The Good Video Game Store Thread

[RetroRage]

Hyper Sonic Games and Toys
15413 1st Ave. Ct S Suite C 103
Tacoma, WA 98444

A buddy of mine just opened this store near Spanaway Lake.  Great guy, very friendly, fellow collector.  In addition to a somewhat modest selection of games (for now) he also has a pretty large selection of toys in the box, from old school G.I. Joes to Transformers and Star Wars.  If you live in or around the Tacoma area, check it out.  At the very least "like" Hyper Sonic Games on facebook.  Show him some love.

[Atari6600]

R.U. Game

Three locations in the central part of the state and a HUGE selection of all kinds of retro games AND systems and accessories (some accessories).  Including Famicom and Super Famicom games.  Among Genesis, Game Gear, NES, Super Nintendo and Game Boy they carry about 5% of modern games and the remaining 95% is all retro.

There are, however, some of the rarer systems like Atari and Neo Geo that they don't have, but what they DO have is inspected for quality.  If a game doesn't work they will exchange it without question.  And they offer a Lifetime Member Discount of 15% off on anything in the store for people who sign up for it.

Location 1:
2780 E. Fowler Ave.
Tampa, FL 33612

Location 2:
306 Brandon Town Center Mall
Brandon, FL 33511

(Located in the Brandon Town Center Mall itself.  You'd need the actual mall's address)

Location 3:
5186 Southwest 34th St.
Gainsville, FL 32608

[smith45885]

I'll put my local store on here.. It has good points and bad points.

Gamearama in Celina, Ohio

Pros: Tons and Tons and Tons of stuff.  He has truckloads.  Had a Bubble Bobble 2 CIB.  Has a lot of rare titles.  If you are looking for a movie he will have it.

The cons: he has tons and tons and tons of stuff.  So much stuff his inventory is awful.   Prices can be steep.  Writes prices with sharpie on carts.

Definitely worth stopping in.  You could spend a whole day searching and digging.  But, you should know what you're getting into.

[GamingGuru]

Gamedeals Video Games
407 Columbia St.
New Westminster, BC, Canada

Cool store with lots of retro consoles and games, from coleco and Atari up to current stuff.  Fair prices and great staf

Hear good things about it want to visit i live like 4 hours away.

[russlyman]

Retro Games Plus
1761 Post Road E
Westport, CT 06880
203-955-1090

AND

350 Boston Post Rd
Orange, CT 06477
203-553-9330

shamless plug since I now work here. ha

[MaterialHandlerMike]

I know myself and all the other gamers in my neck of the woods are grateful for Crabmaster2000, and his brick and mortar store:

Game Quest
423 Dominion st.
Prince George, B.C.
Canada

Crabby is so nice and such a wicked guy in general, that he makes his store a great place to chill out and play games in.

He really filled in a void in our town that many, myself included, are happy about.

[techwizard]

crabby should put up RFGeneration signs or a stack of cards with the site address at least in his store! spread the word

[MaterialHandlerMike]

lol He fits it into conversation when applicable.

[Sauza12]

lol He fits it into conversation when applicable.

What we need is ham fisted mentions of RF Gen.  "Oh, I see you're interested in Nintendo 64.  Go to RFGeneration.com, the classic and modern video game database.  Can I interest you in a used controller as well?"

[SirPsycho]

lol He fits it into conversation when applicable.

What we need is ham fisted mentions of RF Gen.  "Oh, I see you're interested in Nintendo 64.  Go to RFGeneration.com, the classic and modern video game database.  Can I interest you in a used controller as well?"

[ggallegos1]

I second Retro Games Plus. Visited both locations and the prices for everything are fair. The staff love games and will talk to you about whatever you want. They also have some connections for arcade restoration.

About the one in Corpus Christi, TX I was there a lot when I lived there and I have mixed feelings about it. Some games were ok with prices, but the more popular ones were marked up outrageously ($30 for SMB/Duck Hunt) I asked about why they were so expensive and they stated "historical significance". forget that.

[MaterialHandlerMike]

Some games were ok with prices, but the more popular ones were marked up outrageously ($30 for SMB/Duck Hunt) I asked about why they were so expensive and they stated "historical significance". forget that.

By that rationale, E.T. for 2600 should be worth $40 for a loose cart.

[Shepy]

Game On
134 Front St Beaver Dam, WI 53916‎
(920) 885-9525

Small Store but fair prices. Everything from 2600 to Wii. Also has DVD's, D&D Stuff, Friday Night Magic, Etc. Just discovered this place last weekend and really enjoyed going there. I was quite impressed and plan to return for sure. The owner seemed friendly enough but was quite busy with Friday Night Magic so didn't get to talk to him much.

P.S.: They also have a really wicked Neo Geo arcade cab setup for play.

[GamerNick]

R.U. Game

Three locations in the central part of the state and a HUGE selection of all kinds of retro games AND systems and accessories (some accessories).  Including Famicom and Super Famicom games.  Among Genesis, Game Gear, NES, Super Nintendo and Game Boy they carry about 5% of modern games and the remaining 95% is all retro.

There are, however, some of the rarer systems like Atari and Neo Geo that they don't have, but what they DO have is inspected for quality.  If a game doesn't work they will exchange it without question.  And they offer a Lifetime Member Discount of 15% off on anything in the store for people who sign up for it.

Location 1:
2780 E. Fowler Ave.
Tampa, FL 33612

Location 2:
306 Brandon Town Center Mall
Brandon, FL 33511

(Located in the Brandon Town Center Mall itself.  You'd need the actual mall's address)

Location 3:
5186 Southwest 34th St.
Gainsville, FL 32608

Used to go to the Gainsville store quite a bit when I lived in Gainsville, I liked it a lot but there prices can be a little high but they do have a lot of goodies there, except I wasn't about the pay $50.00 for a CIB Taboo the Sixth Sense on NES.  But they were just getting ready to open the store in Tampa so sadly I didn't get to go to the other stores before I had to move back to frigid Iowa, still hope to move back to Florida someday just not Gainsville.  More like Orlando or Melbourne/Titusville Area.

[gbpxl]

8 Bit Game World - Crossroads Mall, St Cloud MN

Didn't know whether to classify it as "good" or "bad." One time I went and talked to the clerk for about 20 minutes. Really cool guy. Next time I went it was someone else who didn't seem as friendly/sociable. Poor selection of games. It's a lot of sports games and a lot of filler. The few good games they have are very expensive. They had Super Metroid priced at $80 and were able to sell 3 copies. Hey, good for them, I'm just not willing to pay that much when I can get it on eBay for $50.

LGS Electronics - St Cloud MN

Opposite problem here. Great selection of games, although mostly on newer titles. The prices are very reasonable. The last time I went, one of the clerks was talking about using a paintball gun on anyone that tried to steal their games. That kind of turned me off. Since they double as a pawn shop, you get a lot of shady customers in there, selling their phones (probably stolen). That's a big reason I don't like to go there. I go there if I am very desperate and don't want to wait on something to come in the mail.