I think a lot of these questions boil down to how much room someone has in their basement. I'm in for MM, it's MM,it's awesome. Plus, I'm out of room.
For $8K you could buy a JD, JM, JP and something like a RS or a fun system 11. Are all those games combined more fun than MM, probably. But once you have 10+ games and you're out of room, you've got to start filling the spots with your 10 favorite, not just fun games, but the most fun games. "Fun value for pin spot" becomes more important than "fun value per dollar."
Now, if the cheaper games are also the most fun for you, then bonus!
Quoted from rai:I decided to save money and buy IM VE which is also a proven winner for $3500 cheaper than MMR.