I restarted my Gamefly account when I got my new 360. I wanted to be able to play the "new pretty" with the gang here, but didn't want to actually buy some game that I may or not want to hold for long. I definitely don't think that renting is a "no-brainer" decision, but it works for me.

I'm not trying to be snide, but what makes you think the "shell" will be priced any lower? As Bill Harris (and others, I'm sure) have pointed out, EA has already started charging $60 for a game with $50 in unlockables (Nov 3 blog.) The game is Need For Speed: Carbon.
Granted that's not exactly what you're talking about - that "extra content" is apparently unlockable by playing through as well. However, I don't see why EA would charge less for the main content if people are still willing to pay full price and then pay for the extras on top of it. You can probably send a message by not buying those games or at least not dishing out for the extras.

Personally I'm scared for the day when you get stuck and an in-game ad pops up offering to sell you a tip for real-life cash just by pressing select. At least there's gamefaqs, but that would drive me batty on principle.
------------------
As for rentals, I haven't tried Gamefly but it's a possibility in the future. There are a lot of titles I'd like to try and not enough friends in the area with new games to sample.

I guess it is my miscplaced faith in humanity .... seriously, yeah, it can go both ways .. but what I envision is them eventually selling games at like $30 or $40 and implying they are giving us a great price for some sort of "core" or "starter" gameplay, when in fact the bulk of the game needs to be purchased online for an additional $30 or $40.

I'd agree that some of this current "unlock" stuff is just the beginning. I am sure the publishers have a long-term plan in mind for undermining the rental and resale business, since it is cash out of their pocket.

I am a heavy GameFly user. I buy the games that I can and that I care to support with my dollars, and I rent a ton of other things to try, or to fill lulls in-between games that I really want.

I've taken a somewhat similar, yet different strategy. I subscribe to the "Official X-Box Magazine" and basically play the demos. Every now again I'll buy a good game, but for $29/year it fills the same role as Gamefly for me.

I had the same problem with Gamefly - took forever and a day to get a game.

I find that I rarely play a console game more than 15 minutes anyway, so the demos are usually enough for me to sample the game.

Yeah, that too. Try the Demo, buy off eBay (or retail if it's a new release), sell on eBay later.

I use a combination of that and a 1-game/mo. Gamefly subscription (that I'm cancelling this month).

I bought almost all of my console games up until I got my 360. Then I found out about GameAccess.ca and switched to rentals. I was always too lazy to go to Rogers Video (ugh) or Blockbuster (mega-ugh) and they make it easy since I don't have to go anywhere and can keep the games as long as I want. I don't mean to sound like I'm a shill for them, they're just the reason I went to renting. I decided that paying $70 for a ten hour game wasn't worth it anymore when I usually beat the single player in a few days and with a few exceptions like Gears of War, multiplayer is something I rarely use. The next game I'll actually buy will probably be Mass Effect.

Amazingly enough, my copy of FF12 showed up today. So, now I'll "keep it", spend the Gamefly dollars I have, and cancel the subscription.

Maybe Gamarang is a better choice... but I'll likely hold off until after Christmas.

Okay, Gamefly has been a bit better for me lately, and I like the buy-it program (oh, and that they're switching to white envelopes instead of bright orange "steal me" ones). I'm still thinking of a change to Gamerang or Gameznflix.

I like being able to try out games that I wouldn't have *ever* tried otherwise.

I should rent. It's funny how I look at video games (or all media for that matter since I do the EXACT same thing with books, graphic novels, movies, etc.). I look at them like I want to own them because of the joy of just owning something that's a work of art. I want to treasure it, see its box sitting on my shelf as I work my way through the game. Then, inevitably, I get to a point where I don't want to play the game and I sell it anyway. And that causes much pain and consternation. Because inevitably I hold onto it forever. Kind of like I did with both Katamari games. I held them and I looked at them and I thought (I'm going to regret selling this someday).

But then I thought to myself. Do I ever *really* want to play Tecmo Super Bowl again? A game I once held above all others. Do I ever really want to read V for Vendetta again? Really? Do I ever want to read Asimov's Foundation series again? Won't I just want to read something new? And now my current Dilemna. Will I really want to play Shadow of the Colossus again, once I've experienced it?

And I think that's the key word. Experienced. I'm never going to get to experience the first time I beat Fire Emblem for the GBA or the first time I plowed through the Foundation Series or my college days of being addicted to Tecmo Super Bowl. It's just never going to happen. So I should just move on and experience new things, shouldn't I?

I ask the question because I still don't know. I keep telling myself I should convert to rentals. I haven't yet. The other day I finally sold the Katamaris. That felt good. They were sitting on my shelf looking useless. And I don't like stuff sitting around my house looking useless. So I sold them. Just like I sold the Foundation books, just like I sold Handmaid's Tale, 1984 and V for Vendetta.

I'm a huge consumer of media, but I also enjoy experiencing new things. And I think I have more fun when I'm not clinging to the past, but instead parting ways with Shadow of the Colossus eventually to move on to Bully or something else.

Oh, please. Seriously.

The world is filled with new books I haven't yet read. That's the whole point. I love those books, but I have never read The Dispossed (my current book). I've never read most Heinlen books. Too many books to read, games to play, etc. in this lifetime.

If/when I get an XBox 360, I may do the same. I still only have the original X-Box.

I love Gameznflix. Never had a problem with a shortage of titles and you can get 3 out at a time for almost what Gamefly charges for 1 at a time. Plus their warehouse is in Kentucky and I live in Tennessee so its 2 days max to get a title in as opposed to 7 days from Gamefly. As for what I rent I just pick and choose what titles I think are keepers and what are going to be temporary fixes to satisfy my gaming habit. For instance I bought Gears but rented Marvel Ultimate Alliance. I will buy most sports games I am interested in like NBA2k7 but rent others like Tony Hawk 8, NFS Carbon and Splinter Cell just to name a few.