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I'll be making a quick trip to Portland on the 29th, and I was curious if there are any import shops around the city?

There's no game shops that specialise particularly in imports or rare games around Portland that I know of. The closest import shop I can think of is Pink Godzilla in Seattle if you're ever around there - just don't trade your games there as they'll give you dirt for them.

Here in Portland, (besides the obvious GS/EB/GC, etc.), the few independent game shops I know of are Game Trader at Beaverton Mall - has games for ALL consoles, including Saturn, Atari, retro stuff, etc. Sort of pricey on some stuff but big selection. Video Game Wizards off I-5 at SE Foster - nice guy runs the shop, good selection of PS1 games, prices everything according to EBay however, but you can haggle with him and he's fair on trades. And there's Billy Galaxy - not really a game shop, but the owner, Billy is a retro/game collector - used to have a dresser full of rare 2600 games - so he may have some rare/import games at his shop on W Burnside opposite Powell's Books, however I haven't visited him in a while so not sure. I know he at least has a huge personal collection of rare games.

Don't remember the name, but I also stumbled on some great deals in a used CD/game shop on the Hawthorne strip. I picked up a mint Legaia 2 for $2.25, and there was an excellent selection of used PS2 games including some less common ones, all for pretty decent prices.

Oh, and I have recently moved to Seattle and think Pink Godzilla is WAY overrated. Sure, they have some unusual stuff (Saturn games, etc), but their prices are ridiculous. Higher than any of the big online retailers for current imports and generally even higher than going Ebay rates for most older stuff. I don't understand why people think it's so special. It's not like they have tons of super-rare games either, mostly just ho-hum software, but since they have Famicom, Saturn, and the like - people think it's great.

Oh, by the way - any other Pacific Northwest CAGs know about Vancouver, BC? Any good import shops? Seems like there should be with all of the shopping in Vancouver coupled with the massive Asian population...

Originally Posted by firenze Oh, and I have recently moved to Seattle and think Pink Godzilla is WAY overrated. Sure, they have some unusual stuff (Saturn games, etc), but their prices are ridiculous. Higher than any of the big online retailers for current imports and generally even higher than going Ebay rates for most older stuff. I don't understand why people think it's so special. It's not like they have tons of super-rare games either, mostly just ho-hum software, but since they have Famicom, Saturn, and the like - people think it's great.

I hear you on that. If you buy one of their T-shirts, you get 10% off your purchase, like that's a great deal, but I saw a dad buy a shirt for that. Still, if you HAVE to have a game no matter what the price, at least you're likely to get it there. They have most of the hard to find and import games/toys you're not likely to find elsewhere (besides EBay) there. Panzer Dragoon Saga was $500 there. Definately not cheap there. And their trade in offers are insulting. They picked out a stack of about 7 of my games a few months back including a GC Ikaruga, some PS2 RPG's, DC and Saturn games with an offer of $50 credit for all of them. At their prices, I would have only been able to get 1 semi-decnt game. A collector friend told me that was a terrible offer.

I was at the NW game expo that they were a sponsor of and one of the Pink Godzilla guys noticed I bought a new/sealed Shining Force CD from a collector and he was being really "buddy buddy" with me being like "how much you want for the Shining Force CD?" (Um, yeah I don't think so.)

Originally Posted by firenze Oh, by the way - any other Pacific Northwest CAGs know about Vancouver, BC? Any good import shops? Seems like there should be with all of the shopping in Vancouver coupled with the massive Asian population...

Whats wrong with massive asian population... in some places like China its commonplace. I'd rather have massive asian population than massive damage.

www.ncsx.com

Got D&D collection, SF Alpha 3 Saturn from them back about 7 years ago or so.

I don't think NCSX is in Portland. But if I'm wrong, someone tell me where it is!

Also I've been to Vancouver BC, and he is right - there are a lot of ethnic and Oriental people/culture there. They have a huge/great Chinatown (I like the knockoff Hello Kitty toys) just like San Francisco and there's a lot of good Indian restaurants there too.

Originally Posted by brianmoy I don't think NCSX is in Portland. But if I'm wrong, someone tell me where it is!

NCSX.com is great, but their shipping is high and some of the prices are a tad higher than say Play-Asia.com.

NCSX is in New York and Play-Asia is in Hong Kong =) I've had great experiences with both shops and highly recommend them both for your NW import gaming needs. I order stuff from Play-Asia all the time and get it in about a week (Air Economy shipping) to the Portland area.

Originally Posted by sying Whats wrong with massive asian population... in some places like China its commonplace. I'd rather have massive asian population than massive damage.

Oh, I don't think it's a bad thing at all! Quite the opposite, I'm happy to be near a place with lots of Asian people. Vancouver, BC has the best Sushi, Thai, and Vietnamese food I've ever found. I'm just hoping they might have some import game shops that are good as well!

In my experience, higher Asian population = better independent game stores that sell imports. Torrance, CA for example (West L.A.) has a bunch of Japanese people because of Honda and Toyota having US headquarters there. They also have several good import game stores. Having been to Vancouver it just seems like a place that should have some cool stores tucked away somewhere, between all the great shopping in general and the Asian population.

Hahaha, that's because I buy all their rare gems! No but seriously, I go to Pink Godzilla quite freqeuntly. They always amaze me at how they are able track down just about anything. I came in and asked for two Wonder Swan games that I needed for my colelction. They got them in 2 weeks. I was like Dang!- Where else can you walk in and oder Wonder Swan games? (I'd been looking on Ebay for a year for those 2 games too)

As far as import games, there prices are very close to NCSX and Play-Asia. I picked up Ouendan form them for $44.99 at Sakura con. That's $5 cheaper than I';ve ever seen it online. (PS I think their normal price is $49.99 and they were running a con special)

My guess is that these guys have some serious connections in Akihabara. 'cause that's the only other place I've seen a store like Pink Godzilla.

As far as domestic games go, I can't comment as well but I agree with you on PDS. I think PDS for $500 is too high but when I asked their staff about it, they said it was more a joke than anything because they liked having it on display. It IS pretty darn cool to have a sealed copy of PDS.

Originally Posted by yamashinaeki It IS pretty darn cool to have a sealed copy of PDS.

If I remember correctly, the PDS was used (sealed, because they seal all their games) but I could be wrong. $500 would sound reasonable I suppose if it was genuinely new/sealed.

Nah, it's brand new with the original shrink wrap and original $59.99 price tag still on it. There was another protective bag thing over the top.

I also checked out their brand new sealed copy of Radiant Silvergun which is the same price and also had the original $59.99 price tag.... which I picked up....but first I had them order me a non-sealed copy which was $300 less. I think I paid $180 or $190... but the disc was perfect. I like being able to hold and inspect the game before I purchase it. That's what's cool about Akihabara in Japan, you can inspect everything before you buy it. (Just gotta get a plane ticket to get there) I've been burnt too many time on Ebay...

PS I saw a brand new copy of RS on Play Asia for $500 the other day which was GONE when I checked back a couple days later.

Ah... my mistake. I'm willing to admit I'm wrong... often. It was a long time since I saw it - Feb.

check the Fryz up at Wilsonville, they have some imported games, but its a small selection and they cost a bit more than regular games.