Bought Eberron today...at FLGS!

[SemperJase]

I did it. I went to the newest FLGS in the Denver area (The Forge at Wadsworth and Coal Mine for the locals). He's only been open for three weeks.

Met the owner, Wes. Great guy. And you know what? He was friendly! It's amazing how just a few kinds words will part one from one's money. You see, the last $500 of gaming books I've bought online.

So what makes a good gaming store?

1. Friendly owner/staff.
2. Clean! (the place even SMELLS new).
3. Good selection (his isn't the biggest but it is good).
4. Friendly owner/staff.
5. Place to play. (Already has events scheduled Yu-gi-oh anyone?)
6. Diversification (he also has board and card games).
7. Did I mention friendly owner/staff?

Don't know how many more books I'll buy there. After all, I can get a much better bargain online. But since I'm also a board game junkie I'll still be able to give him some business - along with dice and minis. He was a nice guy but it's a tough business. Hope he makes it.

 

[Najo]

I did it. I went to the newest FLGS in the Denver area (The Forge at Wadsworth and Coal Mine for the locals). He's only been open for three weeks.

Met the owner, Wes. Great guy. And you know what? He was friendly! It's amazing how just a few kinds words will part one from one's money. You see, the last $500 of gaming books I've bought online.

So what makes a good gaming store?

1. Friendly owner/staff.
2. Clean! (the place even SMELLS new).
3. Good selection (his isn't the biggest but it is good).
4. Friendly owner/staff.
5. Place to play. (Already has events scheduled Yu-gi-oh anyone?)
6. Diversification (he also has board and card games).
7. Did I mention friendly owner/staff?

Don't know how many more books I'll buy there. After all, I can get a much better bargain online. But since I'm also a board game junkie I'll still be able to give him some business - along with dice and minis. He was a nice guy but it's a tough business. Hope he makes it.

All those reasons you gave are reasons to buy everything you would buy online there instead. Especially the fact he is running Yugioh events for the kids new to hobby games. Its good stores like that help our hobby grow, and give kids a place to play. Keep giving him as much of your busy as you can, considered it an investment into your community and the gamers who play there.

Great to hear about your good experience!

 

[SemperJase]

All those reasons you gave are reasons to buy everything you would buy online there instead.

I'll certainly buy what I can, but a store isn't a charity. I could have ordered Eberron online and saved $12 by waiting a couple days for it to arrive in the mail. In this case, I decided having it right away was more important (although rather foolish in the long run).

His boardgames are competitive with online retailers though. After shipping charges, they are about the same price and I can get them the day. In many cases, getting them from his store will save money. The FLGS has a competitive advantage in this case. Since I'm a boardgame junkie, I'll still have reasons to go there.

He also has a competitve advantage in TCGs (not that I play those).

Finally, has the advantage in friendliness. It was great to walk into a store and have the attention of someone who was pleasant.

For RPG books, I may buy a softcover (which are not discounted as much online) but WotC and others seem to be putting out less of those.

His events will hopefully help him as well. If your at a Hero Clix event, surely you'll probably buy some more HC mini's while you're there, right?

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

I have two FLGS I visit on a semi-regular basis.

One has this giant friendly cat with a motor engine inside of it; that's the only logical explanation for why it purrs like that. It's a cyborg!

Both are very friendly. One gave me a sour note for a couple of weeks by trying to avoid selling 3.5 rulebooks right when 3.5 came out (they told me they would only order two, and the other place couldn't get the books right away... after trying Amazon I will never order books online unless it's not in the FLGS, even if it is 30% cheaper) but they came around.

 

[SemperJase]

I can understand wanting to support a place that gives good service, but I'm not sure why two places that couldn't and in one case wouldn't get you books rate such loyalty (well there is the cat in the one place).

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

I can understand wanting to support a place that gives good service, but I'm not sure why two places that couldn't and in one case wouldn't get you books rate such loyalty (well there is the cat in the one place).

Sometimes they'll give me a deal, actually. Sometimes. One of the two stores (Grey Regions) always has sales on the first Sunday of each month (20% off) and if I give them an obviously fake story as to why I can't be there that Sunday I can still get 10% off. The other store (Hairy Tarantula) has given me deals for apparently random reasons, and they have occasional sales (but, being the sort of guy who can't bear to keep track of things like that, I've only taken advantage of such sales accidentally). I can flip through books in the store and decide if they're worth buying, instead of having to look at reviews which, quite honestly, rarely tell me what I want to hear. (I've ordered three physical D20 Modern books online recently, and one I'd love to return, but doing so is a pain starting with "I don't know how to do it" and ending with "lack of spine"

In the end, it's still more expensive than Amazon over the long run, however.

It's a carrot approach.

Until recently, I didn't have a credit card. I have one I use now, and did I mention I hate the thing? I only got it because it was time to pay my student loan, and if I didn't get it now I could never have one. And, yeah, I wouldn't care if I never had one except for the massive number of things that require you to have one, starting with D20 Modern PDFs and going on to things like cellphones and ... basically you can't live without one once you move out.

But I still hate the thing. Really really hate it. I don't have to use it at the FLGS. It's a carrot to not have to use that ugly blue thing. (Actually, it's pretty, but I still hate it.)

Second, I already stated I didn't like ordering things online.

Third, it's not Grey Regions' fault that they couldn't get the books on time. I'm not a business expert by any means, but it seems to me they couldn't possibly squeeze more money out of the customer by not having the book on time. They probably lost business to people like me who were too impatient to wait and instead got a friend to order it for them online. (After that annoying experience, I figured I would have to wait one way or another, and it's better to just calll the FLGS every day and ask if they have it yet.)

I mean, come on. They're the little guy. Maybe someone was yanking their chain, or there weren't enough copies around. (Or maybe they had a really good Bluff skill, but whatever, it worked.)

As for Hairy Tarantula (the one that wouldn't order it), I was quite upset with them but then again, they've got that cat, they're nice about everything else, they sold me other 3.5 stuff I'm interested in, they sold me something when I walked into their store 90 minutes after closing time and they even have a massive collection of anime I can actually examine for myself.

I should mention that I don't ask for deals at both stores - they offer me a deal, and I am not their best customer. Not by a stretch. I mean, it's all a "plot" to make me feel good and buy more stuff there, but it works.

And they have a debit card machine, which means I can leave that ugly (well, pretty) blue card at home.

 

[Najo]

I'll certainly buy what I can, but a store isn't a charity. I could have ordered Eberron online and saved $12 by waiting a couple days for it to arrive in the mail. In this case, I decided having it right away was more important (although rather foolish in the long run).

I personally think the $12 is worth having a place where people can meet and play games together. Allows gamers to share their games with each other, and teach kids about these games. Thats how there will be a next generation of role-players. It is not a matter of charity, it is a matter of the long term health of our hobby. Saving 12 dollars doesn't help the hobby have places for gamers to meet each other and play together. Think of it as cheap rent for the clubhouse instead of charity. Without game stores, our hobby will eventually disappear to online games as kids are no longer exposed to it.

SUPPORT YOUR FLGS!

 

[Tewligan]

I personally think the $12 is worth having a place where people can meet and play games together. Allows gamers to share their games with each other, and teach kids about these games. Thats how there will be a next generation of role-players. It is not a matter of charity, it is a matter of the long term health of our hobby. Saving 12 dollars doesn't help the hobby have places for gamers to meet each other and play together. Think of it as cheap rent for the clubhouse instead of charity. Without game stores, our hobby will eventually disappear to online games as kids are no longer exposed to it.

SUPPORT YOUR FLGS!

Eh, it's a matter of priorities, I suppose. I don't go to my FLGS to play or to meet other people - honestly, I wouldn't WANT to play with a lot of the people there. No, my FLGS keeps my business because they earn it - I get a discount there, and the staff is able to keep me up to date with what's coming out, when, and an honest opinion as to whether something is a stinker. They've even offered to up my discount a bit when I move to the other side of the country next month to account for the cost of shipping stuff to me. That's service, and that's what's going to turn my FLGS into my FLDGS (Friendly Long Distance Game Store). They rock, and that's why I support them, not just so the kids have a place to play. Heh - I don't want to play with kids anyway, so I don't care if they have a place to play or not. I'm just selfish that way.

 

[Najo]

Eh, it's a matter of priorities, I suppose.

If a game store does demoing, and they expose NEW players to the hobby, then they are earning our business. Think of it like this:

* if every gamer bought online, then there would be NO game stores.

* Without game stores, those of us who play other games, like warhammer and magic (or add other miniature or CCG in place), have no place to play together regularily. D&D (and other rpgs) aren't as immediately affected by a lack of a place to play. But, all hobby games eventually suffer, and here is why.

* Since all of us are playing from our homes in this scenario, we are only recruiting people to play with us who are direct friends of ours. This is when we are trying to convince people who don't already game to game. YOu have the option of meeting people over the internet (like in a forum like this), but there are still obvious barriers (distance, and the fact that it is difficult to evaluate each other) that are removed when you live in the same town and can meet in a public place. The CCG and miniature open play in a FLGS allows hobby games to recruit new players that wouldn't have otherwise joined in. Likewise, the best group to recruit new role players from is other hobby gamers.

* A large percentage of players who commit to one hobby game, eventually play another.

* Kids eventually grow up.

What happens is kids play a game like Yugioh (or Pokemon before). They come into the FLGS that supports that stuff. When they are old enough, they start playing Magic or Warhammer. Eventually, if the RPG bug bites them they meet someone who is playing down there and then they start role-playing.

Without that, roleplaying games cannot recruit new players. Without new players, the hobby fails to grow, it fails to gain new designers, artists, writers, and our beloved hobby of role playing dies out due to lack of cash flow and profitability. So, by supporting a GOOD FLGS that does all of that, you are investing in the future of our hobby. BAD LGS shouldn't be supported for the same reason.

If gamers really love their games, then we should support them. Our priority should be the long term survival of our hobby.

 

[Wormwood]

Congrats on a having a decent FLGS in your area.

Sadly, the LGS I frequent seems to be taking a downward turn. Their selection is impressive (they've got tons of D&D/d20, but you can also find copies of Nobilis and Delta Green), but lately their staff has been increasingly annoying.

The last idiot rang up two boxes of D&D minis, $12.95 each. Initially, he screwed up the register and the total came up something like $400.00. Mistakes happen, and I got a little chuckle out of it, but he starts spazzing out and has to get help from another employee to correct the error. This isn't a gas spectrometer, it's a frikkin' cash register.

Second try: When the total came up ($25.90) he freaked out again and started yelling for help from his manager, believing that somehow the register was broken because (I swear to God) "there's no way $12.95 and $12.95 add up to that much."

I wish I was kidding.