Game Over? New Vintage Video Game Store Could Revitalize the Industry

Categories: Gaming, Geek
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In fact, Game Over stores often host concerts. Bands like the Mini Bosses that specialize in covers of game music have packed the store full of fans. Currently we're trying to interest Kaelin in Mega Beardo, a musician who has translated the famously spacey and high-paced Mega Man II robot themes into soothing classical guitar arrangements.

A true subculture has grown up around video games. In this warm era where geeks and nerds have become the norm, a place like Game Over thrives. Kaelin's love of that culture is reflected in his employees. Most are survivors of Gamestop and Electronic Boutique who thrive under the freedom and laid-back attitude of Game Over. We're also told they're paid better, and thus care a lot more about what they do than your average counter monkey.

Their excitement is more contagious than that monkey from Outbreak. We had a 30-minute conversation with one employee about Shadowgate, a classic point-and-click adventure game on the NES that, no matter how many times we drop the suggestion into an article (this makes five if you're counting), is never, ever going to be remade, rebooted or even rereleased. Once we'd exhausted that line of conversation, we hesitantly asked if they happened to have a copy of Wild 9 for the original PlayStation.

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Wild 9 was one of the more obscure titles made by Shiny, the people who brought you Earthworm Jim. We'd rented it a few times, loved it, but never were able to finish it. It was one of those Christmas list items that we never got, and now we had it for the price of $8.60.

Something so simple can make you so happy, and at Game Over it can be had fairly cheap. If you're looking for miles of Halo and Portal just waiting to be bought, you're better off headed to Target or Amazon. Like shopping at Half Price Books, going to Game Over isn't about finding what you want, it's about finding what you didn't know you wanted (though unlike Half Price, the inventory is computerized and they can tell you if they have something or can get it from another store).

In the corner of the store is a couch, same one we have at home actually, and as we prepared to leave we found our daughter engrossed watching the Super Mario Bros Super Show and tightly clutching a stuffed Sonic the Hedgehog. Through the wares at Game Over, we realized that it is possible for us to share something that made our childhood a bright, wonderful place exactly as we experienced it. That is priceless.

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1 comments
TTTWLAM
TTTWLAM

I've seen the store, but never would've gone in (the name "Game Over" sounds ominous, and I had visions of a dirty, flea market place) without this article.  Now I'm definitely popping in.  Thank you.

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