Collecting in Cleveland

So this past week I went up to Cleveland on a business trip.  It was my first time visiting there and it reminded a bit of Detroit.   I spent most of my time around the Rocky River area, but sadly didn't find much in the way of retro collecting.

It's not that they didn't have any retro store but for whatever reason, they just didn't have what I wanted, and one store in particular, James Games & More on Detroit Ave in Lakewood, while having a great collection had terrible customer service.   I was in the store for around 15 minutes, and not once did the staff even acknowledge my presence as I browsed through their selection.  Maybe I'm old, but if the staff can't even bother to welcome you into the store and see what you are looking for then I'm not a huge fan of your store.

The Exchange (also on Detroit Ave) was another retro store I was able to make it to.  They weren't strictly focused on games and unfortunately again, I didn't find anything there that I needed/wanted.  There was another Exchange that I was going to try to visit, but unfortunately, I was never able to get to that one.

All was not lost, however.   Unlike the Gamestop stores where I live, the stores up in Ohio had not yet been given the directive to gut all their DS and PS2 games.  So I picked up a few items that I have had trouble finding down South.

So what was the total haul from the trip?   Eight games in total; 1 DS, 2 PSP, 1 360, and 4 PS2 games:

Hexyz Force  (PSP)
Patapon 2  (PSP)
Lost Magic  (NDS)
Armored Core 3  (PS2)
Aqua Aqua  (PS2)
War of the Monsters  (PS2)
Stuntman  (PS2)
Culdcept SAGA  (360)

One thing that caught me by suprise was the UMD version of Patapon 2.  I had officially sworn off the game as it was download only.   But there it was, at the Gamestop, with the UMD.  I couldn't pass that up.

I'll be heading back to Cleveland in August, at which time I'll give the retro search another go around (I'll even give James Games & More another chance, because they DID have a nice selection).  But until then, it's back to my local Play n Trades for my retro needs.