---
title: 'The Library Is the Best Free Video Game Service'
source: 'https://youtube.com/watch?v=4jsYBULf-qc'
video_id: '4jsYBULf-qc'
date: 2026-08-22
duration_sec: 439
channel: 'GameSpot'
---

# The Library Is the Best Free Video Game Service

> Source: [The Library Is the Best Free Video Game Service](https://youtube.com/watch?v=4jsYBULf-qc)

## Summary

The video explores how public libraries offer free video game rentals, providing a cost-effective alternative to buying games or subscribing to services. It highlights the growing collection, the affordability of library memberships, and the role of libraries as community spaces for gamers.

### Key Points

- **Libraries offer video game rentals** [00:30] — The library in Jersey City has a small selection, but another branch has over 600 titles across multiple platforms.
- **Game collection started with a small grant** [01:15] — The collection started with a $500 grant and has grown to be a major resource for the library.
- **Diverse and recent game catalog** [01:54] — The library has a wide variety of games, from complete series like Dark Souls to recent releases like 007 First Light.
- **Cost-effective membership** [04:29] — A yearly membership for non-residents is $60, cheaper than Game Pass or PS Plus.
- **Libraries as third spaces** [05:41] — Libraries serve as third spaces, offering gaming events and a free place to gather.

## Transcript

We're here to investigate why and help you play more while spending less. Welcome to GameSpot cheap. This isn't just my nearest Fallout shelter in case VaultTech decides to hit the big red button. This is a public
library. Behind me is one of the many libraries here in Jersey City. As you know, at the library you can check out physical versions of books, music, and movies. But did you also know you can check out physical video games? Since
gaming is getting more expensive seemingly by the day, I wanted to find out if there was a way to game without spending a dime. Enter the library. Now, this branch in particular only has a small selection. But there is a library
in the town over that has a massive catalog of over 600 titles. Let's go catalog of over 600 titles. Let's go check it out.
At this branch, there are hundreds of titles across PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series consoles, Nintendo Switch, and Nintendo Switch 2. You can even borrow went to go take a look at those, they had all been checked out. In speaking
with a representative for the library, they said that this collection got they said that this collection got started from a very small $500 grant, which they used to buy their first games. However, checking out games at
the library became so popular that it is now one of the things that the library pours most of its resources into. What's awesome is that the gaming collection
awesome is that the gaming collection has created a ton of new library members who have now gone on to use other services that the library provides, strengthening the entire branch. Going through their catalog, I was incredibly
impressed not only with the breadth and variety of the collection when it came to the different genres that they were catering toward, but also the different qualities that they were offering. If you have ever wondered just how poor of
a game Lord of the Rings Gollum is, you can come to this branch and check it out without spending a dime. God, that game was so bad. It was great to see complete collections like the entirety of the Dark Souls trilogy. And it was cool to
see that they'd allocated multiple copies for the most popular games like Crimson Desert. When I arrived, I expected most of the titles to be a bit older. However, they had a ton of recent releases like 007 First Light and Star
Fox. The representative I spoke with even told me that right before we started chatting, they had just put in their order for all of the big releases coming out in September. We're about to be flooded with a ton of great games,
and this branch is going to carry most of them. What I loved most, however, was that there were so many games here that I've been interested in, but I've just never pulled the trigger. Titles like Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Gothic
Remake, Metal Gear Solid, Delta: Snake Eater, Mafia: The Old Country, Silent Hill 2 Remake, and Silent Hill F, and of course, Lord Winklebottom Investigates, a point-and-click adventure about a giraffe detective that investigates
murders. Truly, they have something for everyone here. I am someone that suffers from choice paralysis pretty often, especially when I sit down to game. Sometimes I spend more time deciding what I want to play than playing it. And
that is a habit I have wanted to fix for years. The great thing about this catalog is there is still quite a wide variety, but it is also a curated selection. So, I can really see myself utilizing this resource without really
ever having to buy a game again, unless it was something specific that for one reason or another they weren't going to stock. Of course, though, this brings us to the topic of the end of physical games, something that the representative
games, something that the representative of this library stated is going to hurt this aspect of the branch, which is really unfortunate and yet another casualty of our potentially digital only future. They've apparently also gotten
so many calls from people asking whether they are going to carry GTA 6 only for the rep to have to explain to them that the physical version of GTA 6 is not actually a physical version. Now, if you wanted to come check out games at this
branch, you would have to live in the town. However, they do allow memberships for out oftowners for $60 a year. That is cheaper than both the cheapest tiers of Xbox Game Pass and PlayStation Plus.
And that fee gets you access to games across all of the platforms. And games that enter the libraries collection, unlike those subscription services, don't leave the catalog just because of the end of some contractual obligation.
Now, gaming at libraries goes beyond just borrowing consoles and games. So to level up, we got to head to the big city.
York Public Library. New York City has nearly 100 library branches across its five burs, and many of them offer different gaming activities that you can partake in at the library, such as tournaments and modern-day land parties.
And that got me thinking about gaming in a third space. Third spaces are places that you can go that aren't your home, your first space, or your place of work, your second space. Ever since CO, we have seen a rapid decline in third
spaces. That's primarily been driven by the fact that like myself, many people now work remotely. I don't really have a second space. This is where I work every
day on these videos. So, I'm really looking for a second space, not even a third. So, I've got to be honest. Despite it being ungodly muggy here these last few days, it's been nice to get out of the house during work hours
get out of the house during work hours and explore these third spaces. Second spaces. Now, there are other factors that have affected the prevalence of third spaces. One of which is the increase in public surveillance,
something that is becoming a bigger cultural issue by the day. And then of course there's affordability which is the whole reason we are doing cheap week in the first place. It now costs you more money every time you leave the
house than it ever did before. So it's great when you can find a third space great when you can find a third space like the library that doesn't cost you anything. And you can check out video games there which is pretty cool. So if
you haven't already, I think it's about time you got yourself a library card.