Located on East 3rd street, 8 Bit and Up is a real time capsule to the ’80s and ’90s video game scene. Situated in the basement floor, the shop is packed floor to ceiling with retro games and consoles, including Atari, PS1, Gameboy, and more, and old school arcade games like Street Fighter II.
If you’re a video game pro, 8 Bit and Up holds regular tournaments so you could meet and compete against fellow junkies. They also host birthday parties, rock band karaoke nights, and even corporate press events. The lack of windows, the low ceilings, fluorescent lights and concrete floor seem to recreate our memories of multi-night Counterstrike marathons.
The shop has their own documentary where you can see the intricacies of the store and learn about the staff. All the employees have a true passion for gaming and fixing consoles, and the shop has a set of regulars passionate about retro consoles who could be found playing in the store at any hour. But, if you don’t know much about retro games, you are still welcome to come in and try them out.
A rack of old consoles:
From the Mortal Kombat arcade game:
Sega:
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