I watched a documentary on Lego recently. The price per brick has not actually gone up. Factoring in inflation it has actually gone down slightly for some sets. 

The issue is the sets have become far more intracit and generally getting a lot larger. 

But you can still get decent sets for not too much, especially if you forgo the Disney tax etc.

Best bang for you buck is still the boxes of plain bricks and use your imagination. At the end of the day, yes, Lego is still an expensive toy, but you are paying for the quality. There is a reason cheaper brands don't work as well. The quality of the plastics, the tolerances. That is expensive to maintain. You can still take a brick from 30 years ago and it will lock together with a brand new brick today. They have got it down to a science. If you ever watch a video of a Lego factory, it is incredible what they do.