Akihabara - A Gamer's Guide Part III - More Than Just Games

It’s time for the final part of my guide to Akihabara. To close, I’m going to list some other places to visit aside from video game shops, to round out your trip.


The Rose & Crown

My favourite watering hole in Akiba. Coming from England, I have a tendency to turn my nose up at any so called British pub in Japan. However, I love this place! The food, though a little pricey compared to Hub for example, is really tasty. It’s a great place to go for a pint after a hard day buying video games. Or, if you are like me, a great place to go prior to shopping, which can lead to some very interesting purchases later on.

The best time to visit is during happy hour, 5-7pm every day of the week. It can be found next to the electric town exit of Akiba St.


Don Quijote (ドンキホーテ)

You can’t miss this huge building with a penguin on the side. Selling virtually anything you care to imagine, and some things you probably cant, it always makes for an interesting visit. The building also houses a maid café and a large floor of arcade games and UFO catcher machines.


UDX Building

One of the newer attractions in town, UDX is a large tower located next to the station. It houses a vast array of restaurants and an anime store, as well as an exhibition floor. I particularly recommend Shanghai Bar on the ground level, and the tonkatsu restaurant on the 1st floor.


Yodobashi Camera Building　(ヨドバシカメラ)

Aside from Yodobashi, which carries a staggering array of electronic goods, there are a couple of other reasons to join the masses who pack into this building. There is a Tower Records on the top floor as well as a good selection of izakayas and restaurants. Though be warned, if you are looking for somewhere to eat on a Friday or Saturday night be prepared to queue for quite some time.


Siddique　(シディーク)

Tasty, inexpensive and fast curry shop on the main street, going towards Suehirocho. They offer a very reasonable lunch set, and they are usually handing out discount vouchers on the street outside.


Liberty (toy shop) (リバティー)

This huge toy/collectibles store is about 5 minutes walk away from the station along the main road. Even if you aren’t that into figures etc, it’s still quite an interesting place to visit, if not just to laugh at some of the more ridiculous looking toys. It’s also a great place to pick up souvenirs if you are on holiday. It’s certainly a lot more original than chopsticks and sandals.


Aside from the places above, there are numerous incarnations of maid cafes, cosplay shops, no shortage of places to do karaoke and of course a handful of arcades, most notably SEGA and Taito. There are also two import food stores for those who want a taste of home.



That rounds out my guide to Akihabara. Put all three parts together, and you have a fail safe day out. Happy shopping.

Akihabara - A Gamer's Guide Part II - Yet More Game Shops

In Part I, I covered the main stops that any gamer should make when visiting Akihabara. In this, the second entry of my Akiba guide I am going to look at some of the other gaming shops that are well worth a look.


Friends　（フレンズ）

Don’t let the name put you off, this is a shop for serious gamers. A little difficult to reach from Akiba St, but its located right next to Suehirocho St on the Ginza Line. Catering strictly to fans of retro games, it offers a particularly good range of 8 and 16 bit titles at really good prices. At times, they have a box of free games outside the entrance, providing some extra motivation to make the trip.


Book Off

Located next to the station, this relatively new branch of Book Off has a fairly comprehensive range of used games. However, you are unlikely to find too many bargains here.


Retro Game （レトロゲーム）

Can you guess what they sell?! This is a newish store with a good range of games. They do offer some great discounts on more common titles, but items that are not in the bargain bins are usually over priced, so be sure to shop around first. The first floor also sells wigs, just in case you have the urge to change hair colour whilst rummaging through Famicon titles.


Messe Sanoh （メッセサノオー）　(Import game branch)

Along side the main train tracks and almost directly opposite the larger Trader store I mentioned in Part I, this small shop is dedicated entirely to new, import games. They have a very good selection, and the prices are usually better than Laox and Game Hollywood. Speaking of which…..


Game Hollywood

Another import exclusive shop. You can’t fault the range of games on offer here, but the prices leave a little to be desired. In general, PS3 games start at around ¥8000 and will remain at that price no matter their age. Being literally 2 meters away from Messe Sanoh, this probably shouldn’t be your first stop for new imports. However, sometimes they will carry titles that are difficult to find elsewhere, so it’s worth a look.


Liberty　（リバテイー）

Located nearby Retro Gamer, its sells a wide range of games at relatively good prices. They often have a couple of boxes of heavily discounted games outside the entrance, so take a look.


Mandarake　（まんだらけ）

One floor of this Otaku dedicated building, I cant remember which, is dedicated to games. Its near the very top though, so be ready for a long slog up the fire escape stairs, which are best avoided if you suffer from vertigo. This is the store that was selling the entire Famicon (NES) back catalogue a while back, and it carries a few rarer titles.


Now you can extend your gaming trip by an extra hour or so. There are still plenty of other places selling games that are worth checking out, but these should give you a fair taste of what’s on offer.

In the next, and final part, I will highlight a couple of other places to eat, drink and shop to help round out your trip to the electric town.

Akihabara - A Gamer's Guide Part I

Over my next three entries I intend to give a very brief guide to Akihabara. I’m going to stick to what I know, and detail the best places to visit for video games used and new.

This first entry will look at the shops that no gamer should miss. If I’m pushed for time, these are the stores that I will always check. Part 2 will round up some of my other, perhaps less known recommendations. In Part 3, I will run down some other places of interest to round out your shopping trip.

Akihabara

For those who don’t know, Akihabara is a small area in Tokyo renowned for its electronic stores. It’s equally as famous for its Otaku culture, with manga stores, maid cafes and the like lining the streets. It is also well known for its array of video game stores, both new and retro.

Anyone visiting Akiba for the first time is likely to be drawn to the colossus electronic store, Yodobashi Camera. It’s a great place to start, but the best way to enjoy the area is to hit the main road and then check out the backstreets.

Aside from the large and well connected Akihabara station, which can be reached by any number of subway or over-ground trains, Akiba can also be accessed easily from Suehirocho St (Ginza line), Ueno Okachimachi St (Oedo Line) amongst many others.


The Main Stops

I visit Akiba far too often. Over my time in Tokyo I have ended up with a kind of Akiba shopping routine. There are a handful of shops that I always check, no matter how pressed for time I may be. I could probably walk this route with my eyes closed!! I haven’t included a map, as there are no shortage of them ready and available on the net.
Without further ado:

1. Sofmap (ソフマップ)

Not exactly the best kept secret in the world, Sofmap is a large electronics chain with locations all across Japan. In Akiba they have a building dedicated almost entirely to video games, used and new. It’s not to be confused with the newer, flag ship electronics store 50 meters down the road, or the numerous other specialist branches littered throughout Akiba.

The first three floors are of the most interest to any gamer. The ground floor is all new Nintendo products, and it always features a couple of bargains. In the past I have picked up No More Heroes (Wii) and Guitar Hero On Tour (DS) for absolute rock bottom prices.

The next floor is new Sony and Xbox games, with lots of deals to be had here too. I picked up Vampire Rain – Altered Species (PS3) the other day for ¥980! It’s a train wreck of a game, which deserves a blog entry of its own, but you can’t complain about the price!

The second floor, the used section, is the real jewel in the crown. In Japan used games are almost always in pristine condition. Back in the UK, I would never buy second hand games or consoles, whereas here in Japan, I probably buy more used software than new. They stock Famicom right through to PS3, along with everything in between and the prices are invariably the lowest you can find. They also have a fair stock of import (US and Asian) games, especially for the Xbox360 and they always have a good range of cheap consoles. I picked up my Xbox360 for ¥18,000 here.

I really can’t recommend visiting this store enough. Although it may not be as tourist friendly or as interesting for someone who doesn’t play a lot games, it’s a great stop for anyone looking for a bargain. The only real downside is that the shop staff seem to be on a constant mission to restock the shelves, and are completely oblivious to perusing customers. Shop staff will often wander blindly between yourself and the shelf you are looking at.


Super Potato　（スーパーポテト）

This branch of the oddly named Super Potato has become quite well known and is frequented by tourists. It’s a place where I will take friends to who aren’t really into video games, because it’s an interesting visit. It showcases retro gaming, featuring shelves stacked with old consoles, a playable Virtual Boy, a life size Naked Snake and a whole floor dedicated to retro arcade games.

While Super Potato is a lot of fun and features an impressive array of products, it’s not always the best place for bargains. Occasionally you will spot a great deal, but it’s more about quantity and quality, as opposed to low prices. In particular, I wouldn’t recommend buying a console there without checking the other shops first.

Still a great place to visit and take in decades of video game history all under one roof.


Trader x2　（トレーダー）

Two of the Trader line of stores which are worth a visit. The bigger of the two is located quite close to Akihabara station, under the train tracks. The second floor is good for retro games, and there is always a table covered in discounted “junk” games. These games are labeled junk as they have not been tested, but you can find some real gems if you have time for a rummage. I have picked up a number of Sega Saturn games here for a couple of hundred yen, which would have cost me an arm and a leg elsewhere. It’s quite possible to come away with 10 games for a thousand yen. The ground floor houses more modern games, all of which are used. Like Sofmap, this is a great place to pick up discounted import games. I got a US copy of Fallout 3 (PS3) within two weeks of its release for ¥2500.

The other Trader which I mentioned can be found going towards Suehirocho st, walking away from Akiba st. Smaller than its counterpart, it still carries a decent range of games, including import titles. I got a copy of REZ (PS2) for ¥1500 recently, packaged with the wonderfully useless Trance Vibrator peripheral.

Both locations are cheap and cheerful, and not as dingy as some of their counterparts. However, they are both short on space and will get a little crowded, especially at the weekends.

So there you have it. If you only have an hour to spend in Akiba and are looking to expand you game collection, those are the places you should absolutely visit.

In Part II, I will look at some of the other video game shops that are deserving of your time.

Happy shopping.