Buying games on the cheap in Steam bundles and such, is kind of cheating. lol
For me, the answer is entirely dependent on how much spending $$$$$ I have on hand, any given year. Back in 2007/2008, I had a lot more $$$$ to blow on games, so I blew more $$$$ on games. In the last few years, it's been a LOT more selective, simply because the $$$$ hasn't been as readily there to blow on gaming.
For instance, I absolutely would have bought W101 when it released, as well as Dragon's Crown, but I haven't gotten around to buying either yet, sadly.