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While I see some merit in your description, I wouldn't call us uninformed.  You can't really link purchasing habits with gaming ones; there's too many people of varying tastes, economic backgrounds and experience in general to pidgeon-hole. 

There's this magical hump that gamers go over at some point; where having to be in the here and now just isn't a neccessity anymore.  I don't need to prove my relevancy to anyone, least of all a store clerk.  I'm playing Mass Effect 2 right now and am having just as much fun, if not more so, than those who spent $60 on it last year.  Add to that the fact that I bought all the DLC at a discounted price as well so I get the full experience.

If gaming is to be a bigger medium like film or books, it's time to start treating them as such.  Sure, it's fun to be on the cusp of excitement in our culture, but it's more fun when you look past all the pomp and circumstance and just simply enjoy the game. "

I think have a clean control scheme seems to be an iOS dev's burden; they need to find more intuitive designs in that regard.  Not that I have a way to play this, but it doesn't matter because I don't think I would.

I'm curious to see more of your 30 minute reviews, sir."

I have three kids, a mortgage, a car payment and student loans to pay.  Eventually you're going to have to rethink your strategy when it comes to gaming.

Like Chris up above me there, I too have a set spending limit every month which helps me to streamline and think hard about what games I want to purchase.  Most times, if you wait just a few months, you can get new games for relatively cheap since they have an expiration date as constraining as milk.  And I practically live by GameFly these days; there's absolutely no excuse not to use it.

But I think more than money saving strategies, I think you need to reevaluate how you view gaming in general.  I had a really hard time letting go of being able to play all the newest games in fear of not keeping up with the Jones'.  But you know what?  It's easier to keeping abreast of things when you have less to play.  I read and listen to podcasts which makes me feel like I'm in the know even though I'm really not.  A lovely side-effect to having less is that you begin to appreciate games on a deeper level, sort of like we did when we were kids.  And you being able to finish games is worth more to cultural conversation than dabbling in a multitude of them.

And most importantly, don't feel like a dolt because of how you feel.  We all go through it.  The one thing that got me over the hump?  Remember that gaming doesn't define who I am; it's just what I do."