Is Video Games Monthly a Good Value? Why I Cancelled my Video Games Monthly Subscription

In this video, we discuss our experiences with Video Games Monthly in 2020.Show more

For most of 2020, I was subscribed to a mail order retro video game service called Video Games Monthly. For anywhere from $35 to $80 a month, you could get between 3 & 10 retro video games for a variety of different handhelds or home consoles. Over my subscription., I received nearly 40 different games for a variety of different systems. Some months were okay, some left a lot to be desired, and some were simply terrible.

The main systems I was looking to collect for were the Sega Master System, Genesis, 32x, Sega CD, Nintendo Famicom, NES, Super Famicom, Super NES, & N64. I not only went about filling out my library so that I would receive as few duplicates as possible, but I also contacted the folks at video games monthly to indicate a sort of wish list of games that I was looking for. From February 2020 through October, the games I received and their value are:

SMB3 - $15
Spy Hunter - $8
Blades of Steel - $8
Kenseiden - $15
The Adventures of Bayou Billy - $6
T&C Surf Designs: Wood & Water Rage - $5
Jikkyou Powerful Pro Baseball 4 - $6
Syphon Filter Dark Mirror - $7
SOCOM 3: US Navy Seals - $8
Shin Satomi Hakken-Den - $3
Romancing SaGa 3 - $4
World of Illusion Starring Disney's Mickey Mouse & Donald Duck -$16
Diddy Kong Racing - $6
Jet Li Rise to Honor - $9
Ganbare Goemon: Neo Momoyama Bakufu no Odori - $19
NBA Jam - $11
Decap Attack - $12
Hot Wheels World Race $11
Final Fantasy X Greatest Hits $6
Guilty Party $12
Star Wars: The Battle for Naboo $20
Dragonball Z Budokai $14
Namco Museum Volume 1 - $5
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty - $6
Final Fantasy X Greatest Hits - $6
Kingdom Hearts RE: Chain of Memories - $8
Willow - $19
Banjo Kazooie - $8
Snowboard Kids - $13
Gun - $11
Sushi Go Round - $9
X-Men 2 Clone Wars - $17
Law of the West - $4
GD Leen - $5
Dragon Quest VI - $10
Call of Duty Black Ops II - $15
Grand Theft Auto Vice City - $8

Why it RoX:
- great selection of systems and handhelds to collect for
- delivered right to your front door
- CIB & Sealed games
- Quality common titles
- good way to get started with your collection
- 1 & 2Up bonuses with extra games
- no obligation
- many different pricing options

What Could Be Improved?
- no way to set genre preferences
- cleanliness of games could be hit and miss
- Shipping billed separately
- time consuming to upload large libraries
- Value of games could be better
- Sealed games felt like they were straight out of the Walmart bargain bin
- No PS4, Xbox One or Switch options

Should you subscribe?
If you are looking to build a library of retro games for a variety of systems, video games monthly has an extreme solution that they offer. Starting at $35 a month for three games a month, it's not a bad value. Where it starts to lose its value is when you get your shipping charges factored and, and the possibility that some of the games that you are going to receive you simply will not have any desire to play. The fact that they sent me so many RPGs over the time while I was subscribed, even after telling me that I could request not to receive them, was rather disappointing. The genesis, nes, and N64 titles that I received were definitely the cream of the crop. But PlayStation 2, gamecube, and Wii we're all pretty much throwaway titles. If you have an extensive library, this probably won't have as much value to you as if you are just starting out period but if you are just starting out, I think this is a really good way to easily build your library. Until conventions return that is.

#VideoGamesMonthly #Review #RetroGames

The footage used in this review are used under the Fair Use laws, referenced below:

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/17/107

Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright. In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use the factors to be considered shall include—

(1) the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;
(2) the nature of the copyrighted work;
(3) the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and
(4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.

The fact that a work is unpublished shall not itself bar a finding of fair use if such finding is made upon consideration of all the above factors.
(Pub. L. 94–553, title I, § 101, Oct. 19, 1976, 90 Stat. 2546; Pub. L. 101–650, title VI, § 607, Dec. 1, 1990, 104 Stat. 5132; Pub. L. 102–492, Oct. 24, 1992, 106 Stat. 3145.)