Just in case you’re not aware, that’s one of a couple ways to find out who’s selling retro video games wherever you might be in the world, using Google Maps. If you want to make sure you don’t get board game/card game stores, try “video game stores near me”.
Once you do that, you’ll probably see at least one or more mom and pop locations and maybe a smaller chain of stores depending where you live. I do this whenever I travel, and this weekend I went from Philly to Indianapolis for the Indy 500, but shopped for retro games along the way, coming up with a healthy bunch of additions to my already large collection.
Half the fun for me though, is finding the stores and seeing what they have and in what condition. I even enjoy seeing how they sell their games! Prices on everything? Do they haggle? Do they have imports? Big selection? You never know… until you (hopefully) consult this thread along with Google Maps and Google Reviews.
I hope other people post stuff. I’d like to see evaluation of places anywhere and everywhere… so to start, here’s where I was this weekend…
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Warp Zone - Video Games and Beyond in Hilliard, OH
I’ve been coming back to Warp Zone every year since I first visited before the pandemic. They have a unique selection of rare games and imports in addition to a lot of standards. It’s not massively stocked, but I almost always buy games here because I see things I don’t see anywhere else. Everything priced. Prices are reasonable. Games usually in excellent condition. -
Play It! - Games, Movies & Music in Hilliard, OH
First time for this one. It’s a three store chain in the Columbus area. They have prices on everything, some friendly dudes were working, and there was a reasonable amount of games I don’t always see. They also have a lot of common stuff. Prices were in line with expectations. Definitely not a ton of mint quality, but still could probably find something you want here. -
Vacuums and Video Games in Huber Heights, OH
This place blew me away! I bought an absolutely MINT Dragon’s Fury for Sega Genesis and they had more minty games in stock for a lot of systems. They have a very broad selection of pricey stuff that absolutely knocked my socks off. If I had come in there expecting to spend $1000, I could have done it. The selection was mostly domestic too, but some good oddities as well. And they sell vacuums and vacuum accessories! Don’t be a slob! -
Hot Spot Toys & Collectibles in Brownsburg, IN
I was disappointed in this place for video games. I’ve been here a few times now and games are just not their priority, which is fine. If you want toys though, holy smoke… they have stuff. Prices seem competitive too. -
The Exchange in Castleton part of Indianapolis, IN
They have more locations and they are all the same in their set up. It’s a nice store, with a good selection, reasonable prices, and seemingly nice employees. It feels corporate even though it’s a local chain. Inventory always looks really good though. It’s hit or miss though if you’ll find something you want. Prices visible. -
Disc Replay in Castleton part of Indianapolis, IN and Avon, IN
I visited both these stores and Disc Replay is like one step above a pawn shop in how it feels inside, BUT you can often find some really good weird stuff at these places. You just have to really look for it. If you’re not in the mood to make them get stuff out of glass cases though, don’t bother. Stuff is priced but hard to see sometimes. -
IRONBLAST’s Game Zone - Washington, PA
Very cool LARGE store that has a ton of product. Everything is priced and there’s a range of quality but a lot of it is very good to great. Had a Vectrex in stock so you can imagine the inventory is broad. They also have an arcade that’s $10 for a day with some good old stuff and a number of pinball machines. This was a big surprise for me since I think they moved since the last time I visited and it got a lot larger and more comfortable to shop in. The mall it’s in is dead, but this place was very much alive. -
Pixel Heart Games in Ohio Valley Mall St. Clairesville, OH
Looked like a new store and as such product offering was low. Prices on everything. Did see some stuff I considered, but overall I would have this lower on my list to visit again. That said, since it’s new, sometimes it just takes awhile to build up inventory. I’ll probably give them another chance in a year if they’re still there.
I had three more places on my agenda but all were closed on Memorial Day. I was told to try one of them from a guy at Vacuums and Video Games… that store was Champion City in Springfield, OH. I also went by Nightmares and Video Games also in Springfield. Just looking through the window, I could see I need to come back. I will hit them both up next year. I also went by a place in Wheeling, West Virginia called Big Retro Game Shop and again, I was disappointed they weren’t open because it looked very cool.
I’ll add more to this thread as I have time and make my usual summer trips to various places. Expect some reviews of stores in New Jersey, more in Ohio, lots in PA including my favorite local haunts, as well as the Pocono Mountain area since we have a vacation scheduled there and I went to a couple really cool places in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area in the past.
If you use Google Maps for reviews, you can find all my reviews of a lot of these places on there. I’m just “Dave Long”. Hopefully some other folks can chime in with places near them or places they’ve been!