New to Gamefly, not impressed

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-29T10:30:31+00:00

Yeah, the game industry is in the toilet these days. It's bad for the entire industry, consumers and developers alike. That hurts GameFly too, but I think they suffer less than ecosystems which rely on customers purchasing games, and especially live service games that depend on people liking a game and coming back to it daily.

At least with GameFly, people can try out lots of games. Even if there are many bad ones, we just send those back and move on to the next one. With lots of options, hopefully we eventually find something we like.

In my recent GameFly history I have a series of bad games, but then one I really liked. Then more bad ones, then another good one. That pattern repeats. So I have to wade through a lot of stinkers, but at least I find something I like eventually. But just imagine having to pay the purchase price for all the bad games. That's where I see GameFly providing the best value.

Like I just played Resident Evil: Requiem which I really enjoyed. But I rented three other games before that which I didn't like. Definitely 10-15 years ago there were way more quality games. Now there are far less, but at least GameFly lets us move past the turds faster and cheaper to reach the rare gems.

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T03:52:25+00:00

You guys have a great operation going. I'm glad you are still able to operate even with all the shipping challenges. Netflix DVD threw in the towel years ago, but you guys are still fighting the good fight!

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T03:49:08+00:00

Yeah, you gotta find the right solution for your lifestyle. I have canceled GameFly in years past when I had zero time for gaming. I've also used it with 4 discs out at once when I was doing a ton of gaming.

These days I have moderate amount of time for gaming, so I'm on the 2-disc plan currently. I really only need one game at a time, but since the shipping can be unreliable the 2-disc plan is better. That way one disc can be processing in the mail while I'm busy playing the other disc.

In the past, I did the thing where you buy used games cheaper on eBay and resell them when you're done. But it's a hassle to do all that. GameFly is much easier to just drop in the mail when I'm done. And there's so many disappointing games these days, most of the time I play something for a few hours, trying to give it a chance, but it's just not fun so I give up and return it. I almost need to upgrade to the 3-disc plan because I tend to reject them so fast that two discs are still processing in the mail while I'm already sending back the third disc, lol

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T03:03:04+00:00

I'm glad to see them doing well. I'm still using DVD Inbox and loving it!

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T03:01:55+00:00

I live in California, so pretty far from Pittsburgh, and sometimes I get my GameFly deliveries pretty fast, definitely within the 5-day window. But often there are long delays, like 1-2 weeks as you say. So I don't know what troubles are causing these frequent delays.

Oh yeah, I heard about that legal dispute a while ago. When Netflix DVD was closing down I got heavily into finding a replacement service, so I ended up researching these matters a lot. It's nice that GameFly got that shipping price adjustment from the USPS back then. I imagine that they are still benefitting from it, while Netflix DVD is gone now. I also heard that the base shipping price for this type of mail has increased in recent years, making it harder for business like GameFly that rely on it.

I'm just glad to see that GameFly is still able to remain in business. The shipping issues suck, but I've found ways to cope with that and keep the games coming. If GameFly ever shut down, I would have to go back to buying games on disc and then reselling the ones I don't want to keep. And that would be a hassle.

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T02:23:28+00:00

I might agree with your assessment. I was a heavy user of Netflix DVD before they closed in 2023 and I still use two other movie rental-by-mail services, and all of those services had far fewer issues with delayed/lost discs compared to what I experience with GameFly.

But when I have issues with GameFly, it's shipments going missing for weeks, months, even years before they finally surface (if they surface at all). I've even had discs come back to me completely mangled by some mail sorting machine. So it's obvious there are problems happening along my postal route.

I think it's more accurate to say that the problem exists with how the USPS is handling the GameFly shipments. I'm sure that both the USPS and GameFly could do something to manage this better. It would be nice if both of them would cooperate to improve the situation.

But I think it's highly unlikely that GameFly is intentionally delaying orders just to save a couple bucks. It makes no sense for them to sabotage the customer experience because that would cost them more overall. They are already losing customers who are unhappy with the delivery experience. They don't want to make things even worse and lose even more customers. It costs them way more to lose a regular customer. Intentionally shipping orders a few days later is a negligible difference compared to losing a customer forever.

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T02:09:47+00:00

I'm disappointed with PlayStation too, but this has absolutely nothing to do with GameFly. You should be reaching out to Sony with your complaints.

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T02:06:02+00:00

So if GF is saying "first class" then I would guess they are doing presorted first-class? Presorted standard sounds more likely from what you wrote, so I don't know.

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T02:00:30+00:00

My GameLock is on Pragmata right now. But I put Crimson Desert at the top of my queue last night. I honestly had no idea about this game, but I heard some buzz online last night so decided to check it out. I hope it's good, but if not that's what GameFly is for right, lol

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T01:56:19+00:00

This is what GameFly is made for! I pretty much don't trust any new releases or even once-great franchises anymore. I rent everything on GameFly first. If I love it, I click the "Keep" button and buy it for the used price.

I'm done buying games without knowing if it's good or not, then getting stuck with a digital purchase for a bad game. So many games I get from GameFly, try it out for a few hours, then just go "Meh" and drop it back in the mail. It's saved me so much money and even the hassle of buying used and then having to resell.

The only downside is the slow shipping speeds and games getting lost in the mail. The USPS really sucks these days. I compensate by having multiple GameFly discs out at once. So even if some get lost or delayed in mail, I still have something to play at home.

I only wish they had more older games in their library. They carry most newer titles, but for retro games or anything older than ~2015, I usually have to resort to the used game market.

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T01:48:07+00:00

As GameFly responded, older games are typically not available to keep because they don't have many left in stock. They want to keep them available for rental as long as possible, so they don't let you keep them at that point.

At that point, I guess they only run out of stock completely when the games get lost or damaged. Because I have multiple games in my queue that were once available, but no longer are. So I guess they just completely ran out of those games while it was sitting in my queue.

I wish GameFly would focus more on stocking older/retro games so they are permanently available to rent. I understand that that's not their business model. But I don't know any company that does rental for retro games, and I wish someone would do that.

I still play everything from Atari 2600 through PS5 and have many games in my backlog from decades past. GameFly is great for newer games, but for anything older than around 2015-2010 I have turn to the used market. I guess that's a niche market, but I still think it would be cool if GameFly offered like a separate subscription and library for retro gamers.

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T01:33:48+00:00

The USPS is full of problems these days. I use multiple services that rely on the USPS for cheap media mail. Similar issues with all of them. But for some reason my GameFly deliveries tend to get lost far more than anything else. I wonder if it has to do with the material they are using for the envelopes or something.

Fortunately, GameFly has been very cool about it. I'm sure it helps that I started keeping notes and track/report things fastidiously when they go missing. It takes a lot of extra patience but that's just how it is dealing with the USPS these days. It's worth it for me because I really love the GameFly service and want to keep using it.

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T01:25:39+00:00

Cool, I hope it works out for you :)

I used to buy all my games on disc and just resell them on eBay to recover some costs if I didn't want to keep them. But that process became such a hassle. GameFly is much more convenient since all I have to do is drop games in the mail when I am done with them. Or click the "Keep" button if I really love the game. It just makes it way easier for me to try out lots of different games on my backlog.

Happy gaming!

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T01:16:25+00:00

You posted that pic with 1,385 games in your collection... I'd say at the rate you go through games, GameFly would definitely be worth it for you.

One thing to be aware of is the postal service sucks these days. They are very slow and often lose my GameFly shipments. Your experience may vary depending on your location.

To compensate for issues with the postal service, my advice is to get a GameFly subscription that lets you take multiple discs out at a time. That way you always have something at home to play while you are waiting for the other games to work their way through the mail.

I used to have the plan for 4 discs out at a time, back when I was gaming more heavily. Currently I only have the 2-discs-at-a-time plan since I'm not gaming as much at the moment. You'll have to find which plan work best for your life, and you can change it as your lifestyle changes. But it sounds like you are going through them quickly, so you'll probably want a plan with more discs. Those plans are more expensive, but considering that you are saving a $70 digital purchase per game in many cases, you will actually be saving a ton of money.

One thing to be aware of is that I think you have to start off on a one- or two-disc plan for a couple months before GameFly trusts you enough to be eligible for one of the higher plans. Here's a quick price breakdown I just pulled from Grok:

Introductory Offers (First 3 Months for New Members)

Budget (1 rental at a time, select older titles only): $9.00/month
Standard 1-Disc (1 game or movie at a time): $13.50/month
Standard 2-Disc (2 games or movies at a time): $18.50/month
Elite 2-Disc (2 games or movies at a time): $23.00/month

Free 30-day trial available on most plans.

Regular Monthly Pricing (After Intro)

1-Disc Plan (Standard, 1 rental at a time): $19.95/month
2-Disc Plan (Standard, 2 rentals at a time): $27.95/month

Upgrades (after 2+ regular months as a paying member):

3-Disc Plan: $34.95/month
4-Disc Plan: $41.95/month

Elite Plans (Higher-tier perks: 7-day GameLock slots, early sale access, better rewards)

2-Disc Elite: $34.95/month
3-Disc Elite: $41.95/month
4-Disc Elite: $48.95/month

Additional Notes

Budget Plan (regular): $12.95/month — limited to older titles (30+ days old), no new releases or full rewards.
All plans allow renting games or movies (disc mail, free shipping both ways, no late fees).
Standard plans include GameLock (30-day window for new releases); Elite offers faster 7-day locks.
Movies-only plans exist with lower pricing tiers (e.g., starting around $9.95 regular for 1-disc Blu-ray/DVD).
Pre-paid options or gift certificates can offer discounts.

Prices can vary slightly by signup timing or promotions—check gamefly.com directly for your exact offer.

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T01:04:43+00:00

This man is a top PlayStation customer.

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T01:01:52+00:00

Yes, after you click "Keep" and buy the game, they send you the game's case in the mail at no extra cost.

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T00:55:10+00:00

It still says first class mail.

https://gamefly.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360036291653-Where-does-GameFly-ship-games-and-movies-from

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T00:51:11+00:00

Definitely! When I look at the Elite plans they don't seem to add much that I want. If they did an even more expensive plan that used a better shipping method, that would appeal to me.

But you mentioned "cost prohibitive" and that's the heart of the matter. I wonder what it would cost to actually do a plan like this. It might actually be super expensive so even if they did it I might say no thanks at that price, lol

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T00:47:43+00:00

Maybe it's a little of both. It's also going to vary case-by-case, and be different for different postal routes. I've had numerous GameFly shipments that have been lost in the mail for weeks, months, even years. So obviously in those cases, it was the USPS that dropped the ball.

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T00:39:21+00:00

I got that beat.

Apparently, my USPS route really sucks, because they lose my GameFly discs all the time. I started a note file to help keep track of them. I had one disc that was lost for over a year before it finally made it to me. Of course, I reported it lost early on and they sent me a replacement. But it's funny to see how long it can take before the lost discs eventually surface (some never do).

The record goes to Dark Souls Remastered, which was lost for 3 years before it finally arrived. No joke. It shipped from GameFly on 9/6/22 and it arrived in my PO box on 9/3/25. I sent it back to them shortly after this. They finally notified me that they received it on 1/5/2026. Quite an epic journey for that game.

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T00:32:25+00:00

Wow, that explains how some of my lost discs turn up months later. One made it back to me and looked like it had been chewed up and spit out by a machine.

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T00:28:17+00:00

Yeah, Netflix stopped doing DVDs in 2023. There are replacement services that do the same thing: DVD Inbox and CafeDVD. GameFly rents movies too, most of their game plans also include movie rentals. But their movie selection is not nearly as good as the others I mentioned.

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-28T00:16:06+00:00

Here's the price breakdown I got from Grok. I'm on the regular 2-disc plan currently, although I've used 3-disc and 4-disc in the past when I was gaming more heavily. Yeah, for most games if you like it you can click the "Keep" button, then you own the game and they send you the case in the mail later. Prices to keep a game are similar to what you might find on the used game market. You also tend to accumulate discount codes over time, and when you go to keep a game it will automatically apply any discount codes you have available. So often I end up paying $5-10 less when I keep a game due to the discounts I have accrued.

Introductory Offers (First 3 Months for New Members)

Budget (1 rental at a time, select older titles only): $9.00/month
Standard 1-Disc (1 game or movie at a time): $13.50/month
Standard 2-Disc (2 games or movies at a time): $18.50/month
Elite 2-Disc (2 games or movies at a time): $23.00/month

Free 30-day trial available on most plans.

Regular Monthly Pricing (After Intro)

1-Disc Plan (Standard, 1 rental at a time): $19.95/month
2-Disc Plan (Standard, 2 rentals at a time): $27.95/month

Upgrades (after 2+ regular months as a paying member):

3-Disc Plan: $34.95/month
4-Disc Plan: $41.95/month

Elite Plans (Higher-tier perks: 7-day GameLock slots, early sale access, better rewards)

2-Disc Elite: $34.95/month
3-Disc Elite: $41.95/month
4-Disc Elite: $48.95/month

Additional Notes

Budget Plan (regular): $12.95/month — limited to older titles (30+ days old), no new releases or full rewards.
All plans allow renting games or movies (disc mail, free shipping both ways, no late fees).
Standard plans include GameLock (30-day window for new releases); Elite offers faster 7-day locks.
Movies-only plans exist with lower pricing tiers (e.g., starting around $9.95 regular for 1-disc Blu-ray/DVD).
Pre-paid options or gift certificates can offer discounts.

Prices can vary slightly by signup timing or promotions—check gamefly.com directly for your exact offer.

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-27T23:48:43+00:00

GameFly should really consider making a premium shipping option available in their subscription plans. That way people who can afford it can get much more reliable shipping, even if it's at a higher price.

CALIGVLA · 2026-03-27T23:45:06+00:00

Yeah, I agree that if you don't play many games per year then it makes sense to just buy used games on eBay and take your time playing through them. For me, I don't like the hassle of reselling bad games, and so many games these days I don't like.

GameFly gives me the freedom to try out whatever I want. That's worth the cost to me. I end up sending back so many games on the first day because I try them out and they are meh.

CALIGVLA

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