San Francisco Gaming Stores

[gordonknox]

I will be in SF in a couple weeks and am looking to get updated (buy) some new non-Wizards 3e gear.

What are the best places to check out?

Thanks.

gk

 

[Davelozzi]

check out this one:
Gamescape
333 Divisadero Street, San Francisco, CA 94117
(415) 621-4263

It's got a great selection of used games, and is in a convenient location in the city.

There are a couple of other stores that are decent in the Bay Area outside S.F. Games of Berkeley in downtown Berkeley is okay if you find yourself in the area but probably isn't worth the trip otherwise. I believe that there are a few other places that are good somewhere south of the city but I can't remember where they are off the top of my head. If Maerdwyn or someone else doesn't pop in here and tell you I'll try to check later for you, I have the names saved from an old thread but it's at home and I'm at work now.

 

[Gospog]

D&J's

I used to live in Mountain View, which is about 40 min south of San Fran.

D&J's was pretty close to where lived. They had a really good selection of RPG and TTG products...the place was huge!

I can't remember the exact town they're in, but they do have a website, if I remember correctly.

Good luck, and have fun.

Tom

 

[Eridanis]

(These comments are prefaced by the fact that it's been a year since I've lived in the Bay Area, so YMMV)

If you have a car, you may want to check out Gator Games in San Mateo; they have a fairly friendly staff and a very good selection. Scenario Games in Fremont is pretty good, although it leans more towards boards games and model railroading, and a discussion on these boards a few months ago mentioned that they may be forced to move out of their location on Fremont Blvd. The Berkley game shop is very disappointing, IMO, but if your only mode of transport is BART, it's worth stopping by if you're going there to hit some bookshops, too (like Another Change of Hobbit, a decent science fiction shop). Another excellent SF/fantasy bookshop is Dark Carnival, but as far as I recall, it's not within walking distance of a BART stop, and it has little in the way of gaming, although it may be the best SF shop I've been to.

Enjoy!

 

[Maerdwyn]

*pops his head in*

I agree with just about everything they said

Gator Games is my favorite shop, followed by the three Gamescape stores (San Francisco, San Rafael, Palo Alto)

I like D&J as well - they are in Campbell on San Thomas Aquinas Rd.


The older thread, with quite a few opinions from people on SF area games shops is here:
http://www.enworld.org/messageboards/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1033


Edit: Welcome to the boards, gordonknox!

 

[gordonknox]

Thanks

I am going to try to pop in at Gator Games, which appears to be the most popular.

After sending them an email, they (Jean, specifically) responded saying that they do carry items from the likes of Mystic Eye, Thunderhead and Fiery Dragon.

Thanks again for all the input.

gordon

 

[Shard O'Glase]

Having just gone to gator games I'll have to go with everyone and say it's good. The person working there today was very friendly, and helpful. They had a decent selection of non 3e stuff, and they are willing to special order anything under the sun for you, but if your just visiting SF and not moving there special orders probably aren't that important.

 

[grodog]

I'll have to check Gator Games out sometime. I know they sponsor the Bay Area Role Playing Society, but am not otherwise familiar with them.

I'm a fan of Gamescape and Legends of Sports and Comics (in the Vallco mall off of 280 and Wolfe Road), myself.

 

[Kobold Curry Chef]

The Bay Area is blessed with a large number of good game stores. Aside from the worthy ones listed so far, let me add some others:

* Endgame, in Oakland near Lake Merritt. Fairly new, friendly staff, broad selection, ample space set aside for in-store gaming.

* Epic Worlds, Castro Valley. A small store, but with a faithful following. Focuses on GW and WotC, but not limited to that by any means. Very active in-store leagues.

* Neutral Ground, Mountain View. It's like a mini-convention 7 days a week. Average selection, but has tons of tables for in-store gaming, computer gaming, etc. You can drop in almost any time and join a game.

There are also Gamekeeper and Wizards of the Coast stores in various malls around the Bay.

 

[Falcon]

Gamescape and EndGame are my two favorite gaming stores in my local area (I can walk to Endgame in 20 minutes, or take BART and the Muni to Gamescape in 45).

EndGame's contact info:

EndGame
3344 Lakeshore Ave
Oakland, CA 94610
www.endgameoakland.com
510-465-3637