For gamers, one step into VideoGamesNewYork in Manhattan's East Village is something akin to a religious experience.
On the shelves, Super Nintendo games are still in their original packaging, Atari consoles are proudly displayed and a lone Nintendo R.O.B. is, ironically, viewed as a valuable commodity.
At this store, it's not about the latest graphics, high-end gaming PCs or overpriced DLC; it's about history.
This gaming boutique – one of the most iconic on the East Coast – touts a collection of retro, imported and rare video games, consoles, accessories and oddities that likely won't be found under one single roof anywhere else.
It's part retail store, part museum, and it's like a living, breathing time capsule, going back to the days when blowing into NES cartridges was all the tech support you ever needed.
We spoke to Giulio Graziani, owner of VideoGamesNewYork, about the history of his gaming landmark, the growth of video games in the U.S. and how the vintage gaming market has evolved over the years.
"My idea was step by step to develop a retail experience about history in video games," he said, sitting in front of a display containing Sega Game Gear titles. "So you have retail here but it's (also) a cultural experience. You come and breathe a little bit of history. You touch a little bit of history. You can talk with me and my employees a little about history. And so your approach to video games is not just fast food entertainment."
The store is home to a number of different gaming artifacts, including prototype versions of popular titles, such as Glover on the N64, obscure consoles like Atari's ill-fated Jaguar and what Graziani describes as his rarest item: a Nintendo World Championships cartridge.
"I have one copy of the World Championship 1990 for Nintendo. You know in 1990 Nintendo made this big U.S. championship and you played with a special cartridge that has three games and a timer," Graziani said. "You had to win one of the state finals to own a copy of the cartridge. How many exist? There's many opinions. Theoretically there are a little over 90 but in reality I would say there are probably between 100 and 200 pieces. That's the rarest item (we have in the store)."
Below, you can get a closer look at the game:
Other items line the shelves that most gamers are familiar with, like the elusive 20th anniversary PlayStation 4 and the infamous Nintendo Power Glove. But there are plenty of pieces that even longtime gamers likely never knew existed, like the Panasonic Q, a partnership with Nintendo that was a hybrid GameCube/DVD player. It was only available in Japan in the early 2000s, and it's just one of the many items VideoGamesNewYork has that you may never see again.
Rare relics like that are only a fraction of what Graziani has on display at the store, though. Shelf after shelf of N64, Sega Genesis, Game Gear and Game Boy games line the walls, as boxes full of Xbox and PS2 titles sit on the floor, ready to be browsed through.
Seeing the price tags on some of these will make you think twice about hurling those old games and cartridges in the trash. Thankfully, VideoGamesNewYork also buys used items, so you can avoid getting rid of a potential piece of history if you bring your older collectibles in.
In their time, all of these games were at the peak of gaming tech; now they sit behind glass, ready to be revisited by older fans looking for a dose of nostalgia or by young gamers trying to make sense of the medium's history.
VideoGamesNewYork is located on 202 E. 6th St. in Manhattan's East Village. When you stop in, be sure to say hello to R.O.B.; the Robotic Operating Buddy could certainly use a friend:
All Photos: Stacey Szewczyk | Tech Times
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