So where *do* you go for good games these days?

[jducoeur]

I'm trying to find a copy of Dominion: Prosperity. Three Trolls is my obvious first choice, but they're currently out of stock. And it occurs to me that I no longer have the slightest clue where else to look. Danger Planet went out of business a while ago, and Your Move appears to have died when I wasn't looking. GPP sometimes works, but it's a hassle to get to Harvard Square and they don't always have what I'm looking for.

So I put it to my game-geekily-inclined friends: what are the good game stores these days? Surely there are several I don't know about. Are there any other decent ones out in the 'burbs, as a backup for Three Trolls? (And if you know one that has Prosperity in stock, I'm particularly interested.)

Comments

[nomadmwe.livejournal.com]

Pandemonium has recently revamped their board game selection, I think. Though if Harvard Square's annoying to get to, I don't know if Central's any better.

Sadly, I don't know of any good game stores in the 'burbs.

[jducoeur]

Hmm. Pandemonium is at least slightly better, in that I *do* go to Central Square semi-often for dinner. (Pre-dance practice. For instance, this week dance practice is going out to Phoenix Landing for supper.) It's a few blocks away from where I usually am, but not the other end of the world.

Thanks -- I've never really thought of them for games, but I haven't gotten there much since they moved...

[etherial.livejournal.com]

You could also try Myriad Games in tax-free Salem/Manchester NH.

[jducoeur]

Hmm -- half an hour north. A bit of a haul, but still easier than trying to park in Harvard Square. Thanks!

[hungrytiger]

Pandemonium does have a fair selection of games in their basement game space. Their new location in Central Square also has some parking behind their building (availability is still iffy of course). I'd recommend calling first if you're looking for something specific though.

If it was time-sensitive, I could always go over to Games People Play (which is still in Harvard Square) and pick something up for you.

[jducoeur]

Thanks, but no crisis. This was really more a matter of not knowing what the options were any more...

[pulito.livejournal.com]

Mine came from TJs COllectibles in Milford. Dunno if they have more in stock... got it the day it came out, I think.

[jducoeur]

Hmm. Intriguing, but Milford is a pretty serious haul from up here. Worth my knowing about, though -- thanks...

[mindways]

Only other brick-and-mortar place I buy games these days is Pandemonium. I've bought from Games People Play a handful of times in the past, but am not fond enough of the store to support it by paying MSRP.

However, I suspect *most* places are out of stock right now. My usual online-buying places certainly are. They do reference another shipment in late October, though; if that's true, then the logjam ought to start clearing then.

[jducoeur]

Oh, sure. This post was occasioned by my pestering 3T yet again, because I'm waiting for the new printing to come in. But it occurred to me that, if it *was* available somewhere else, I no longer have any idea where, and that's a change. My backup used to be Danger Planet; when that went away, it was Your Move. Now, it sounds like Pandemonium, although I may check out this place up in Manchester...

[meranthi.livejournal.com]

Pandemonium bought out Your Move, then consodilated to one store, FYR.

[hfcougar.livejournal.com]

I don't know where to buy games either but I'm in Harvard Square all the time.

[jducoeur]

Useful to know -- thanks. Sounds like Pandemonium is a better bet than Games People Play, but we'll see in practice...

[mewilliamson.livejournal.com]

my other standard gaming store is The Whiz in Westborough, but that's because I head to the Worcester area on a fairly regular basis. its rather out of the way if you aren't heading in that direction already.

[jducoeur]

Definitely a ways out of my way, but not horrible if I'm going to Camelot anyway. Thanks!

[pale-chartreuse.livejournal.com]

Pandemonium acquired Your Move within the past year. I think there is still a Somerville store of just games, but the stock has spread to Central Sq. as well. Kind of a sweet story, the owner of YM approached P and asked to be bought out so that he could retire and the store wouldn't die.

Pandemonium's newsletter is available as an LJ feed.

There is also a small place (comics/gaming) in Maynard that I use. Not a lot in stock, but they are good with the special orders. The propriator is called 'Motor'. His gaming room opens when school lets out, and he is probably keeping half of the non-jock schoolboy population of the town out of trouble.

[rosinavs.livejournal.com]

P did buy out YM, then shut it down a little while later. I don't know if there's another game store in Somerville.

[pale-chartreuse.livejournal.com]

Now that I check the YM link, yeah, it's expired.

The Maynard store is Legends Comix and Games. Just outside of the downtown square.

[laurion]

I discovered Legends about a month before I moved out of Maynard. Good comic book store, sub-par game store, in comparison to many others mentioned. Good if you are looking for the recent hot items, though, so Prosperity might be in their small current stock.

[tpau]

pandemonium bought Your Move and drove it into the ground. i buy online.

[mindways]

and drove it into the ground

Well, more like "failed to pull it out of its nosedive".

(It's possible that the staff at YMG had just managed to pull it out of that nosedive - I know some of them were doing really hard work to try and do so - but that that got b0rked up by the takeover. I don't know. But Your Move was definitely having rocky times in the year or two before the buyout.)

[be-well-lowell.livejournal.com]

Three Trolls used to be good at mail-order, I hear...

[aneirin-awenyd.livejournal.com]

Not local to you, but Greenfield Games in W. Mass is run by nice guys and they try to keep the good stuff in stock.

Seamus mostly buys online, though.

Hmm. I may have to give him a little nudge (er, shove) but we have a ton of games to sell at some point...the (five giant moving boxes full that currently live in our walk-in closet)...yikes. But they will all be old, not new.

[cellio]

My local game store (Phantom of the Attic) won't help you, but when Phantom doesn't have what we're looking for we order online, typically via sellers listed at BoardGameGeek.

[aishabintjamil.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure exactly what game this is that you're looking for, but if it has an ISBN, you might try looking on-line. I've had some success picking up out of print gaming materials that way through Amazon.com as used books.

FWIW, Pandemonium is about 3 blocks down from Phoenix Landing, so if you're going there for dinner it would be an easy walk down to check if Pandemonium has it.

I didn't realize there was a game store in Manchester. I'm going to have to check that one out, right after Crown. :-) \

If you do end up trying a road trip to NH, you might also check out the Game Castle in Londonderry (exit 4 off I93) http://www.thegamecastle.com/ (603)-425-7400. A phone call would probably tell you if they have the item without the road trip.

[jducoeur]

Yeah, but I have a fondness for brick-and-mortar stores: there's nothing like getting to poke around the boxes. And I generally like to support good small stores. But yes, online is an option.

But Game Castle is intriguing -- I actually have reason to visit Londonderry sometimes (visiting editx or going to J House), so this is probably worth checking out sometime. Thanks!

[aishabintjamil.livejournal.com]

Jay House is indeed quite nice. I end up grabbing dinner there most weeks when I go over to the Game Castle for a gaming night.

Just tried another Sushi/Korean place in the area which you might also enjoy - Dynamite Sushi in Hudson. www.dynamitesushi.net It's a tiny little place, about the same size as Jay House, but the quality of both Korean and Sushi is very high.

[jducoeur]

Well, we don't get to Londonderry *very* often (mainly when coming home from, eg, Birka). But it's still good to know where the good restaurants are -- thanks!

[laurion]

Agreed. I too am fond of the FLGS (Friendly Local Gaming Store), but the market has mostly shifted to online orders. Which is why we've lost a few of the FLGS's lately. I presumed you knew about the online options, so did not see a need to mention them.

[jducoeur]

Actually, while I know the totally obvious usual online options, I probably don't know what's best for games specifically. So if you've got a favorite or two, I'd be interested to know about them...

[laurion]

Sure. I've been pretty happy with http://www.funagain.com/, http://www.cardhaus.com/, http://www.thoughthammer.com/, and http://www.boardsandbits.com/. Also try http://www.trollandtoad.com/, which a few people have mentioned to me, but I've not yet used myself.

[jducoeur]

Good to know that you like Fun Again Games -- I got onto their mailing list last Arisia, and they're one of the places I've been thinking about ordering from. (And since my mother now lives out in Amherst, I keep meaning to check out their brick-and-mortar store...)

[laurion]

Oh, and to follow up, I (ashamedly) forgot about one of our own, http://www.foambrain.com/ ... Now that Andrew is focusing extensively on physical games at convention retailing, There's a strong chance he'd have a copy, or be willing to order in a copy for you.

[jducoeur]

Actually, that reminds me that I should reply upthread -- Game Castle in NH came through...

[jducoeur]

Game Castle for the win! We decided to stop at Jay House for dinner on the way to Crown Tourney, and stopped into Game Castle next door while we were there. I complimented them on having the last copy I knew of in the region, and bought it...

[selkiechick]

Compleat Strategist is back, on Comm Ave at the western edge of BU. I was in there a few months ago- they were friendly (I didn't even get the "OMG a GIRL..." vibe) and had a lot of games on the shelves, including Monty Python Fluxx (which seemed to be sold out elsewhere). I am thinking of going back around Christmastime to do more shopping.

I checked their website- and they don't have the edition of Dominion you are looking for, but it might be worth a call.

The Compleat Strategist, Boston Mass
957 COMMONWEALTH AVE
BOSTON, MA 02215
617-254-1166
Hours: Monday-Friday - 10:30 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Wednesday - 10:30 a.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Saturday - 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Sunday - 12:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.

[jducoeur]

Intriguing -- I don't get to that neck of the woods as often as I used to, but I do come through there from time to time, and it might be fun to check out on a Saturday. Thanks for the pointer!

[selkiechick]

and there are a *few* places to eat in the area. :)