GameFly.com is one of the many online rental businesses that have sprung up in the past few years. Hot on the tails of NetFlix, GameFly focuses on renting games instead of movies. Since it’s based on a monthly subscription model, you do not have to worry about late fees, and your “wish list” is sent once the games you currently have out are returned in the postage-paid envelopes. Of course, there are some disagvntages so a rent-by-mail service. So, is GameFly worth it?

Oh my lord, yes.

First off, GameFly doesn’t have some miracle technology where you’ll be able to get your games in an instant. The games travel via the mail system, so you’ll have to wait a few days to get your new games in. So, if you want to sit down and play Halo 2 with your buddies, but you don’t have it, you’re better off going to Blockbuster for an impulse rental; however, the advantages outweigh the negatives.

As I said, the idea is that GameFly will send you two or three games (depending on your rental package), and you can play them as long as you want (as long as you keep paying your monthly bill). Once you’re finished with any of those games, send them back in the included postage-paid envelope, and GameFly will send you more games that are on your “to rent” list.

The beauty of this model is that if you rent a horrible game, like Big Rigs or Fox Hunter, you can send them back the same day, and get a great game. On the other hand, you can keep out a game like Halo 2 as long as you want. Also, you don’t need to send all of your games back at the same time: if you’re engrossed in the current Final Fantasy title, but you’re bored with the latest Madden, then send back Madden, and keep Final Fantasy out, and GameFly will simply send you one game on your “to rent” list.

The library at GameFly is amazing. They have a ton of games, including all of the current generation consoles, as well as games for the Nintendo DS and the Playstation Portable. But, it does have its limitations. When a new game comes out, like Halo 2, you could end up waiting a long time in order for the rental to come in, because of the sheer demand for the product. To be fair, this is common with any rental service, but it can be frustrating to be on a “first come first serve” basis, without knowing how far down the line you are to receiving your copy of the game.

Customer service has been helpful, but GameFly encourages you to send an e-mail for support. I hate that idea, because I would actually like to describe my problem to a human being on a telephone, rather than the impersonal support that e-mail provides.

I bring up the subject of customer service because I have had three games come in that would not run on my system, no matter what I tried to do; however, after one quick e-mail in each scenario, I was able to send the product back, and get a working replacement sent via two-day mail. So, even though the support is impersonal, GameFly does show that they care about their customers.

As of this writing (05/30/05), GameFly offers three packages. If you’re just opening an account, you’ll be limited to a 1-game ($13.95/month), or 2-game ($21.95/month) account. Once you keep an account in good standing for 60 days, you can upgrade to a three-game account for $29.95/month.

While there are some disadvantages (you have to wait for games, and the customer service is impersonal), the service itself is excellent, and the company has treated me very well. So, if you like games on any level, I would highly recommend you try GameFly.

Also, they are still running their free 10-day trial, which you can take advantage of by clicking here. So, if you’re still unsure, grab the 1-game account for free and give it a shot.