Source: EGM 2 – Issue Number 5 – November 1994
Chips & Bits was one of many mail order companies that sold video game hardware and software in the early 1990s. This was before the days of ordering through the Internet. This particular ad is from the November 1994 issue of EGM 2. There were simply a huge number of systems available in those days. In this ad there is stuff related to the Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis, 32X, Sega CD, Atari Jaguar, 3D0, Neo Geo, CD-i and probably something I’m forgetting. The magazine this ad is in had more than 320 pages and it was EGMs second publication of the month.
It’s also easy to forget how expensive games could be. Many of the new game prices in this ad are in the $50 to $60 range which might not sound terrible by today’s standards but when you adjust for inflation that’s the equivalent of $80 to $95 today. Part of the problem had to do with how expensive cartridges were to produce, particularly those with a lot of memory. Going to disc based media helped to reduce prices and no doubt also increased the profit margins for game makers.
