Local game stores, Japan style (lots of pics!)

[Low G Man]

very nice pics, smork. I'd love to see a nice mom & pop game store in the states that carried stuff like this.

[Volcanon]

I like how when I'm in Japan I can buy rockman games off yahoo japan for almost nothing, then sell them to stores in akihabara for profitz.

[smork]

Me myself I'm currently trying to get my hands on a Pc-Engine Duo (not R or RX) boxed with a few games (none-simulation games). Oh and I also want an FM Towns Marty with one or two games. I'm not really sure how much I'm willing to pay, it all depends on what's included really But definatly 5000 yen for the consoles only.

I've got a friend in Japan, but I don't know where I can direct him to go. He lives in Kyoto.

I lived in the Osaka/Nara area for a little while and know alot of the stores there. I can probably give some suggestions!

Good luck on the Towns Marty - they almost never pop up in the wild, nor do the games. The Duo might be doable for that given some luck. There's a good A-Too in Kyoto that has a nice selection of games for reasonable prices (sometimes quite cheap depending on what it is). They'd only have a bit of hardware, though.

[Elrinth]

Yeah an FM Towns will probably ultra expensive no matter what I do

But first things first, the PC-Engine!

So, which stores in kyoto/osaka do you know of? I'll tell my friend to read this topic!

[boogiecat]

So - Part 2. Here's where I found some deals. In response to a previous question -- I don't think they like people taking pictures so much, so I try to be fairly sly. This day there was a security guard around me pretty much the whole time I was there -- he didn't seem to be too concerned with me, but it still felt a bit odd to have him nearby all the time. I took these pictures when he moved away, but then he saw me later with my camera around my neck and the lens open (but not taking a picture). He gave me a strange look, but said nothing. Perhaps I am paranoid.

To continue with the photos, here's the Saturn section. I thought it and the DC section had quite nice prices -- thought I didn't get any Sega stuff this time.



As I mentioned in the last post, the system section was the only disorganized part of the games area. It still wasn't too bad, especially compared to Urayasu Kanteidan. Here's a view -- check out the loose Twin Famis (sold as Junk as they had no AC adapters and were untested).



And another view, this one not so disorganized:



Look, up there! 3 PC-FX systems.



I found the prices in the system section to be really nice. There was good and bad condition stuff, and the bad was discounted nicely for condition. I like that as a collector -- get the systems you want in great condition, but if you want a 'player's system', you can get that for a cheap price, too. Like this pic:



2 items in that picture are now in my apartment

But the best part for me, a hardcore NeoGeo collector, was the Neo Pocket section. It was a part of this wall here:



A full 90% of the NeoGeo Pocket systems on this wall looked to be NIB, and CHEAP. It was as if someone dumped a few boxes of new old stock on the store -- which someone probably did, maybe a local retailer.

The Neo Pocket game section was the best of all for me -- as I found a game I was REALLY looking for (and for the past 3 years, too!). It was cheap, and NIB. It's in this group:



Hey, look! It's the last super rare Japanese Neo Pocket game I needed, Pachinko Hisshou Guide Pocket Parlor! I grabbed a ladder, dug through the games on the wall. No, it's 6 Pachinko Hisshou Guide Pocket Parlors! All NIB! This is why I root through these game stores, for the FUN of finding something you're really looking for, up on some wall in the middle of nowhere.

Naturally, I bought all 6. Don't they look nice?

WOW!! Now i know were i would go in Japan first this year(looks like now i'll use my $90,000 budget when i get there!!)!!...Thank you very much for those pics!!

[Breetai]

Does anyone know of any stores like this in Saitama/northern Tokyo, specifically along the Saikyo, Keihin Tohoku or Saitama Railway lines?

[Flashback2012]

I just noticed this thread. I would spend hours...DAYS scouring these stores looking at every single little thing.

[Breetai]

I just noticed this thread. I would spend hours...DAYS scouring these stores looking at every single little thing.

Our usernames have something in common.

[newtype5]

マクロス!
マクロス!
sorry the theme song just popped into my head for, yes, Macross!
hello you two fellow old-skool anime fans!

man, how i miss japan. it's been 8 years since i've been there, but seeing this thread and the wonderful pics brought back so many memories. when my girlfriend went to work i had the pleasure of wandering around tokyo, seeking out cool cd, manga, and game shops. i would spend hours in these tiny cramped shops just wide-eyed and dumb founded at what was before me. i caught myself spinning in circles on more than one occasion because i was in shock and awe at what (literally) surrounded me! and i'm 6'4" so some of those shelves were extra dangerous!
too cool, thanks everyone.

[The 1 2 P]

I just noticed this thread. I would spend hours...DAYS scouring these stores looking at every single little thing.

Ditto. I would love to live in Japan for a few months just for the shopping alone.

[LuxKiller65]

This is the thread made to realise how common many old Japanese games are.



Thank your for the lovely pictures!

[Breetai]

マクロス!
マクロス!
sorry the theme song just popped into my head for, yes, Macross!
hello you two fellow old-skool anime fans!

man, how i miss japan. it's been 10 years since i've been there, but seeing this thread and the wonderful pics brought back so many memories. when my girlfriend went to work i had the pleasure of wandering around tokyo, seeking out cool cd, manga, and game shops. i would spend hours in these tiny cramped shops just wide-eyed and dumb founded at what was before me. i caught myself spinning in circles on more than one occasion because i was in shock and awe at what (literally) surrounded me! and i'm 6'4" so some of those shelves were extra dangerous!
too cool, thanks everyone.

6'4" is pretty call. Did anyone call you "Zentraedi" as you walked by?

[newtype5]

6'4" is pretty call. Did anyone call you "Zentraedi" as you walked by?

no, not once, but that would have been sweet! i did on occasion see a native japanese person that was taller than me. then it was my turn to stare! 0_0

[smork]

Does anyone know of any stores like this in Saitama/northern Tokyo, specifically along the Saikyo, Keihin Tohoku or Saitama Railway lines?

Very very old bump - sorry I do have a list of a few stores but usually these aren't anywhere near train lines. Maybe that's why they have so much stock!

[smork]

So the real reason I bumped this thread is I went to the most ridiculous game store this week. I was taking advantage of our long holiday weekend called Silver Week (actually, I am still taking advantage of it - fun being off on a Friday!) and I went up to Aomori in extreme northern Japan. The purpose of the trip was just the trip - see the countryside and relax - but the last day I did a little poking around at some game stores. I looked at several branches of this game store called Game Souko:

http://www.gamesouko.com/modules/weblog0/

I ended up going to several branches, but this one in Aomori city was the best of the bunch. The prices could be ridiculous, and they could be sublime, but the selection is what kicked me in the nuts. They had EVERYTHING.



Overpriced? Sure. But there were a total of 6 or 7 Hello Kitty LE systems. There were some unboxed PC-FX systems that were super cheap.



That pile of boxed Duos goes several deep.



FFI and FFII LE Wonderswan packs. I've been trying to tell people these are common!



It's not every day you see a boxed Gakken TV Boy. In fact, I don't think i've ever seen one in a store! There's a bunch of cool Epoch and Bandai handhelds, too.



PC-FX? 32X? Sure! I think they had most of the games for PC-FX in stock. They also did have EVERY limited-edition Game Gear in stock (including Rayearth and Coca Cola). Here's some of them:



How about some Panasonic Qs? I counted 5 in the store, two which were boxed.



Here's stuff you don't see everyday (except the SMB/DH, which you do). Cassette Vision, Super Cassette Vision, loose 32X, and I believe EVERY game for the Game Pokecon (I should have snagged those but I don't have a system).



More in part 2!

[smork]

So I decided to play a game. Pick a random system, see if they have it. How about 64DD?



There was a full Randnet kit in a showcase, too. How about 64DD soft?



OK then. What about LE Saturn or non-Hello Kitty LE DC?



Check, and check. (The Tsutaya DC was totally bought) OK, well what about Cassette Vision or Super Cassette Vision hardware? Playdia? I bet they don't have a Bandai Intellivision, eh?



Make that 2 CV systems and 3 Bandai Intellivisions. Sheesh! Wha about crazy handhelds, like a TV Vader?



I didn't buy this because it was unboxed and could have been in better shape. It was way cool, though.

They didn't have any Vectrex that I could find, nor any Creativision, Supervision 8000, Visicom or other obscure pre-Famicom systems. Not surprising, but I was hoping. They did have this cool display Gameboy thing in poor shape.



And of course, the obligatory photo of the alley of Famicom/SFC games.



If by some bizarro chance you were in Aomori I would recommend visiting this store - it's less than a 10 minute walk from Higashi Aomori station. But it's highly unlikely you'll ever be up in that part of Japan as it's really far from anything.

[mobiusclimber]

Oh god how I want that MKR Game Gear... Always so bloody expensive on FeePay.

[smork]

Oh god how I want that MKR Game Gear... Always so bloody expensive on FeePay.

I've already got one so I didn't snag it - if you can read the price it's only 2600 yen, too. There were two of them, no less!

[mobiusclimber]

Yeah I read that, it's what bummed me out so much. That & an N64+DD for 10000 yen. XD

[Nico87]

Seriously, if I ever won like, millions in a lottery, I'd come over and you and me could go to every damn shop in Japan. I'd even give you a $mill to throw around. GOD I NEED TO GO TO JAPAN.