Why We Buy Merch for Games We Haven't Played Yet

You've preordered something for a game you haven't touched yet. A steelbook, a controller, a hoodie with a logo from a world you've never actually walked through.

GTA VI doesn't come out until November 19th. The limited-edition DualSense controllers modeled after it went up for preorder on September 10th and sold out within a day. Now they're on eBay for $140 to $200, more than double the $84.99 Sony charged.

What are we actually buying when the game itself doesn't exist yet?

I think it's less about the game and more about being early to something. Owning the controller now means you were there before launch day, before the reviews, before anyone else's opinion got in the way of yours. The scalpers figured that out fast. Somebody's paying $200 for a piece of plastic attached to a game that isn't out yet.

Meanwhile there's a decent chance that controller sits in its box the same way half our backlogs sit untouched. The DualSense gets unwrapped in November. The actual playing might happen sometime in 2027.

What's the last thing you bought for a game before you'd played a second of it? Was it about the game, or about getting there first?