I don't know if it's a bubble per se, or demographics. Either way, the "fuel" is nowhere near what it was like with the housing bubble (mainly credit). I do expect one or two of the boutique outfits to drop out at some point, though.

What could seriously threaten the used market is if all these companies springing up create games we actually want to play, such that we're forced to sell a few used games to get in. I'm selling my WCS to help fund predator, for example. However, at least for now the cost of used is still below new.

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Everything you're saying makes sense (I worked in RE-related during the bubble, and lived the dotcom bubble, so I ended up studying bubbles quite a bit), but really the question is whether or not your numbers are accurate with regards to flippers as an indicator.

Yes, if 70% of the purchases are purely for flipping purposes, that's a bad sign - still doesn't tell the whole story, though. I don't have any hard data to prove or disprove your number and I suspect you don't either.

I also believe, and was one of the first to say, that Gen-X is entering a point in their financial lives such that they can afford games and that's a driver of demand. Likewise, the boomers' kids are all off to college or finished, they're retiring and they're looking for hobbies. I think both of these are significant drivers of demand. Does it justify ALL of the increase? Can't say.

Regardless, the soft signs do seem to be there. There are far more threads talking about the price and availability of Metallica LE and far less said about its game play, art and so on. I'm not even seeing the usual Stern quality arguments. That's definitely a sign of speculation.

I agree, though probably the next month or so will tell the story.

Yes, I think you're right about the 'accidental flipper' thing. Once the price takes off, those people are thinking "I could sell this now, bank $2k, and have a premium for the price of a Pro.