Just a quick note, this article is not sponsored in any way by the London Gaming Market, or by any of their affiliates. It’s simply just an article showing off some of what London has to offer us gamers!
Today for you, we have a unique post showing the best of the London Gaming Market, that was present today in the Royal National Hotel at Russell Square; the event that runs every 4 months, with a collection of over 40 stalls, independent vendors, and over 5000 games for sale and display, it really is one hell of an event to attend for you retro junkies! A selection of arts & crafts stalls were present as well, selling items from Pearler Bead Sprite art canvases, custom-made gaming T-Shirts, magazine publications and even gaming-themed bath bombs!
So why am I presenting this event to you, today? It’s because, honestly, events like this, that support small businesses and startups really do need more visibility to the public; with a range of brand new startups attending to show off their innovations in things such as tabletop gaming, game case protection, art and much more, the London Gaming Market really is an ideal place for indie companies and individuals looking to find their feet.
As is customary, we did get ourselves a small little haul today too! Settling with a budget of only £45, we managed to snag some goodies for our own personal collection! These include The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (N64, Complete in Box), Mortal Kombat (Mega Drive, Complete in Box), Oddworld: Abe’s Oddesy & Abe’s Exodus (PS1, both Complete in Box)! This by no means beats our haul back in June, however, where we managed to pick up a Limited Print, Complete in Box Super Mario All-Stars SNES Bundle for only £120!
It goes without saying that the Market is the place to go if you want deals, with multiple retailers offering bundles, 3-for-2’s, and nearly all being open to negotiation! Just seeing the wealth of games and consoles there too is a treat for the eyes, and really does set your nostalgia off when rummaging between dozens of boxes and containers full of old retro games – The amount of modded and custom designed consoles too were off the charts, with them being easily available to interested buyers; I was a little disappointed that I couldn’t nab their custom-painted Mortal Kombat PS1, but I’m sure there’ll be another chance come March 2017, when the next London Gaming Market is!
One of the best parts of the London Gaming Market, however, is the sense of community and friendliness that is present throughout the entire event – Everyone there was so lovely, from the vendors being friendly in their negotiation, to the staff, and even just some of the public that were present there, from all ages from children with their families, to even some of the older crowd! The market isn’t just for hardcore retro-junkies, but just simply for gamers, with newer games being on sale too, from Xbox One, 3DS, PS4 and Wii U games on offer! Especially thanks to the lovely guy who gave us an extra £4 to buy one of our childhood favourites – Whoever you may be, you definitely deserve a drink or two!
With so many collectables on offer here, if you plan on going, I would say make sure you have a budget, and try to stick to it – It’s incredibly easy to go off track and spend a few hundred quid if you’re not careful! I would say, if you’re looking to get a couple of games non-seriously, bring about £40; if you’re dead-set on a select few games, or maybe a new retro console, then bring around £100, and if you really want to beef up your collection with some of the best games on offer here, then just go hammy!
Finally, I just wanted to show off some of the businesses present at the event, with links to their Social Media pages and / or website! If you see this, we’d greatly appreciate it if you followed our Social Media channels, and shared this post!
RetroEmpire
It was great seeing your amazing case protectors today! Like I said, I definitely need to get myself one of your SNES box protectors!
You can check out RetroEmpire on:
Pixelbatty
Want awesome-looking gaming bags and accessories? Give Pixelbatty a try! Pixelbatty, created by Nikola Dawn, also takes custom designs and comissions to make your gaming gear truly bespoke!
You can check out Pixelbatty (And Nikola) on:
Nerds Retreat
“Designs for the Modern Nerd” is the slogan of Nerds Retreat, and it’s easy to see why! This London-based gaming apparel stall offers unique, stylistic gaming t-shirts for the stylish gamer! You can check out some of their shirts below!
You can check out Nerds Retreat on:
Deadpan Robot
Looking for a brand new custom Nintendo handheld? Deadpanrobot creates unique, one-of-a-kind custom Gameboy, Gameboy Colour and much more, even down to custom controllers! Featuring custom shells, backlighting, and painted designs, Deadpan Robot is the place to go if you want to play retro Gameboy games in style!
You can check out Deadpan Robot on:
Cave of Pixels
Bringing the art of Perler Bead Sprite art is a hefty task, and a patient commitment…That’s why we’re more than happy to show off Cave of Pixels’ work! Covering everything from one-off keychains to full a4 canvases, Cave of Pixels may have your next hallway art piece! They even take comissions!
You can check out Cave of Pixels on:
Luke Tobias’ Artwork
Luke Tobias creates detailed gaming and comic-related artwork that really does work a wonder on the eyes, with some of the more comedic pieces of artwork being some of my personal favourites! You can see a piece of his art below!
His Website (Not currently operational at the moment, but is a work-in-progress!)
Ninjanna Art & HyperPlay RPG Magazine
Now for two truly unique startups, Ninjanna Art & HyperPlay RPG, a startup duo, with Ninjanna acting as cover artist, and HyperPlay RPG creating their own detailed, old-fashioned RPG Print magazines! I managed to have a flick through their special on Xenoblade Chronicles X, and I gotta say, I was hooked!
You can check out Ninjanna at:
And you can check out HyperPlay at:
Mr Sega
Offering deals on retro games, consoles and accessories, Mr Sega was one of our favourite retailers at the event, simply due to how friendly, honest and negotiable he was!
You can check out Mr Sega on his Facebook Group HERE
And finally, for my personal choice of best startup at the Market…
Stak Bots
A cross between a strategy and card game, Stak Bots brings something unique to the Tabletop-battleground, with it’s fast paced, yet methodical combat, to it’s easy-to-learn, difficult-to-master approach, Stak Bots is definitely one to keep on your list if you’re a fan of Tabletop Gaming!
You can check out Stak Bots on:
So that was everything from the London Games Market! I hope you enjoyed, and hopefully we’ll see you there again in March next year!
Ciao!