I'm a big fan and longtime reader of webcomic Penny Arcade, and more times than not I find myself in agreement with Tycho's rants, which I enjoy just as much as the comic itself (if not more).
However I do find myself on the opposite side of the issue of used games, which is odd since by and large I don't buy used games. Out of all the Xbox and Xbox 360 titles I own (I'm not a PC gamer anymore, and I don't own another console) I think perhaps two or three titles I bought used out of a collection that spans some 100 games or so.
Tycho picks up some of the objections to statements by developer THQ's Cory Ledesma earlier this week, to the effect that gamers buying from the used market were "cheating". Some of these objections were phrased as "disrespectful to THQ's customers", to which Tycho responds that buyers on the used market are not THQ customers. This is wrong in a number of important ways.
Notwithstanding the significant rights granted by the doctrine of first sale, it is reasonable to believe that if it became illegal tomorrow to sell a game one had bought new, either to GameStop, another dealer, or third party individuals, the sales of new games would drop. Some people have gaming lifestyles that exceed what they are able or willing to pay for at new release prices, and subsidize their habits either by selling their own games on the used market to recoup expenses so they can buy more games, or by eschewing new releases at launch time and buying games used for discount prices.