going to Japan next week...

master_d · Jun 28, 2006

just curious if anyone knows of any good used game shops to visit in Japan or perhaps some good imports to pick up while I'm there. If I see some good deals I'll pick up a bunch of games and bring them back with me.. (well as many as they will allow through customs anyway :tickled:

gatsu25 · Jun 28, 2006

Just go to Akihabara. Any game you can think of is there somewhere. As far as good games thats all just preference. Im sure you can find good deals if you look around.

master_d · Jun 28, 2006

I guess what I meant by "good games" was something that I would kick myself for not picking up while in Japan when I had the opporutunity (i.e. rare imports) ... not necessarily a game that is fun to play or anything crazy like that

thanks for the suggestion though I'll definately hit that up while I'm there.

gatsu25 · Jun 28, 2006

I would go for shooters personally. They are easy to play in Japanese, and there are loads of them not realeased in the US/Europe. Many of which are expensive on ebay. As for a game system, I would look for a pc-engine. You can probably pick one up for fairly cheap. Its a great system and there is an endless supply of good games on it.

Good luck and have fun in Japan!

themisterfalcon · Jun 28, 2006

Pick me up a dozen or so candy cabs while you are there :tickled:

Thanks in advance!

Xian Xi · Jun 28, 2006

Grab some KOF coffee.

Draemonorius · Jun 28, 2006

If you can find it cheap, try and get a copy of Radiant Silvergun for Saturn. Not only is it likely the greatest maximalist shooter ever created, it fetches around 180.00 USD in US. I've heard it can be found a lot cheaper in Japan, so that would be a wise investment.

DMC · Jun 28, 2006

If for some reason you find yourself in Gunma prefecture, go to the town of Takasaki. There's a store that all the English-speakers I know refer to as "the Black Box." (Alas, none of us remember what the two kanji on the side of building were.) Mainly because it's a warehouse-sized store that is painted dead black. It's filled with a treasure trove of Japanese pop-culture and game-related items. Literally hundreds of games and accessories for just about any system you can imagine at ridiculously good prices. I remember the first time I was there I picked up an old-style AES stick in good condition for about 7USD, as well as a sealed color Wonderswan and 6 games for about 20USD.

So, yeah, if you can make your way out there, you'll find some deal or another worth your while.

werejag · Jun 28, 2006

dubdubdub said:
Pick me up a dozen or so candy cabs while you are there

Thanks in advance!

can I add 1 candy cab to the order? thanks

Dash no Chris · Jun 28, 2006

gatsu25 said:
Just go to Akihabara.

A fairly general, straightforward recommendation from me: when buying new releases in Japan, buy them with a Visa or Mastercard at the larger chain stores (Laox, Sofmap, Tsutaya, etc.) and save your cash for the rarities and used games in the privately-owned game shops. Typically, the smaller shops are cash-only operations, so you'll want to have most of your cash available for them; the chain shops tend to accept credit cards more readily. I've also noticed that Sofmap will often clearance-price some of the newer releases after they've been out for a few months -- this is especially true of boxed limited editions of certain games, as Sofmap is trying to free up space for new arrivals by clearing out the old stock. A good opportunity to save some money on some of the newish stuff.

Here's some links to previous discussions/recommendations for game-shopping in Japan (particularly in Akihabara):

12/15/2005 neofriky's trip to tokyo thread
01/05/2004 The Chief's pcb shops in tokyo thread
03/28/2005 Bobak's super potato thread
12/03/2003 tsukaesugi's best arcade in the world thread

--Chris

tbogard99 · Jun 28, 2006

As far as rare stuff goes I would not expect to much. I was there for a week in 2003 and a lot of those shops know what they have and charge accordingly to current market value (in some cases much higher). Anyway have a great time! :buttrock:

aria · Jun 28, 2006

Dash no Chris said:
A fairly general, straightforward recommendation from me: when buying new releases in Japan, buy them with a Visa or Mastercard at the larger chain stores (Laox, Sofmap, Tsutaya, etc.) and save your cash for the rarities and used games in the privately-owned game shops. Typically, the smaller shops are cash-only operations, so you'll want to have most of your cash available for them; the chain shops tend to accept credit cards more readily. I've also noticed that Sofmap will often clearance-price some of the newer releases after they've been out for a few months -- this is especially true of boxed limited editions of certain games, as Sofmap is trying to free up space for new arrivals by clearing out the old stock. A good opportunity to save some money on some of the newish stuff.

Here's some links to previous discussions/recommendations for game-shopping in Japan (particularly in Akihabara):

12/15/2005 neofriky's trip to tokyo thread
01/05/2004 The Chief's pcb shops in tokyo thread
03/28/2005 Bobak's super potato thread
12/03/2003 tsukaesugi's best arcade in the world thread

--Chris

thank you, it bears repeating, THANK YOU for taking the time to look those up and throw them in the thread. I was about to myself.

Read those threads, master_d. I highly recommend SuperPotato and the Traders (there are multiple with different specialties) that handles old games. They're both off the main drag and in the alleys cramed with stores. There should still be an active picture of superpotato (and a link to it) on my old thread.

tsukaesugi · Jun 28, 2006

The best arcade in the world closed down about two years ago, which was (is) a damn shame.

Trader 2 disappeared for awhile, only to open up again in a bigger building across the street from the old location. I was glad to see them come back, I thought they were gone for good. Unfortunately, their used game section is no bigger than it was when they were in the smaller store - most of the new place is devoted to next gen and PC games.

One more game-buying tip:

Check out the used game / CD / DVD stores like Book Off, Geo, and Dorama scattered throughout the city. They often have Saturn and PSone titles for much much cheaper than you'd pay in Akihabara.

Technos · Jun 28, 2006

Sweet man, I'm going in August.

A friend of mine is living there currently, and he says that a place called Mandarake Galaxy is the tops of the pops for all things gaming, manga, etc. He has also been to Potato and Traders, says Traders is a bit steep on prices. All these joints are in Tokyo, which doesn't help much but its a start, right?

-Tech

master_d · Jun 29, 2006

wow lots of good info here guys thanks alot.... I will definately check out as many places as I can in akihabara and hopefully I can make it over to Osaka as well. If I happen to stumble upon something really cool I'll post pics. I'll be in Japan till July 26th so I should have ample time to check out alot of these shops. I'm thinkin' of bringing an empty suitcase in case I get carried away over there but I doubt I'll find that many good deals

Pick me up a dozen or so candy cabs while you are there

Thanks in advance!

sure I'll load em up in a row boat and give em a gentle push towards the American mainland

going to Japan next week...

master_d

n00b

gatsu25

Galford's Armourer

master_d

n00b

gatsu25

Galford's Armourer

themisterfalcon

Buriki-One Fight Promoter

Xian Xi

JammaNationX,

Draemonorius

n00b

DMC

n00b

werejag

Galford's Poppy Trainer

Dash no Chris

Jaguar Ninja,

tbogard99

New Challenger

aria

Former Moderator

tsukaesugi

Holy shit, it's a ninja!,

Technos

Super Spy Agent

master_d

n00b