Going to Tokyo -Suggestions?

[ESauce]

My amazing wife surprised me on Father's Day by telling me she's saving money to send me to Tokyo next year. I consider Tokyo video game nerd Mecca basically and I've always wanted to go. Who here has been, and what suggestions do you have for sites that need to.be seen, particularly video game related?

[pacman000]

Never been. TSR wrote about his experiences traveling to Tokyo, but that was around the turn of the century; I'd bet much has changed. Here's a link; it's not a bad read, if memory serves: http://www.atarihq.com/tsr/special/aki/aki.html

One thing that has probably not changed: You won't find hundreds of rare Japanese games/systems just lying about in shops.

[MoarRipter]

Visit Akihabara, that's where you'll find the current and retro video game goodies. You can find some pretty neat things. Maybe bring an extra suitcase to bring stuff back that you buy.

[ptdebate]

In Akihabara, you'll find all the retro game shops you could ever want. The great thing is that they are well-stocked with games and consoles in immaculate condition. They take much better care of their things over there. The only negative is that they're not going to be cheap.

I'd love to pick up an AV Famicom, Disk System add-on, and Turbo Duo someday.

[Gleebergloben123]

Lived in Tokyo for 2.5 years and worked there for 5 months out of the year for 14 years. Know Tokyo very well. Will post again this weekend with ideas.

[ESauce]

Thanks everyone! I read a bit about Akihabara and definitely plan on spending some time there. I was thinking I would budget one or two hundred hundred bucks to spend on old games/systems. I don't particularly have a use for most old Japanese systems since I have a retron 5 and a Saturn that can play Japanese games, but if I saw a PC Engine I might pick it up. As far as games go, I'm sure there are quite a few exclusives that would be worth getting, but I'll have to do some research on those. I'm also interested in arcades. A lot of article I've found are prettt old. Is the arcade scene still good?

[Gleebergloben123]

I left Tokyo in 2009, so hopefully this info won't be too out of date.

Arcades: They're everywhere. Most of the big ones are in Shibuya, Shinjuku, and Ikebukero. These three train stops are all on the same line (either the Yamanote or the Saikyo). The Saikyo line is faster. And it's really loud and just a blast. Definitely try to hit these early and often.

Akihabara: Really cool, but I think not as impressive as it was in the 90's. A ton of electronics and a cool atmosphere.

Harajuku: Great to go on a weekend, especially a Sunday. Harajuku is one stop away from Shibuya with great hipster shops and a great place to people watch.

Trains at 8am on a weekday. You gotta do it at least once, but be forewarned, it's as bad as it looks on TV. I once was on a train where my feet were not touching the floor because it was THAT crowded. Just surreal.

Yokohama is only about 30 minutes away from south Tokyo (Shinagawa station), just make sure to take the express train.

Kamakura and Nikko, great day trips. Kamakura has the big Buddha, and Nikko is a beautiful mountain area with shrines, temples, etc.

[Sonicx9]

I was in Japan last year and loved it. But be warned the arcades are very cigarette smokey the ones that have more interesting games to play. But they did say the best arcades to go if you hate cigarette smoke is Namco Nakano which I have not been to, but I do know it is one of the best if you do not like cigarette smoke. http://www.mmcafe.com/arcadeguide/arcades_nakano.html Also check out EmEm Land at 155-0031 Tōkyō-to, Setagaya-ku, Kitazawa, 2 Chome−３−3 if you hate cigarette smoke and want to get away from it.

Not related with Video Games, but also worth checking out is Maid Cafe with my favorite being Maidreamin. It is a place to have fun with Kawaii Anime style women that are real life fantasies. The best ones to go to are these 3 because they are all non-smoking seats. Even though there is a smoking area in all 3, but I had no issues with the one I went to.: https://web.archive.org/web/20160425073 ... /akiba_3rd and https://web.archive.org/web/20160425062 ... akiba_soto and https://web.archive.org/web/20160601015 ... njuku_east

[Tron]

Congrats! Take pictures of Arcade games for us please.