We shouldn't offer those free rentals?

[Hobgoblin]

So, my company offers twelve free rentals from a movie/game rental place whenever you buy a gaming system (new or used) from us.

No other company does anything else like this.

Since Christmas and Hanukkah are over, a lot of people received some sort of system for a gift. A lot of them received GameBoy Advances of some style, Nintendo DS's or Sony PSPs (all hand-held systems). No company currently rents hand-held games, although Blockbuster used to do so.

A number of people have come in to my store (the video game sales place) to rent a game. No big deal, that happens all the time. If I'm not busy (and I'm not these days) I'll go help you pick out a game and have the movie renter-outers rent the game for you. I'm cool like that.

But when you ask for a DS game to rent, and I tell you that no one carries those to rent, please don't get mad at me. Here are some guidelines:

1) Please take your rental coupons with you when you storm out. I already rent for free, I can't do anything with them.

2) Don't tell me that we shouldn't advertise free rentals with game systems since they couldn't rent anything. You can still rent movies and recoup at least (3.50x12) $42 of your original purchase price. If you rent games it's higher and if you have a 360, Wii or PS3 you can get $96 dollars worth of rentals. Refer to number 1.

3) Don't insist that when I sold you the system I told you renting games for that hand-held was possible. That will merely result in my looking your transaction up in the computer, finding out who did sell it to you and showing you my name tag all to prove that you are, in fact, a raging moron. Refer to number 1, please.

[gunsage]

While I think it would be awesome to rent handheld games, I've NEVER know a place that allowed you to do that. I'm not even certain whether places like Gamefly allow you to do that or not. If so, that's awesome. Are people REALLY like that for handheld rentals? And also, relatively on topic here, I recall someone trying to do that at my local Game Crazy hooked up to the Hollywood Video...funny stuff.

Fortunately, the little miscreant's mother was getting pissy with his behavior throughout the entire store, so when it looked like he was going to pitch a bitch, she hauled him out.

[ShetenshiSenshi]

Blockbuster used to rent games for handhelds. I used to rent Game Gear games from them a while back.

[Cyphr]

they stopped as the DS was released or right before then i suppose its too easy to shop lift or too hard to protect them especially teh DS cartrigdges feel like I'm going tyo break them everytime

[flicksgirl]

We rent DS games at our store. The interest was there so we started bringing them in and so far business has been pretty good.
Just had to toss that one out there. Guess thats the difference between big block stores and little indi ones

[bigjimaz]

I am ignorant about games and the systems they are played on. I don't do video games though I do know what the different game players are from having sons.

My question is, can a hand-held game player be called a "system?"

When I think of a system, I think of the unit, the wires to connect it to a television and the numerous types of controllers that each one uses. I would not consider a GBA, DS or a PSP to be a "system" but more like a device.

[Boozy]

My question is, can a hand-held game player be called a "system?"

I asked the same question.

Even if Hobgoblin's store offered rentals of hand-held games, the cost of a Nintendo DS or PSP is not equivalent to the cost of a 360 or PS3.

At the very least, you'd think these people would understand that they're not going to get the same deal that's being offered to the big-spenders.

[Imogene]

My question is, can a hand-held game player be called a "system?"

I would say yes, as you can't really play their particular games on any other system (barring, of course, the Game Boy Original, and it's Super Nintendo adapter, the Super Game Boy.)
Of course, then you get into the whole fuzzy area of backwards compatability, which would render prior systems no longer to be systems (PS1 & 2, I'm looking mostly at you.)

[BlaqueKatt]

gamefly rents them-buts that's all I've found so far

[Velfarre2001]

I am ignorant about games and the systems they are played on. I don't do video games though I do know what the different game players are from having sons.

My question is, can a hand-held game player be called a "system?"

When I think of a system, I think of the unit, the wires to connect it to a television and the numerous types of controllers that each one uses. I would not consider a GBA, DS or a PSP to be a "system" but more like a device.

You can call home systems a device and hand held players can be systems. It is all just semantics really as far as I know.

[Rajuc]

Your company could at least put a dent in that problem by putting on the sign that it only includes console systems.... i know that you shouldn't have to do that, but if there's one thing that I've noticed in years of customer service, it's that you have to spell out each and every stupid detail....

even then, somebody will still not get it ("you mean that the DS isn't a console?!"), but it'll at least cut down on the morons a little....

[gunsage]

Well, whether they can be called a system or not is certainly an interestingly arguable point. On the one hand, the DS and PSP alone have the rare hardware power to play virtually any game from yesteryear. I mean, I thought it was phenomenal even when I was playing Castlevania: Circle of the Moon for the GBA. I suppose this is because for the longest time it was just the old Gameboy vs. the Game Gear.

Now yes, there was also the Lynx and the Turbo Graphix's handheld, but those didn't last. Oddly enough, the Gameboy, a monochrome system with only minor shading that was relatively large but with a small screen was able to beat out the Game Gear, a system that had, what, 256 colors (probably less, but that's a good guess), larger screen, easier handling, etc. For the longest time, the GB didn't change, until the Gameboy Color...and even then, there weren't so many colors added that it was all that impressive.

Once the GBA came out and started emulating older SNES games (Mario All Stars titles, Yoshi's Island, Breath of Fire 1 & 2, etc.), I knew it was going somewhere. And now we have both handheld systems that can produce games on par with N64 titles, complete with 3D graphics in most cases! In any case, with titles like Super Mario 64 DS, Valkyrie Profile Lenneth, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories, and much more, it's easy to see how a handheld could now be considered a system.

I think the main reason there's a difference however can basically be attributed to laptops vs. desktops. Laptops are portable, therefore, there are more things that come into play such as power management, weight, size, compactability, etc. Therefore, a laptop could be lesser in hardware power and such than a desktop, but still cost more. A desktop is meant to be stationary, but still good on taking up as little space as possible for your typical office environment, whether it be for business, home, or otherwise.

So my opinion, after allllllll this (sorry, I rambled) is that handhelds could, but currently aren't, considered systems. Upon further reflection, does it really make sense to NOT rent out handheld games? Now let's think about this. I'd only begun thinking about this, honestly, but here's my thoughts. When you rent a game, regardless the system you rent it for, it comes in a box, sometimes with a manual and that's about it, right?

Well, what's the deal with not offering handheld games? What, because you're worried people might steal them easier? Easier how? A PS2, GC, N64, PS3, etc. game would be just as easy to steal. Or maybe it's easier to break? With the DS titles, I could understand that thought process, but not so much with UMDs. Further, it would make more sense to rent UMD movies if you were going on a vacation or something. So, here's why I think they're currently not being rented.

It's the common misconception that since handheld games are smaller, they're not as long. Plus, it only makes sense (at least back in the 80s) that the games would be "bite size," so as to satisfy quick gaming for travellers. Problem is with the induction of certain games like Phoenix Wright, Final Fantasy Tactics, and much more for handhelds, this is no longer true. Why would this be a primal fear? Well, why buy a handheld game for $30 that will probably never go down when I can instead rent for $5 and beat it tomorrow?

That's all I've got.