AMD and GameFly have announced a deal that promises discounted games for folks using AMD processors. Gamers with machines powered by "select" Athlon II, Phenom II, FX series and A series chips will receive a free 30-day GameFly membership as well as a 20% discount on new PC games through the service's digital store.
Unfortunately, the 600-plus-word press release doesn't say a thing about when the promotion will begin, how you can take advantage of it or precisely who's eligible. Apparently, however, there was room to brag about the FX series making it into the Guinness World Record seven months ago, because that's awfully relevant.
For whatever it's worth, GameFly only lists the US and UK as eligible regions for its rental service, which usually costs $15.95 a month to borrow one game or $22.95 for two. The company's digital component (formerly Direct2Drive, purchased last May), offers most of the major titles you'll find elsewhere, so a 20% discount could prove to be awesome if done right.
For instance, many gamers are afraid to take advantage of the usual 10-20% preorder discount because they prefer waiting until reviews are available. This deal could let such individuals wait without sacrificing savings. Given the lack of details though (especially clarification on what constitutes a "new PC game"), we're reserving our excitement.
Despite gaining about 1% of the processor market in the first quarter, AMD's performance-oriented desktop lineup isn't in the best shape, especially with Ivy Bridge just launching. Bulldozer was a relative disappointment and Llano isn't really geared toward gamers. Nonetheless, there's a case to be made for the company's chips if you approach the subject from a value perspective, and deals like this can only help improve AMD's reputation on this front.
In a similar situation, the company recently responded to Nvidia's flagship GeForce GTX 680 graphics card by slashing prices on its HD 7900 series along with bundling three free games (Dirt Showdown, Nexuiz and Deus Ex: Human Revolution).