Thoughts on renting Xbox 360 games
With games near $60 a pop, and a solid number of launch titles now available, I explored the option of renting games.
Doing some research, I looked at the new services that have popped up which essentially mirror what NetFlix has accomplished — the removal of ‘late fees’ with the adoption of a subscription service.
I looked at the following: Gamerang, GameFly, and GameLender.
Gamerang Pros: 4 shipping centers; California, New Jersey, Oklahoma and Minnesota. $9.95 trial month is a nice touch. Site is useful with features such as reviews & ratings, and an easy to use search
Gamerang Cons: I was all set to signup until I checked the game availabilities. Without exception every game I wanted had a wait time — meaning it would not ship out immediately. I was surprised to see this, and hope they can get their inventory up to a better level.
GameFly Pros: Easy to use site. Trial offer for $14.95 is a good thing. All the games I was looking for were in stock and ready to ship. Prices to purchase/keep the games are competively priced ( FIFA 2006 for $44.95 and PGR3 for $38.99 — keep in mind these are pre-owned)
GameFly Cons: Only west coast location, so shipping to the east coast could take an extra day or two. Not the cheapest of the services I looked at.
GameLender Pros: Strong reviews online from fellow gamers, good selection, competitive pricing
GameLender Cons: Web site appears to be a bit out of date ( copyright still has 2004 ), shipping from the west coast, and no clear pricing that I could see if you wanted to keep the game.
In the end I chose GameFly. Two games are being shipped as we speak, so I’ll post a review of the overall experience once I’m a few cycles into this subscription.
Agree or diagree ? Got a service that’s even better ? Please let me know in the comments field below.
xbox360, gamerang, gamefly, gamelender, video game rental
5 comments January 3rd, 2006