Budgeting For Next Gen Consoles

How Much Was That, Again?

So we’re in the final hour, quickly approaching the much anticipated glory that is the next generation of consoles. Sony’s PS4 and Microsoft’s Xbox One will be released on November 15th and November 22nd respectively, and you’re excited because you put some money down on a pre-order way back when. There are even those hoping that without a full pre-order they’ll be able to secure a launch system of their very own. Either way, the big problem is that after a couple of crazy nights out drinking, the occasional expensive date and all that pizza/chinese delivery, you really don’t have much cash left.

And that’s okay, because you still have time and we here at SpawnFirst have your back. It’s our job to do the leg work and the hours of research. However, as expected, we chose to instead play video games. Worry not, because we still managed to get some great tips for making a quick buck and shoring up the numbers for that big release that’s coming up.

Like the large majority of the human population, we’ve been playing Grand Theft Auto 5 a lot lately and couldn’t help but notice it didn’t take long for Trevor, Franklin and Michael to start raking in the dough. We asked ourselves what they were doing different and came up with a few pointers. The first is GTA 5’s shared concept with Payday 2 that’s sure to lead to more than enough cash: The heist.

The concept is simple: round up a couple of buddies, a fast getaway vehicle, and hit up your local jewelry shop. We’ll admit that the overhead is probably a bit high on this one but we expect the returns to more than make up for the massive loan you’ll have to take out. You can also buy stocks if you’re bored and don’t feel like lining up behind an ATM and jumping someone who is very likely to have fresh cash on hand.

We also learned from GTA 5 that even if you don’t have a lot of cash at the beginning of the game, you can still save up your money, while buying out rental properties, playing the stock market, and eventually you can own your own penthouse or strip club. We promise, it makes it all the sweeter when it’s your name on the plate and not the poor schmuck’s who you recently threw off a roof. This applies to real life as well, and we bet if you started setting aside money now you could make up the difference within the 2 weeks left to launch.

  

Another popular title that’s been sucking our time away is Pokémon X and Y. It doesn’t take the protagonists long to make a huge chunk of change especially if keep an amulet coin or luck incense at the ready. From this we were able to discern that you need to start challenging random strangers to battles and, most importantly, betting on the outcomes. Fistfights, Pokémon battles, card games, wherever it is you do, go beat a stranger at it and then take their money. It really doesn’t matter if they’re an old tourist or a young child; there is an unspoken rule that when you meet eyes, both parties must participate in an impromptu competition and fork over any and all money they have on hand.

Also, do your best to look for solid nuggets of gold that may be laying around in patches of grass or in old caves. They’re sure to be around for the taking and will sell for a pretty penny at the same place you buy medicine, balls and ropes that magically teleport you out of caves. There was also a pretty interesting part of the game where you preformed various odd jobs at a local hotel (and this is probably the most helpful to your current situation). Find some quick, small time work and save up. Even if you babysit for a cousin, cut someone’s yard, whatever. This is a PlayStation 4/Xbox One we’re talking about, so it’ll surely be worth going outdoors or dealing with an unruly infant.

               

So all-in-all, video games have taught us a lot. Like always move suspicious looking bookshelves, and that those glowing, discolored parts of your enemies are their weak points, and so on. Hmmm. Maybe we can’t literally transpose everything we see in games into the real world. That being said, games are certainly based in, and are somewhat reflective of, reality, and if your character is picking up a second job or saving some hard-earned cash to get what they want, it might not be a bad idea.

Just remember: the next gen system’s price tags don’t have to be as unreachable as they seem. Save up, work hard, skip a few meals or ten, and remember that some donation centers actually do pay for blood and semen. Or just follow the first two suggestions and be smart about it (the latter two are pretty unorthodox, and at the least: counter-productive). When launch day comes and you’ve actually earned enough money to buy your favorite next-gen system, the fruits will be all the more sweeter. Good luck.