Ha v old thread, but remember most of these. Computerama I got BBC games, Silica i got a couple of Gfx cards (Voodoo?!), Solidisk my first custom PC (Pentium with EDO RAM), and lots of games from EB (and whatever it was before??) and HMV.
Any memories of the old shops we used to visit?
- Thread starter GGizmo
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Speccy years it would have been most high street shops, Boots, WHSmiths, Woolworths etc.
When I moved over the Megadrive/SNES, I tended to frequent Raven Games in Bromley also there was a small independent game shop in Epsom indoor market, run by a very nice lady, both great for second hand games and imports.
When I moved over the Megadrive/SNES, I tended to frequent Raven Games in Bromley also there was a small independent game shop in Epsom indoor market, run by a very nice lady, both great for second hand games and imports.
I remember in Cardiff back in the 90's there used to be a game store called Live Wire. It was upstairs in the Arcade that used to be above where Poundland and Sports Direct is now on Queen St. They used to stock import games and consoles like the Neo Geo, 3DO, and various other as well as import games for the SNES and Mega Drive and the import cartridges from Datel. It was a fun store and loved visiting it most saturdays
Man of Honour
At the main road where I live there used to be a shop called Novatec. It was the Blockbuster of videogames, they had all the consoles of the 90s and early 2000s until the owner tookall the money and ran off abroad 
You could hire out the latest games for as little as 50p and for up to a week IN the store they had banks of #TVTOOHIGH connected to consoles and beanbags and couches in the middle where you could sit and play for 30p or so.
Needless to say much of my time was spent there until the vanishing
You could hire out the latest games for as little as 50p and for up to a week IN the store they had banks of #TVTOOHIGH connected to consoles and beanbags and couches in the middle where you could sit and play for 30p or so.
Needless to say much of my time was spent there until the vanishing
Soldato
Gamestation I miss, always loved looking at their "retro" display cases, managed to grab Lylat Wars from them before they disappeared.
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Associate
Electronic Boutique in the Bon Accord centre in Aberdeen was the main shop I remember going to for Megadrive games when I was young.
As a teenager and older a small independent shop called Solid Gold games was my first place I remember being able to trade games. Owner and other staff were very friendly with multiple consoles setup to demo stuff.
As a teenager and older a small independent shop called Solid Gold games was my first place I remember being able to trade games. Owner and other staff were very friendly with multiple consoles setup to demo stuff.
Electronic Boutique and Game at Meadowhall in the early-mid 90s were a highlight. There was also a shop close to game I think (maybe next door) called 'The gadget shop' which had lots of cool stuff for that time. Things like those electro static balls spy equipment like mini cameras and sound listening devices.
Those shops followed by a McDonalds, then the big arcade (Namco arcade I think it was - Namco Wonderpark) Ridge racer full size car with mind blowing and cinema in the 'Oasis' area where there used to be something like 8 x 8 big CRT TVs linked together showing sports, sometimes films and MTV
Incredible times as a ~10 year old child with my friends in and around 1994
Those shops followed by a McDonalds, then the big arcade (Namco arcade I think it was - Namco Wonderpark) Ridge racer full size car with mind blowing and cinema in the 'Oasis' area where there used to be something like 8 x 8 big CRT TVs linked together showing sports, sometimes films and MTV
Incredible times as a ~10 year old child with my friends in and around 1994
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Soldato
Yoyotech on Windmill Street, Fitzrovia (just off Tottenham Court Road). Has been closed for years now, but they’re still around online building Esports PCs.
I guess the growth of online retailers undercutting them did their legs in the end.
Always had a good stock of high-end components and staff that knew stuff. Despite being an hour away from me, they saved my bacon several times when something died (usually with my help) on a Saturday and Herself or the kids informed my that they needed the PC to do something for Monday morning.
Never, ever have your home built gaming PC as the sole PC in a household.
I guess the growth of online retailers undercutting them did their legs in the end.
Always had a good stock of high-end components and staff that knew stuff. Despite being an hour away from me, they saved my bacon several times when something died (usually with my help) on a Saturday and Herself or the kids informed my that they needed the PC to do something for Monday morning.
Never, ever have your home built gaming PC as the sole PC in a household.
In Bath we used to have Electronics Boutique, death later became game of course and his moved about quite a few times. It's now in House of Fraser.
HMV used to have a big game section downstairs as well. From what I recall this was around late 90s early noughties.
Then there was games exchange which went through a lot of rebranding over the years. It was there I sort of randomly picked a PlayStation game called breath of fire 3 which became one of my favourite ever RPGs.
Was an independent in my current town which I got my PS3 from but it closed down. I recall WHSMITHS used to have a fair few pc games and also recall visiting pc world when they used to stock lots of games. One trip there after Xmas I recall getting Quake 3, Janes USAF and Wargasm.
Oh and I recall a trip to peak Toys'r'us in 1997, pain £20 for a memory card for my PlayStation.
HMV used to have a big game section downstairs as well. From what I recall this was around late 90s early noughties.
Then there was games exchange which went through a lot of rebranding over the years. It was there I sort of randomly picked a PlayStation game called breath of fire 3 which became one of my favourite ever RPGs.
Was an independent in my current town which I got my PS3 from but it closed down. I recall WHSMITHS used to have a fair few pc games and also recall visiting pc world when they used to stock lots of games. One trip there after Xmas I recall getting Quake 3, Janes USAF and Wargasm.
Oh and I recall a trip to peak Toys'r'us in 1997, pain £20 for a memory card for my PlayStation.
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Soldato
little revival, was just talking to my mate today about Silica. There was a branch in Sidcup where I got my first computer.
Soldato
doncaster market for my c64 games, My beautiful step mum would take me there for a treat, and the newsagents between my middle school and the bus stop home for my mags, no idea how I paid for my Mags though, considering I was buying complete spiderman comic, and white dwarf at the time too!
Soldato
I did my work experience in WH Smiths in Brighton when I was 15 in 1985. Worked in a few departments, including the Music store, Books but best of all, Computer games. They gave me three games to keep after the week ended. I can only recall getting Give my Regards to Broad Street game for ZX Spectrum, which we pretty bad. Not sure what the other two were.
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Growing up in Sheffield with a C64, the ONLY place to go on a Saturday morning was Just Micro on Carver street, the original home of Gremlin Graphics. They used to have early demos of upcoming projects. Was such a welcoming and fun place to be.
Micro fun at Hillsborough was also great, and used to stock less mainstream stuff, and would take specific orders.
Electronics Boutique also became a must visit, from where I bought the Action Replay cartridge.
Used to regularly buy Cassettes from WHSmith's and Boots for my ahem, backups.
Looking back, with the cheap bus fare at the time (2p !!), I used to travel all over the city for my gaming fix.
Once I had my Amiga, it was EB, Game, and a Virgin branded shop. And a company called Gemsoft right in the centre for repairs and hardware.
Micro fun at Hillsborough was also great, and used to stock less mainstream stuff, and would take specific orders.
Electronics Boutique also became a must visit, from where I bought the Action Replay cartridge.
Used to regularly buy Cassettes from WHSmith's and Boots for my ahem, backups.
Looking back, with the cheap bus fare at the time (2p !!), I used to travel all over the city for my gaming fix.
Once I had my Amiga, it was EB, Game, and a Virgin branded shop. And a company called Gemsoft right in the centre for repairs and hardware.
Soldato
In Wigan i remember looking in the regular shops including John Menzies which I haven't seen mentioned.
There was also a small independent shop on Jaxon Court that runs from the bus station to hallgate. I think it was solely a secondhand swap shop style thing, this was around 1993/1994 at a guess and Megadrive games etc.
There was also a small independent shop on Jaxon Court that runs from the bus station to hallgate. I think it was solely a secondhand swap shop style thing, this was around 1993/1994 at a guess and Megadrive games etc.
Soldato
My main haunt was an independent called MicroMania in Blackheath that my parents would deposit me in while they went shopping 
In hindsight I most likely drove the people in the shop mad with how enthusiastic I was about games and computers while also being utterly oblivious to social etiquettes :/
So many great memories of that place
In hindsight I most likely drove the people in the shop mad with how enthusiastic I was about games and computers while also being utterly oblivious to social etiquettes :/
So many great memories of that place