I finally signed up for an online rental service today, after having a bit of an epiphany regarding my game collection. It goes like this:
I bought a 360 recently, and bought Oblivion with it. Like many others, the game sucked me in hard, and fast. It TOOK OVER my life for a full two weeks, and dominated it significantly for another two. XBL tells me I got my first achievement August 2nd. From that day until the beginning of September, one month, I played the game 58 hours, completing most main & guild quests.
The epiphany is that Oblivion is a huge game that I played and enjoyed intensely, moreso than any game in years, and it still held my constant attention for only about one month. I intend on getting the game's last few achievements soon, but essentially I was through with the game after 30 days almost exactly.
And Oblivion is the exception, not the rule, when it comes to most games. I also own and genuinely enjoy Saints Row. It's great. But after about 5 days of ownership my "intense" gametime period is already over. I'm at 51% completion right now. In another 7 days or so my gametime won't end completely, but it'll drop to "occasional," at best.
The point of all this is that Gameznflix is $15.99/mo to have two games out. GameFly is $22. If I would have signed up for Gameznflix on August 2nd instead of buying Oblivion and Saint's Row, I would gotten the same gametime out of both, but would have spent $16 instead of $120. Once I'm through with these games, I'm through. They get shelved.
Why collect single player games, regardless of how great they are? Sure I might get an urge to start a thief of archer in Oblivion in December, but then I can just use one of my slots to rent it.
My gaming purchases are no longer tied to how good a game is, or how many hours of enjoyment I'll put into it. My purchases or now dictated by the length of time a game can keep my attention. If it's "only" 30 days like Oblivion, why pay $60 instead of $16? The games that should have a permanent home in a library or those that will be revisited, be it for multiplayer, "quick bursts," or whatever else.
I have a hunch that I'm not the only gamer that's this way. How many GAFFERS own and love DQVIII, or Tomb Raider: Legend, or Resident Evil 4, but only played the game intensely for a month or less? Wouldn't it be better to RENT those games from a service, and then BUY the games like Guitar Hero, Burnout 4, Gradius V, and others that are more replayable?
Down with buying great games that won't be played when beaten! It makes no sense!
FFXII? Rent, so Guitar Hero II can be a buy without breaking the bank. Both games will get the same amount of enjoyment from me even though I spent barely over half the money.
I bought a 360 recently, and bought Oblivion with it. Like many others, the game sucked me in hard, and fast. It TOOK OVER my life for a full two weeks, and dominated it significantly for another two. XBL tells me I got my first achievement August 2nd. From that day until the beginning of September, one month, I played the game 58 hours, completing most main & guild quests.
The epiphany is that Oblivion is a huge game that I played and enjoyed intensely, moreso than any game in years, and it still held my constant attention for only about one month. I intend on getting the game's last few achievements soon, but essentially I was through with the game after 30 days almost exactly.
And Oblivion is the exception, not the rule, when it comes to most games. I also own and genuinely enjoy Saints Row. It's great. But after about 5 days of ownership my "intense" gametime period is already over. I'm at 51% completion right now. In another 7 days or so my gametime won't end completely, but it'll drop to "occasional," at best.
The point of all this is that Gameznflix is $15.99/mo to have two games out. GameFly is $22. If I would have signed up for Gameznflix on August 2nd instead of buying Oblivion and Saint's Row, I would gotten the same gametime out of both, but would have spent $16 instead of $120. Once I'm through with these games, I'm through. They get shelved.
Why collect single player games, regardless of how great they are? Sure I might get an urge to start a thief of archer in Oblivion in December, but then I can just use one of my slots to rent it.
My gaming purchases are no longer tied to how good a game is, or how many hours of enjoyment I'll put into it. My purchases or now dictated by the length of time a game can keep my attention. If it's "only" 30 days like Oblivion, why pay $60 instead of $16? The games that should have a permanent home in a library or those that will be revisited, be it for multiplayer, "quick bursts," or whatever else.
I have a hunch that I'm not the only gamer that's this way. How many GAFFERS own and love DQVIII, or Tomb Raider: Legend, or Resident Evil 4, but only played the game intensely for a month or less? Wouldn't it be better to RENT those games from a service, and then BUY the games like Guitar Hero, Burnout 4, Gradius V, and others that are more replayable?
Down with buying great games that won't be played when beaten! It makes no sense!
FFXII? Rent, so Guitar Hero II can be a buy without breaking the bank. Both games will get the same amount of enjoyment from me even though I spent barely over half the money.
.
