How Do You Prefer To Buy Your RPG Products?

[Argyle King]

I currently prefer Brick and Mortar. I like to be able to physically look at a product before buying. I also like that I can support both the local store, local gaming community, and local economy by buying from the store here; if it only takes a few extra dollars to do that, I don't mind.

I'm not against purchasing online, but I do try to actively avoid Amazon if I can. I've had quite a few bad experiences in which I received products which were in rather poor condition. Sure, I was able to return them, but that just added an extra step to trying to get a book.

I have started to get into pdfs a bit more; primarily because of being a GURPS player. The approach SJ Games takes to digital content (which I feel is well done,) how well the company does at communicating with their customer base, and the quality of content made available has drastically changed how I view pdfs and electronic purchases for the better.

 

[Stormonu]

All of my favorite Brick-N-Mortar have fallen to the wayside, or don't keep current stock. I like to peruse a book if I can before buying, but mostly I've been buying online these days.

 

[Bagpuss]

I like buying stuff at Conventions mainly. Nearest B&M store is a hour away, packing and petrol, mean it is nearly £10 just to visit so online is the really the only practical method now.

 

[Gilladian]

I buy almost all pdf format, because I have too much trouble reading print anymore. Therefore ONLINE all the way. I would buy PDFs FROM my brick-and-mortar store, if I could... I do want to have an FLGS, but getting there is a pain and if I'm not shopping there...

 

[Dog Moon]

Ideally I like the stores because I can go in, peruse the books and then determine what I like and if I like it enough to buy it. Unfortunately, online tends to be so much cheaper than the stores and I don't have to worry about travel time and expense in addition to the difference of the cost in the book plus tax...

So because of the cost I prefer online...

 

[AshySimon]

Online is cheaper and has better availability, but I really enjoy going to a store all the same. I like to be able to pick up and even peruse these purchases - they're often a little expensive. I like to know the thickness and quality. It's not really a logical thing, it just makes me feel a bit better about spending the money in the first place!

 

[Fox Lee]

I'd like to support my one local brick-and-mortar store, but RPG products suffer a crazy huge markup here. Between import, shipping and retailer markup, hardcover RPG books run me $70-$100 if I buy from a real life store, ad that's just not a realistic option. Hence I go after PDFs now whenever I can, which means online shopping.

 

[Pentoth]

I prefer Brick and Mortar however I buy them online due to price and the closest store is an hour away.

 

[Quarex]

I am with Bagpuss. I consider myself a big-time gaming fan-type, but I know my tendencies; the only way to keep myself in check is to not even look at gaming stuff for the most part. Then, when I go to conventions, I go berserk. If I spend, say, $400/year on gaming material, $375 of that would be at Gen-Con, with a random visit to a gaming store on a cross-country drive accounting for the other $25. I do love shopping online, but I do not do it because it is too easy to spend all of the money.

 

[Scrivener of Doom]

I live in a Third World country with a completely corrupted postal system and in one of its many cities where most streets have no names and neither houses nor buildings are numbered. We also have a single book store taking up around 15 square metres which is all that is required to meet the demand of 300,000 people that live here.

Against that backdrop, I prefer to buy PDFs online.

When I back in civilisation, FLGS all the way.