Responsibility #34: Is the money well-spent?

Yesterday, I was having some great time touring around the big city, Kuala Lumpur (well not "around". Just some parts). We went to the Museum and the Bird Park. I'll write more on that later when I have the photos.

At the end of our tour, we went to a megamall (Midvalley). Stopped by at MPH and grabbed a few books. Bill Bryson's is a great read. I'd recommend it. So, before having dinner I went to the IT section of mall, because my real objective of getting into the mall. That is where my heart broke. Into pieces.

As I was browsing through the products sold in those shops, I can't find what I was looking for thus prompting to ask for the shopkeeper's assistance:

"Kak, Left 4 Dead masih ada stok ka?"

"Alaa, sori la dik. Dah habis. Lagipun dia baru launch semalam. Kalau nak, boleh order tapi kena tunggu lama sikit la."

Ok, that was a letdown. Yeah, I know. You would tell me to look for it in Sungei Wang or Damansara. The game was greatly hyped and there a pre-order promotion where you'll get 2 exclusive mousepads; one during your pre-order, another during redemption. For RM 138. I should've pre-ordered but the demo was released to the public pretty late for me to justify and draw conclusions on the damn thing. Those mousepads are not bad either. Although not your ultra-precision stuff but it does a good job being a pad while being a limited edition to boot. And for 2 of the stuff. I was kinda disappointed.

However, there is always a moral to the story. I get to reconsider my options. Do I really need to spelunk RM 138 for a game? What repercussions will I face if I spend the money on the stuff? What does "repercussions" really mean? Is playing 4 chapters over 2-3 hours worth RM 138? What else I could do with RM 138? Have I forgotten about my "future plans" (which involves something truly serious)?

Each semester, I would purchase at least one original copy of a game as to reward myself for making it through the semester. Its also a step towards supporting my passion. Its not like I've abandoned piracy. I just don't buy pirated materials. I download them. I borrow from friends. But once in a while, i'd like to spend for my passion. RM 130+ is not small money. Its big. Very big actually. I could not afford them. Seriously. However, they make a wonderful collection rather than the pirated versions. Plus, I get to enjoy the full features of the game as well as consistent product support and ease of use that only comes to those who could afford it. The primary motivation here is collector's value.

They do look good on my shelf.

It looks like im going to order online and suffer financial stress early next sem. Gosh.

Responsibility #34: Is the money well-spent?