Over the extended weekend (plus some extra time off I took), I journeyed out to the Chicago metro area to visit a friend (who lives clear the hell out in the boonies beyond Waukegan).
Anyhow, I convinced him to drive me 40 mins back towards the city so I could check out a game store I'd located in the yellow pages - it was in Mt. Prospect, and was called Games Plus, I believe.
In any event, I was not even remotely prepared for what I saw there. It was a huge store crammed full of products. Hundreds of war / euro / board type games. Thousands of miniatures from several dozen lines. Row after row after row of RPGs.
We were there like 45 min, and I'm still not sure I came close to even seeing everything they had there. I could have probably spent the afternoon browsing, but as my friend hasn't been interested in RPGs in nearly a decade, I didn't want to force him to stay there too long while I was shopping.
I think what got to me the most was how there was so much to look at. New stuff. Old stuff. Mainstream stuff. Indie stuff (including stuff like Bill's Squirrel Attack game, Dread, and a few I didn't even recognize). There were so many things I could have bought, it was hard to decide what to get.
I haven't had that feeling in a game store since I was a kid. Most stores I've been to since the mid-90's have had very little selection, and usually only one or two major lines with a few semi-supported lines - most are little better, or even worse, than the selection at Barnes & Noble. This store had like one of everything (well, not literally everything, but a whole lot of stuff).
I don't know how they afford to do business with that much inventory (easily tens of thousands of dollars on the shelves), but it was excellent. I didn't realize stores like that existed anymore, and was happy to have been proven wrong.
Is this (http://www.games-plus.com/) the place?
Did they have a used section? How was it? I'd love to see the place. Thanks for sharing.
Nice to know. My GF and I have been talking about a trek out to see Chicago anyway. Considering the fact that we're both hardcore gamers I think this attraction will get us more excited than any tourist crap.
Mmm. Games.
-=Grim=-
Quote from: Leo Knight;244322Is this (http://www.games-plus.com/) the place?
Yeah, that looks like the place.
Quote from: walkerp;244326Did they have a used section? How was it? I'd love to see the place. Thanks for sharing.
They did have some used stuff - I didn't remember it having a whole lot of used stuff, but I may not have noticed it either.
That is the place, I just gamed there Wednesday Night.
j - should have let me know you were coming, I would have bought you a beer and we could make fun of the politicians.
Games Plus has spoiled me for years. They used to be a smaller space about 300 yards from the current store - and that was years and years ago. I've been going there for...god...20 years, easy. Best gaming store I've ever been in (though I don't have an extensive list of those to which I've been).
And they do the business because it's a central hub. I'd bet within a month of becoming a gamer in the Chicago Area, you know about Games Plus.
Walker, there's a fairly big used "section" and they have an auction twice a year (I thin it's still twice a year). You sell your stuff for store credit. I have boxes of old miniatures I bought 15 years ago (and, unfortunately, are too small for current scale) that I got for, like, a couple of bucks for a bag.
I'm spoiled...did I say that?
Quote from: James J Skach;244728That is the place, I just gamed there Wednesday Night.
j - should have let me know you were coming, I would have bought you a beer and we could make fun of the politicians.
Games Plus has spoiled me for years. They used to be a smaller space about 300 yards from the current store - and that was years and years ago. I've been going there for...god...20 years, easy. Best gaming store I've ever been in (though I don't have an extensive list of those to which I've been).
And they do the business because it's a central hub. I'd bet within a month of becoming a gamer in the Chicago Area, you know about Games Plus.
Walker, there's a fairly big used "section" and they have an auction twice a year (I thin it's still twice a year). You sell your stuff for store credit. I have boxes of old miniatures I bought 15 years ago (and, unfortunately, are too small for current scale) that I got for, like, a couple of bucks for a bag.
I'm spoiled...did I say that?
Yeah, too bad. The friend I was visiting loves to make fun of politicians, too (we had a lot of fun watching Ted Nugent on one of the cable shows while I was out there).
I am envious that you get to go there frequently. Maybe I will have to move out to Chicago after all, lol.
I think I actually did visit that store when it was back in its old space, back in my college days (circa '97). My friend remembered driving me to that location last time. I don't remember it being that impressive back then, but then the old memory isn't as good as it used to be. :)
Quote from: jgants;244734Yeah, too bad. The friend I was visiting loves to make fun of politicians, too (we had a lot of fun watching Ted Nugent on one of the cable shows while I was out there).
I am envious that you get to go there frequently. Maybe I will have to move out to Chicago after all, lol.
I think I actually did visit that store when it was back in its old space, back in my college days (circa '97). My friend remembered driving me to that location last time. I don't remember it being that impressive back then, but then the old memory isn't as good as it used to be. :)
The thing about the old place was that it wasn't nearly as impressive. I think he had about 2/3 of the stuff (a rough guess) and about 1/2 the space. The old 10 pounds in a 5 pound bag. The gaming space was...limited and...umm...well...not good.
Now he has the retail space and a huge gaming room. On Wednesday night there were two miniatures games, a Dark Heresy game (I think), two D&D games (I know we were playing 3.5, I think the other game was too - with two females!) - one of which (ours) was in a room with a door! - and there were still 2 or 3 large tables/areas left. That's not counting all of the on-site storage where people leave stuff like cases of miniatures and stuff.
And, like we're saying, that's just the playing area. The retail space is pretty darn big (I'm going to guess...hmm...about 2000 sqft total?) and all full of gaming. There's no radio control. There's not model train stuff (except what could be used to supplement gaming). Just anything and everything for gaming.
So, yeah, Bill's stuff (Roma, SA!, etc - I'm still waiting to see the True 20 Roma); I've seen Brett's stuff. Hell, you can even get Ron Edwards stuff there!
I've raved about it here before. The place is truly amazing...
Sorry if this is slightly off-topic from thread....(it really isn't)
Back in the early 1980s, I remember there being a game store in a Mall just south of the DuPage County / Glen Ellyn area. Thats the part of Chicagoland that my Grandmother lived in back then, I remember several trips where my parents would fill the car's gas tank or get the oil changed right before we headed back south for Cincinnati again.
At least two or three of my Classic TRAVELLER books were likely bought at this store. What I vaguely recall it was near a mall entrance/exit and had a brickwall or castle motif around its entrance. They had LOTS of D&D books and TRAVELLER items back then near the front door. This would've been around 1979 to 1984.
Any of you Northern Illinois area folk remember that place?
- Ed C.
All caps AND bold?
You're going to break the internet.
Since we're kind of running far afield, any of you Indy folks got the 411 on a good store? I'm at Washington and Pennsylvania and I don't have to be at the game until late this evening.
A man can be expected to do only so much work in his spare time...
Quote from: Aos;245112All caps AND bold?
You're going to break the internet.
That made me laugh harder that it probably should have.
-=Grim=-
I was in Chicago on business a few weeks ago and having looked the place up online decided to give a visit. Amazing store, tons of games and so MANY wonderful miniatures.