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Reader Comments (74)

Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:04PM TNK1 said

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I was like nice till I, read "top releases to popular family and kids titles." Guess I'll just stick with gamefly and make sure the mailman doesn't steal any of my rentals :P.

Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:11PM Acosta02 said

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@TNK1

I think that's supposed to be a continuum, as in it covers top releases (AAA games), family and kids titles, and things in between (not top releases).
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:26PM spin cycle said

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@TNK1 The ones around here have SOCOM 4 in them (it's not very popular at the moment for obvious reasons!) and Assassin's Creed (1, ugh), so I think perhaps you'll see more selection than you though.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:58PM Morisato13 said

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@TNK1

Ehh... I live by a place called Video 94 that rents out games at $2 a day already anyways... they're open 18 hours a day so returning and renting at odd hours isn't really an issue.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 7:35PM DarkNightRJ said

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@TNK1
http://www.redbox.com/games

You can view what you can rent. They've had it for a while but just now expanding it I guess. It is mainly the big big titles and kids titles though.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 8:35PM Co said

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Gamefly is still to expensive for me.

Then again, I'm finding Wii title after Wii title on Amazon for $10-12 brand new 6-12 months after being released.
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Posted: Apr 29th 2011 12:37PM Schade said

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@Co

Try www.gamehuddle.com

Same service as GameFly as far as mailing directly to you but no membership required. You only pay on a daily basis for what you rent.

And... if you decide to share your games you can make a little cash as well.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:06PM eat it said

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I remember they did this before. People were saying you could buy a prepaid visa card with cash, go rent a game, and then just keep it.

I would hope that they noticed that and addressed it.

Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:15PM xNivekx said

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@eat it Damn how are they supposed to adress that? those credit cards arent linked to any bank account so it could belong to anyone...
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:34PM HazyCloud said

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@xNivekx By not accepting pre-paid cards.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:57PM PR0F3TA said

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@eat it

why am i just learning this NOW ;_;
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:58PM Lerkero said

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@HazyCloud
I'm not sure if the technology exists to distinguish between them. Even debit cards can be charged as credit cards.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 6:17PM Rannxz said

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@Lerkero

The technology exists. The place where I work has a system that can distinguish between debit/credit cards and prepaid cards. In fact, we don't accept prepaid cards and it won't anyway since our system(once we put the prepaid through the card reader) reads the amount as 0 even if there is enough money on there.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:10PM Acosta02 said

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Yo, this is pretty sick. There's one of these a short walk from my home; I could make use of this.

The problem is that I can't imagine very many games available at once. I mean, they only have so much space, and they want to provide games to three consoles and still have space for movies.

Posted: Apr 28th 2011 6:19PM Rannxz said

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@Acosta02

Well each redbox machine can hold 630 discs. Not sure how the layout of the inside of the machine is though, so can't say how many options each machine can hold.

Still, it's a lot, and if anything, they can always just reupdate their systems.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:13PM xJimmeh said

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Yeah I'm currently in one of the test market areas and...the selection is rather pitiful :/ There's always only 1 ps3 game, usually it's Enslaved, 3 xbox games usually being Enslaved, WWE whatever, and Hasbro Game night, and five wii games, all of which are really really casual.

Posted: Apr 28th 2011 6:21PM Rannxz said

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@xJimmeh

Go online to look at what they actually have in that redbox compared to just whats available to where you are. My friend lives near one and his always has Halo Reach and one time he was lucky enough to find Black Ops.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:13PM TheDarkWayne said

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Just family and kid titles? That kind of puts a damper on it. Even if they had more, i think id just stick with gamefly. 2 days just isn't enough for most games. I guess it'll be nice for games I just want to check out or play with a friend, since all the video rental chains are closing around me.

Posted: Apr 28th 2011 6:22PM kentuckyfried said

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@TheDarkWayne

I think this is more marketed to people on the fence about whether or not they want to buy a game or not...$2 is a good way to determine that.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 8:00PM BananaBoat said

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@TheDarkWayne - "Top Titles" refers to Mature themed games. Looking on their site, all the big names are there (COD, Halo, etc) and some newer titles (MK, Socom, but not Portal 2 oddly enough).

They could have phrased it better, I guess.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 8:13PM BananaBoat said

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@BananaBoat - Correction, that wasn't Halo I was seeing. It was Rio.



(I need glasses...bad)
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Posted: Apr 29th 2011 12:37AM DeadRabbits said

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@kentuckyfried

Agreed, but from what I've read, it seems like you can't really check out that many games anyway, due to them not being stocked, or already rented out.

I don't see this working as well as the DVD service. Still, I'll wait and see. There are like a bazillion within a few miles of me.
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Posted: Apr 29th 2011 1:32PM TheDarkWayne said

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@BananaBoat still though, as anything more than testing the waters, 2 days just isn't enough. Even if I decided I liked the game, id have to keep paying 2 dollars for it over and over.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:14PM Marco le Polo said

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Well that's kinda cool. Too bad I only own a Wii.

Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:23PM ddrussianinja said

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@Marco le Polo Why is that too bad? They will have Wii titles too.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:27PM Marco le Polo said

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@ddrussianinja

Yea actually you're right. There's a lot of Wii games I'd like to play that I haven't had a chance to yet. $2 to basically test a game before I buy it doesn't sound too bad.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:15PM Alaon said

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Awesome! Now I will rent Portal 2 in a heartbeat when it's available for xbox 360!

Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:31PM The Scout said

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@Alaon

Rent it??? YOU MONSTER!
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 6:04PM louiedog said

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@Alaon It's going to be $35 at Kmart next week. Buy it.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 6:24PM BananaBoat said

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@louiedog - It was $35 for months before it was released. If that wasn't enough to make him purchase it, nothing is.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:16PM Mr Fister said

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Sounds like it would only be practical for shorter games (shooters, fighting games, and the like). Unless you literally have nothing else to do, renting something like Oblivion on $2 a night would not exactly be the wisest choice to make.

Posted: Apr 28th 2011 8:39PM Co said

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@Mr Fister

Umm, have you read the average Joystiq commenter's story? I swear these guys don't turn their consoles off.

But you are correct, for the typical person that games this would add up quick. For the 3 or 4 titles i buy a year, i go thru amazon and their almost black market prices.
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Posted: Apr 29th 2011 1:55AM ravissimo said

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@Mr Fister

seems like the perfect system for me. i'd never do gamefly because of the price for renting only. i always prefer to buy my games, but often times I want to try it out. demos aren't always available, and are often too short.

i wouldn't rent a game and expect to finish it, but just to try it out to see if I wanted to then buy it. if the game sucks, then i didn't waste $20-$60 bucks on it, maybe just $2 or $4. I see myself using this a lot. it hasn't been in my area, so I don't know what games are available. hopefully some decent ones.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:23PM ddrussianinja said

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Everyone seems to be missing the "top releases" part. They aren't just going to offer kids games. Just popular games and kids games.

Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:24PM Nintendo Tim said

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Considering I get about 2-3 games a month from GameFly, and I keep them upwards of a week, maybe 2 if I'm swamped at work, they end up being the cheapest, if you compare it to the 5-day plan with Blockbuster:

Blockbuster:
$8.99 for 5 days ($1.80 a day)

GameFly:
1 Game Out ($15.95/month) = $0.53 a day
2 Games Out ($22.95/month) = $0.38 a day, per game

Redbox:
$2 a day

Sure, it's good if you know you can beat the game in a day (and if you absolutely hate waiting for a game that you've had in your Q since it was added to their site, yet it still sits at "Low" status for the fourth week after it's release and you still haven't gotten it), but I wouldn't swing with Redbox, especially considering their selection will be absolutely paltry compared to BB/GF, and upwards of 5 times more costly.

Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:29PM Faceless Troll said

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@Nintendo Tim Too bad Gamefly's service is terrible and they wind up ignoring your actual queue order.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 6:02PM louiedog said

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@Nintendo Tim Breaking it down by day like that doesn't work for every game and there are other factors to consider. Renting Fallout New Vegas from Redbox would be stupid unless you were going to marathon the thing. Most people would take many days or more likely a couple of weeks minimum to complete the game. Obviously GameFly is the cheapest, and probably best way to get it.

What about something like Homefront with a campaign that only lasts 5 hours? If I wanted to play through the single player, which I can do in one or two sittings, Redbox is the superior choice. Blockbuster would give it to me for 5 days, but if I rent from Redbox on Saturday morning I get it until Sunday at 9 PM for 1/4 the price and it gives me plenty of time to play it. For a lot of people the turnaround from GameFly between sending a game and receiving a new one is 4-6 days. That's 8-10 days of paying for a service while discs are just sitting in the mail, only to play a 5-hour campaign.

There are plenty of other games you could play in a weekend and would be better off giving Redbox $2-$4 than from the other services.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:28PM Faceless Troll said

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My body is ready.

Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:29PM KungFuChaosNinja said

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I'm certainly all over this. Redbox is so convenient and cheap. I love it.

Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:56PM asojax said

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@KungFuChaosNinja

yeah redbox certainly seems cheap if you look at the upfront costs of anything, but in the long run redbox costs more than any other service out there.

It will be nice to pay 2 bucks to check out a game and then return it if it's not worth playing but if it's something worth playing and you work a normal schedule it really won't be worth it.
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Posted: Apr 29th 2011 2:02AM ravissimo said

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@asojax "It will be nice to pay 2 bucks to check out a game and then return it if it's not worth playing but if it's something worth playing and you work a normal schedule it really won't be worth it."

i never understood this. i always think of "rental" as "trial." you can rent a movie from redbox for $1. if you disliked the movie, you'll never rent/buy it again. if you liked it, then later you might want to watch it again. if you do, will you rent it? or buy it considering you might want to watch it again after that?

i think if a game is "worth" playing as you said, it makes sense to just buy it. if you don't want to play it again, then sell it after you're done. i don't think i get game subscription servicees like gamefly, unless you never like any games you rent and you don't want to keep any of them or play them ever again.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:30PM Tab said

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I really don't think selection is the issue here. I'm equally as interested in how they plan to avoid theft. Thanks to piracy, movies are easy to come by so the shady people aren't gonna steal the movies, they could probably already get free. ....games on the other hand. I'll keep my eyes on this to see how they can do it efficiently.

Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:51PM louiedog said

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@Tab If you steal it they charge your credit card. Prepaid debit cards do not work.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 7:24PM Tab said

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@louiedog

I see. Then there's no problem then. Bring on the games!
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 9:27PM Darklink2009 said

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@louiedog In fact, I'm pretty sure this has to be part of their business model. Oftentimes, my brother will check out a movie, decide he likes it, and keep it. He pays $20 for the disc, and redbox actually makes profit on the transaction.

I've told him numerous times that this is generally a bad way to buy movies, but hey, if it works for everyone involved, whatever, right?
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:33PM blackmagic01 said

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funny cause i rented black ops at launch from redbox. it's the first time i ever used redbox. i assumed they all did it.

Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:36PM Urethra Alfredo said

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Whoa, I haven't been in a Blockbuster in years...in fact, I thought the the whole operation folded, like Hollywood Video.

But sweet sonny Jesus, Blockbuster charges nine dollars for a game rental?? Like a dick in the ear, f*ck that noise. They might as well change their name to Cockbuster, because that shit is breaking my balls.


Sigh...if only PSN/XBLA offered reasonably priced rentals. I mean, PSN already has sixty-minute game trials for Playstation Plus members, so why not go the full nine?

Posted: Apr 28th 2011 6:09PM dragunrising said

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@Urethra Alfredo Hopefully game rentals through PSN/Xbla become a reality. So far Onlive has the right idea with it's straightforward rent or buy options. If the service wasn't so dodgy for me (must be too far away), I would consider using them to rent some of the shorter and/or less critically acclaimed titles.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 6:23PM Rannxz said

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@dragunrising

I've always thought that was a good idea. It can work just like how Zune lets you rent Movies.
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Posted: Apr 28th 2011 5:41PM africansk8er said

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I've been using this system for the past year, since the Redbox's in LA have games. It's the best deal ever. You can fly through a game in a night and it only costs $2. Loved it.

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