage of game players are young and havnt left school so obviously they need to borrow money from somewhere else.

But then of course, there's the more dedicated gamer who looks to buy at least one game a week, this puts them in the vicinity of �200 a month. This isnt easy to summon up by any regular workers standards. But you ask the question, is gaming worth the money? To these people who will somehow muster the cash from thin air for so many games, I'd say it still is. The worth they get out of it and the enjoyment they experience, to them, means the price is no consequence. They may well bitch and moan but at the end of the day, they are going to buy the games they want no matter what the cost because they need it. It sounds sad but, relate it to something like water; we need water, if one day we had to pay for it, we would, because we need it, and it's like that with these people and games. They just simply need them.

Which I think brings me to console prices. You cant play the games you want unless you have the console. That means PS3s are still going to sell like hot cakes even if the baker is short on dough.

But this is all looking at select scenarios, do I think it will have an impact on on the industry's leadership? Of course, the Wii will sell more because it's more affordable. That's just common sense. That doesn't however mean that those who pay more for other consoles aren't getting their money's worth. Games are worth whatever pulls you to want to play it, and the cost goes with it.

I will add one last point: I don't agree with publishers and high street stores upping prices but I am a strong believer in the ethics of developers' rights. Have you ever tried to make a game? It's no walk in the park let me tell you, and I am happy to pay a fair sum of money for the games I want if the hard work by the team behind the game gets a satisfactory cut. And yes that also means I'm against emulations and piracy, one of the reasons why prices have risen in the past. Some people are their own worst enemy. And don't get me started on how much it can cost to make the epic games either. I say stop moaning, you arent being ripped off as much as you think and though you are paying slightly more than you probably should, if you love it then you'll continue to pay the piper.

RedShell:

I certainly think gaming is worth the money, especially when compared to books, music and cinema. If you look at it in terms of how much time a single game can keep you entertained in comparison to the other examples, well there's no doubt whatsoever that a game will win that battle, you could read a few books, listen to loads of music and watch many a film in the same time it takes to fully complete a game like Zelda. But it's not just about longevity with gaming, it's about the experience.

For example, given the choice of watching TV or playing a game, 99% of the time I'd choose gaming (the 1% is for when I'm feeling exceptionally lazy!) because for me there is much more enjoyment to be had in playing a game instead of just passively staring at a screen with no involvement whatsoever- beyond that of changing the channel. It's the experience of gaming that makes it a worthwhile and entertaining pursuit, and therefore makes it very much worth the money.

Iun:

How much do you pay for a movie ticket? �7.50 at peak times at the nearest cinematograph around here, which is quite a lot of money considering one only sees the film once, food is not included and the ladies at the kiosk are not particularly nice.

That said, films are not a niche market, some film types may be, but their budgets are adjusted to ensure maximum revenue from minimum spend. Games, however, are not used by the vast majority in the country, whereas almost anyone aged 16-59 will go to the cinematograph at one time or another. The result? Games and hardware must be priced appropriately to recoup a cost that can be in the millions. All it takes are a few games to bomb to shut the doors for developers. And only games that sell phenomenally well will cushion publisher and developer from any future potential losses.

The development of the internet has shown just how inflated games prices can be -no longer is it the hardcore importer that is privy to this secret. Sites across the whole of the web promise foreign games at knock-down prices have sprung up hither and thither with varying degrees of success and credibility. Now, everyone can see that other territories have it better than Europe, especially when games can be imported with a third off the UK retail price, and several months in advance at that.

Even UK and Jersey based sites show just how much of a difference there is between net and retail. Some of this is down to the absence of overheads and staff costs on the internet sites. But retailers are now grudgingly reducing prices to bring them into parallel with their onlie counterparts.

This said, a game (provided it's not Starfox Adventures) can provide many, many more hours of entertainment than a film or a book. You may not come away feeling as richly rewarded, but my 200+ hours on Oblivion tells me that I have paid less than 25p per minute to enjoy that game -and love it I have. Besides, once you have a game, you theoretically have it for life -unlike at the cinema. Though DVD's are sinking in price everywhere but in the High Street, a film only lasts 3 hours at the most, and a game at four times the price may well give you 10 times the entertainment.

It really all comes down to a fine balancing act: are you willing to shell out a significant sum of money for something that may or may not entertain you? My answer always has been, is, and will remain a firm "yes". I will not bat an eyelid at �40 a game, but you have to drag me kicking and screaming to see an hour and a half of film for �7.50.

Franklin:

For me the money I spend on my gaming habbits is worth it, I get a great deal of enjoyment from playing games as I do watching movies and listening to music which I also spend fair amounts of my hard earned cash on.

But gaming does cost a lot more however which means one must do their homework first to ensure that they know the money they spend will be worth it, especailly if they "must" own the game as soon as it comes out. This means putting the time in to find and read previews and reviews to get the right opinions. This is where the gaming media (magazines and websites) need to be "on their game", lets not forget that whole Driv3r incindent when magazines scored it highly but the game ended up being crap - and it turned out the review scores were bought. Things like this simply can't happen when so much money is on the line for the consumer.

I have bought a few games that I didn't like and I felt like wasted my money, luckily most of these were preowned games I had got on good cheap deals. Only a few times has it happened that I payed full price for a game and left regretting it *cough*Star Fox Adventures*cough*Mario Kart Double Dash*

But on the whole I've been very happy with my choice in games, I don't regret the money (or time) I have spent on them, in fact I cherish the memories, great moments and emotions, characters and stories gaming has given me.

Conor:

Things are only "worth the money" in a system of comparisons - to other similar things, to the experience it gets, to the economic frame it's placed in and to the situation of the person considering the purchase. To the question of the price of games and games equipment in general, it's hardly worth complaining about it - these things aren't arbitrarily decided on, but a product of higher market forces. When you regard inflation, games have always been this price really: the problem isn't with the specific prices, then, but the context that determines them.

This is affected by the high risk developers and publishers take on games, and the technological cost of producing them. If you think that prices are too high, then advances in new distribution models should satisfy you in the future - I, for one, think that the rise of digital distribution will cause prices for some games to be reduced in a few years.

But in the end, it's what matters to the individual person. I have a problem paying top-end prices for new titles, because for me forty and fifty pounds in a pretty big amount of money, and I find most titles to be pretty derivative stuff. But I'll pay release day prices for the Marios and the Zeldas, because I expect a top-end games experience with it. I wouldn't pay for a FIFA game, but if some casual gamer wants to get a few nights worth of laughs with his mates out of it, then he should go ahead. With the recent move into my own rented accommodation, I'm suddenly very conscious of finances, and naturally balk at some title and console prices, (I still think the PS3's price is pretty obscene) but if you have the money then there's a lot of great experiences to be had.

Because that's what matters: the experience. Counting price up on some arbitrary quantative penny-per-minute scale is a sign that you've forgot how to have fun in life, and it's missing the point completely. How do you put a price tag on leaping in the courtyard in Mario 64 for the first time? Or running the adventure gauntlet in Ocarina? Or slugging it out until five in the morning in Smash Bros.?

These things are, forgive the cliche, pretty priceless.

Want to add your opinion on the issue? Hit the boards and talk in the thread.