The Game Shops of Japan (Warning: Lots of pics)

6 years ago I made a thread showing the game shops of Japan which can be found here:
http://www.racketboy.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=13516

In 2011 I made this video of me driving around North Eastern Japan going to different game shops. I am kind of embarrassed (you'll see why) to show it but screw it, I'll leave it up. It's over 2 hours long and very boring but if you're looking to cure your insomnia, then watch it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YtLtazc9SE

I thought I would make a new one. There really is no order to these pictures,
so I apologize how disorganized it seems. I did put some comments above some pictures.

If you would like any more info of any of the pictures, just post a comment and I will try
to reply in a timely manner. Thanks for looking and enjoy.

I do a lot of driving in Japan and the shops pictured here are in the following prefectures:
Aomori
Akita
Iwate
Miyagi
Yamagata
Niigata
Fukushima
Ishikawa
Fukui
Toyama

And finally Tokyo (Super Potato Ikebukuro).



Since I started doing this back in 2008 I noticed a trend that many stores have stopped selling retro games. Major chains like Geo and Second Street used to have huge selections of retro and new games. Geo has pretty much stopped selling retro games and Second Street seems to have stopped selling games altogether, save for a few locations. BOOK OFF also used to be a great place to find good deals but now BOOK OFF has also seemed to give up on retro. Finding hole-in-the-wall mom n pop shops is a challenge because many of them cannot be found online and I have to do digging and asking. My wife told me to just go door-to-door (American Pickers style) in small towns with a lot of elderly whose grown children have left their childhood toys and games in the attic. I will try this starting in 2015.

I go to Japan 3 to 4 times a year. It's usually like this, arrive at Narita, take a bullet train or flight to either Ishikawa, Aomori, or Miyagi where I have a car to use and just hit the road.

In this thread you will only see game stores. I don't only buy and sell games, but I don't think anyone here would be interested in the other stuff I buy and sell such as Japanese fishing reels, watches, antiques, car parts picked from junkyards, etc etc.


These pictures were taken between June 2010 to July 2014.


Most of the mega stores look like this. They are usually called "takara shops" which means "treasure". They sell pretty much anything. Video games, clothing, CDs, DVDs, toys, porn, sex toys, musical instruments, books, manga, snacks, air soft guns, yeah, pretty much everything. They are usually open 24 hours and are full of families during the day, and the 'bad' kids at night. They all have the same slogan "OTAKARA HAKKEN" which means "Discover treasure". And over the years I have found plenty of treasure at these places. They even have a couple of items priced VERY cheap, buried under all the regular priced stuff. This is how I scored by SuperGrafx. It was CIB for 500 yen ($5USD).





This one is in Tagajo, Miyagi Prefecture. It was flooded by the 2011 tsunami and it took them a year to re-open. It used to be one of my favorite takara shops because they sold PC Engine and N64 goods a really good prices. Since the tsunami they have pretty much eliminated most of their retro games.














This Famicom game costs 800 bucks. Yeah, forget it.











This is one of those hole-in-the-wall recycle shops that are hard to find. This one, in Iwanuma Miyagi Pref, usually has a good selection of Famicom and Super Famicom goods. I was denied when I asked if I could take photos. Sorry.




Book Market/A-Too used to be one of the best places to buy retro games, but recently it seems they have tripled their prices. I don't really go to these anymore.
















I love these bargain bins. You see them at non-game centric recycle shops. They are usually full of sports or shitty games but there are always 2 or 3 hidden treasures in them.






















A US Nomad (Nomad was never released in Japan) for 9800 yen.




This bookstore had Recca in their glass case.











Some AES titles fetch for a premium.

The Touhou section.






That SFC Jr is severely overpriced!









I am sure a lot of you have heard of Hard Off. Hard Off really is hit-or-miss. Some stores have items at really good prices, others are overpriced to hell. There really is no consistent pricing between Hard Off stores.

This PUCK MAN has been sitting in this store for at least 2 years. It's there every time I come here.






CARS for PSP (middle row, right) in Japan is worth some serious money. I have no idea why. The US version is worthless.









Every takara shop always has a huge Hatsune Miku section. She is a fad that won't die any time soon.

This hole-in-the-wall shop in the middle of nowhere in Aomori is a cramped mess of bliss.


Here is inside:














They just have random games littered about.








END OF HOLE





I spy an NES cart.

Most places have a TV set up so you can play games. You can't test out games that are for sale, you can only play what they have out for you.

Jr high kids battling Super Smash Bros on GameCube (Sonic stage)







Always in the back, by the old games you see these entrances.



Apparently the US-only gold DS3 is big among PS3 gamers.







Famicom lots, just over 5 bucks a pop.








Yes, that Hatsune Miku Vita is $600...which is actually cheap.

CIB Famicom games







CIB Master System













This is a "1000-yen gatcha" These are common in the huge takara shops. I always use these. You put a 1000 yen bill ($10 USD) in and a capsule comes out.
Inside the capsule there is a coupon for 1,100 yen off any game purchase. So right off the bat you get 100 yen off. You don't lost anything.
You can also 'win' coupons for 1500, 2000, 3000, and 5000 yen off. I never got 5000 but I got 3000 once and 1500 a couple of times.
This is how I got my used JP Xbox 360 Slim for 50 bucks. Careful because some shops have a 3 coupon or 5 coupon limit. This store has no limit.
You can see polaroid pictures taped to the machine of people who won the 5000 yen coupon.









A lot of these takara shops like to decorate with American flags.












CAshiers hate me.



This antique shop is really cool. It's way out far in the middle of nowhere but the selection is good. You can see the game section in the back.


























Below the TV are bunch of CIB Famicom games. This guy was playing Super Mario USA for a very long time.
I browsed the store, then returned hoping he would be gone, only to find him still there. This guy was playing a long time.







Those NGPCs are a bit overpriced. Double the usual price, maybe they're getting popular again?

US SNES (They were asking $100USD)




It's much cheaper to buy games buy the buttload.





Akihabara Price: 9,800 yen (Just shy of $100 USD)



Countryside price: 525 yen ($5.21 USD)

This is Super Potato Ikebukuro. Most people only know the SP in Akihabara but there are actually two SP stores in Tokyo.
This is the Ikebukuro location. The Akihabara is all about quantity and high prices, the Ikebukuro store is about quality and cheaper prices.
While the Akihabara location is always full of foreign tourists , this location is almost always empty.
The reason why this one is cheaper is because it's smaller so they don't have the overhead of the bigger Akihabara location and there are no tourists here so they charge 'local' prices.
But make no mistake, this is still Tokyo and Tokyo is expensive compared to the countryside. If you can only go to Tokyo, avoid the Akiba SP and check out Ikebukuro.
It's kind of hard to find the first time, so keep an eye out on the side alleys of Ikebukuro's Sunshine district.


























It's always empty like this. I don't know how they stay in business.








My wife and I went to an onsen hotel which is basically a hotel with hot springs. They usually have recreation areas in the basement.
Some have really old arcade cabs or just a console hooked up to a TV. This one had a Super Famicom with a couple of games.




CRTs by the roadside.




My lastest trip to Japan (July 2014) ended with me relaxing at Yokohama stadium with some friends, cheering on Japan's worst baseball team...the Yokohama Baystars.

Thanks for these pics. So cool. These make me jealous; the only retro shop I can find near me is small and overpriced as hell!

Thoroughly enjoyed reading through this. It was a sensory overload of awesomeness! Hope to get out to Japan one day myself

Thanks for sharing. Awesome pics.

"Lots of pics" isn't sufficient for describing what's in this thread.

Oh man, I can't wait to visit Japan next summer. Thanks for the photos. I'll make sure to bring an empty suitcase with me and eventually wear my only pair of pants inside out ;p

AES Slugs....sun faded to hell.

Such an amazing pictorial tour. Can't thank you enough for sharing this.

Thanks for sharing, its a nice insight to shops over there.

thanks for sharing the amazing pics! i ve only been to game shops in akiba, so its great to see what else is out there. getting me hype for my trip out to tokyo in december

damn... Recca for "only" $160

Love this. Thanks for posting. I'm honestly not sure I could even handle going into these store, so many things to look at that I'd want I would probably empty my entire bank account. I do wonder what Japanese gamers would think of game stores in the U.S., considering most have about 1/100th (if that) of the inventory these shops have.

Amazing, i like how its all is displayed so neatly. Makes it all look like nos.

Great pics, I found something similar between Kyoto and Osaka.
And yes, was a real bargain respect Akihabara, I bought a complete sufami for 1.000 yen, Real Bout 2 and SSIV for 5.800 yen each one.
I'll be back in September, hope to find some "takara" again

That's almost overwhelming how much there is in some of those shops. Seeing all those AES games for sale is funny, because what few retro game shops there are around here they might have one or two games if your lucky for a crazy premium.

Thank you so much for sharing Hashi, great pic tour!! this thread DELIVERS!!!!

Wow! Many thanks for posting these pics and info. Wish I could go shopping at these places some day.

Thanks for sharing. Great pics.