GameFly Review
GameFly has been around longer than most other video game rental services, and they are currently the largest online service. They offer free shipping both ways, and you can purchase games you want to keep, at a discounted price.
Gamefly offers a 10-day free trial for 2 games out.
Gamefly’s biggest downfall is they only ship from the West Coast. Wait times can be pretty long for those of us on the East Coast. To help this problem, they offer what is called “Fast Return.” Fast Return works like this: You drop your game in the mail, and your local post office then scans the package which notifies GameFly electronically that your game has been returned. Unfortunately, this doesn’t always work. Sometimes Fast Return kicks in, sometimes it doesn’t. It is so unreliable, I wouldn’t count it as a plus.
Keep Your Games
Gamefly does have the best deal for keeping games you like, for a great used-game price. Xbox 360 games, for example, typically run $60 new, but you can usually buy them for less than $50 from GameFly. This is usually a better price than buying a used game at a local retailer. The added bonus is that your next game in your queue is sent immediately.
Bonus : GameFly Rewards
Once you have been a member for 3 months you become a Level 1 member of the GameFly Rewards Program. At Level 1 you earn 5 Gamefly dollars that you can use towards the purchase of games. You earn 5 dollars every 3 months, but they do not accumulate - you must use each 5 dollars within 3 months. After six months, you become a Level 2. You get the same bonus as Level 1, but you also get 5% off game purchases. After 1 year, you become a Level 3, which entitles you to the same bonus dollars as Level 1, and you also get 10% off game purchases.
Game Stock and Wait Times
This service also offers a good selection of games in stock, and wait times are generally pretty short. Shipping times can be long to the East Coast. Game turnaround from the East Coast can be terrible, sometimes taking up to two weeks. West Coasters don’t have this problem.
Customer Service
Customer service is pretty weak. When I have contacted them for a specific problem and question, I received a copy and paste answer that was already on their website. You will probably be pretty much on your own here.
The Plans
You can start a 10-day free trial, by signing up for the 2 Games Out Plan. After your 10 day trial ends, the price is 21.95 per month.
1 Game Out - $14.95 per month
2 Games Out - $21.95 per month (works out to $11 per game)
3 Games Out - $28.95 per month (works out to $9.65 per game)
4 Games Out - $35.95 per month (works out to $9 per game)
Highly Recommended
I highly recommend GameFly if you are on the West Coast, and/or you buy many of the games you rent.