A Different Way To Rent Games

24 responses to “A Different Way To Rent Games”

1. 

   clint

   August 26, 2010 at 9:16 am

   never heard of it.. but the pc section seems to have a lot of games that have strict drm/accounts/keys/steam etc. How does this work with renting?

   Reply
   1. 

      21603

      August 26, 2010 at 9:33 am

      They don’t rent PC games, only sell them.

      Reply
2. 

   Dylan Sale

   August 26, 2010 at 9:23 am

   Game guys (http://gameguys.com.au/) do the same thing but cheaper (19.95 a month for unlimited exchanges, you notify them when you have sent the game back and they send the next one same day, so you only have to wait 1 or 2 days). I have been using them for well over a year now.

   BTW I have no connection to them, I just use and like their service.

   Reply
   1. 

      Joe Mama

      August 26, 2010 at 9:42 am

      GameGuys made me kept paying 3 months after I wanted to quit because their mail didn’t arrive before the end of the month.

      Avoid them.

      Reply
      1. 

         Dylan Sale

         August 26, 2010 at 10:47 am

         I have never had any trouble with them. Would be good if they had an option to suspend your account (like WoW) though.

         Reply
3. 

   Corey Lee

   August 26, 2010 at 9:25 am

   Probably not.

   I’m just not a big fan of having to post back games I’m finished with. The wait would get annoying although these guys seem to be based in Dee Why which is good for Sydney people. But still, last I heard, video stores still exist to rent games from and it’s probably just better borrowing off a friend or simply buying it outright to begin with.

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4. 

   Adam Potts

   August 26, 2010 at 9:27 am

   Interesting. I purchase and hire a lot of games. My local Video Ezy and Civic (who import from playasia) usually get all the new releases and I’ve never complained paying $10 for 3 days but many times 3 days (really a few hours each night) is not enough time to get most games finished. This alternatively looks like a great idea.

   What would be good is a game vending machines, like the DVD ones at Woolies.

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5. 

   Dylan Sale

   August 26, 2010 at 9:28 am

   Wishing Kotaku had an edit button…

   I consider it worthwhile seeing as i go through about 2 or so games a month with it. I generally only get single player games that I would never play again once finished anyway.

   A lot of games I get are really bad and I send them back after playing 2 or 3 hours worth. Others turn out to be great surprises. Overall I get to play a lot more games then I would otherwise. If I had to pay the full price for these games I wouldn’t be playing them.

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6. 

   Chuloopa

   August 26, 2010 at 9:31 am

   It’s a pretty cool idea and good for those that don’t want to spend a whole heap of money on new release games. I mean you can either pay $100 in a month for one new release game, or pay $23 and maybe get through a couple in that month.. i mean it’s great for people on a budget who may have the time to churn through newer games in short periods of time..

   BUT, this just simply isn’t for everyone. especially me. I love OWNING games far to much to ever consider renting… it just feels wrong to me, even though it could possibly be cheaper… but then again i also don’t have the time to try and power through a game quickly.

   Reply
   1. 

      Corey Lee

      August 26, 2010 at 9:45 am

      When I was still young, renting games was the best thing to do.

      But nowadays when one has a disposable income, owning the game itself does seem that much more appealing.

      Reply
      1. 

         Chuloopa

         August 26, 2010 at 10:30 am

         Oh yeah – definately… i used to have to rent games because we simply couldn’t afford to buy them.. i still have fond memories of renting a SNES game every week from the local Video Easy when i was a youngin… but as i said, and as did you, these days it has to be ownership…

         Reply
      2. 

         Andrew Leong

         August 26, 2010 at 10:48 am

         Yeap. Once you start getting a 5-digit salary that starts with 4/5 buying games doesn’t seem as expensive as when you were selling clothes in myer whilst studying!

         Reply
7. 

   Aaron Meacham

   August 26, 2010 at 9:32 am

   I’m definately somewhat interested, but don’t know if I could warrant the 22.95 a month.

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8. 

   Akira

   August 26, 2010 at 9:44 am

   Buy your games please. 😐

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9. 

   Isaac Hendry

   August 26, 2010 at 10:14 am

   I rent a game a week for free. God I love EB’s 7 Day return policy.

   Reply
   1. 

      Allen

      August 26, 2010 at 11:05 am

      That is precisely why I try to avoid EB Games as much as possible. Their policy allows them to sell the returned game as new. Several times I bought the game (full price, mind) and the discs were obviously used.

      Reply
      1. 

         Matthew Buckner

         August 27, 2010 at 2:27 pm

         If you are buying recent releases, chances are they have some sealed copies out the back. I always ask for sealed copies of new games, no matter what store I buy from.

         Reply
   2. 

      Nicholas Corcoran

      August 26, 2010 at 5:06 pm

      a game? a week?

      i rent 2 or 3 games for 14 days from there. preowned games have a 14 day return policy, and i milk it to the bone.

      the sad thing is they know me by name at my local store now, since they see me every week or 2 swapping my games

      Reply
10. 

    Alex

    August 26, 2010 at 11:19 am

    Nothing can possibly beat Blockbuster’s $3 Thursdays. Unless the game takes more than a night to beat. But good luck finding one like that!

    Reply
    1. 

       Jonesy

       August 26, 2010 at 12:02 pm

       yeah, we have a similar thing for $2, only problem is availability and our store has no new releases. they still have Dantes inferno as a new release and that’s it.

       Reply
11. 

    Jonesy

    August 26, 2010 at 11:20 am

    EB Games’ return policy is not a rental, I personally have worn out my welcome with EB, no returns for me anymore, or my wife 🙁
    And as Allen said, you never know if you are getting a new or used game, EB gouge and rip off customers!!!!

    I did post a comment yesterday in the story about buying imports, as said, I stumbled across these guys a few months back and have been really impressed, have always got my 1st or 2nd pref. The key to these rental setups is to only put games on your list you want to play, I have only 4 at anyone time. In my opinion its so convenient, build a list and forget about it, sit back, games arrive, play and send em back. happy chappy!!

    Reply
12. 

    Simon G

    August 26, 2010 at 11:50 am

    I’ve been using GetGaming since April and they’ve been excellent. The delay between posting & receiving is almost a non-issue as they have an express return button on their website which you can use to inform them of when you’ve put a game back in the mail, even if you haven’t actually done so (but are obviously planning to within the next day or two). The next game on your queue is sent the same day if you inform them before 6pm. It basically means almost no downtime between games. Postage time is usually 2 days to Brisbane for me.

    As I only got my 360 last year, game rental is a godsend because there’s a bajillion older games I’ve missed that I’m eager to play but don’t have the money to buy. I have about 15 on my queue at any one time. I’m also a slow-paced gamer who works full-time so renting from Blockbuster just isn’t economical and I don’t want to waste money on a game I won’t like, especially a $100 new release. Generally though, after renting a game and trying it out (particularly multiplayer games like BF:BC2), I’ll go and buy it.

    One criticism I have is the lack of manuals, as none have been included with the games I’ve rented. It would be good if they could at least be downloadable from the site in PDF.

    There are a couple of other rental services I looked at before signing up:
    *GamePlay – unfortunately defunct now, but had the biggest selection.
    *Game/Movie Guys – looks pretty good, keeps up to date with releases, cheapest. Website is a bit scrappy though.
    *GameNet – similar to RentAGame, but hasn’t been updated since new year it seems.
    *RentAGame – most expensive at $24.95, not quite as good selection as GetGaming I’ve found.

    Reply
13. 

    Matty

    August 26, 2010 at 12:14 pm

    This plus PS3Jailbreak 🙂

    Personally I buy either from good local sales or eBay where I also sell occasionally. Don’t get ripped off locally & my money I can sell or buy 2nd hand as I see fit! Try to diddle me out of 1st time content and I won’t buy so the guy I was buying from won’t buy new again as he has less money…..

    I have over 20 PS3 & 40 PSP games but yes as a student on PS1 I might have sinned slightly.

    Older = more money for games = less time

    Reply
14. 

    Jacques Paton

    August 26, 2010 at 1:21 pm

    The GetGaming service is how I play my games now. I have used this service twice now, and I will continue in using this service as I have had no problems with any of the discs or the postage.

    I do agree with Simon on the no manuals with the games as I try and regularly refer to the game manual when I am playing a game. Simon you also bring up a good point of downloading the manual in a PDF file, this I would not mind either.

    I recently hired Madden 2011 and before I entered the game it asked me for an online redeeming code, I did not have one. So I have not been able to play Madden 2011 online as it requires a redeem code.

    Otherwise, the GetGaming service has been and will continue to be my source for renting games. If I do choose to purchase a game from the GetGaming site, my question to the GetGaming team is – Would I receive a discount because, I have tried it, liked it and I wish to purchase it?

    Having the “express return” button on their website allows me to notify the GetGaming guys that I have returned the game and I am awaiting my next game in my queue.

    Reply