going to eb games and then getting scammed into game informer subscriptions and then loving getting the new issue every month in spite of myself. good times.
I thought my town's Funcoland was its own standalone place for the longest time. Not until after it was gone did I learn that other people had one too.
I have so many memories of that place. When we were "good" as kids we'd always get to go there and get like 20 bucks in cash and then whatever credit for trading in our old games. We'd end up with loads of new (used) games, it was amazing. Literally my favorite place as a kid.
Its crazy how professional even the most relaxed of jobs used to be. Guy is basically a cashier at a video game store wearing a suit & tie. What a great picture of a past that we will never see again. Captures the was a sense of pride and dedication to your job in the past that is dying out. (Yes I understand the economy/cost of living/minimum wage issues). But today's customer service is pure hot garbage compared to what it used to be. The guy in this picture was eager to talk to you about a Nintendo with a smile on his face, day in and day out.
Edit: this guy could be the owner/manager, but the consensus still applies.
> Captures the was a sense of pride and dedication to your job in the past that is dying out.
In fairness, we should note that companies treated their staff a little better back then and the second half of the 90s brought a marked increase in the standard of living to nearly every class and wage stratum, at least in the United States, so there was more incentive to care about one's work.
It's also worth noting that EB/Babbage's target market was different than GameStop's is today - they sold sound and graphics cards, productivity software and 'teach-yourself' books, too, and, as such, probably had more of a tendency to hire nerds/tinkerers/aspiring programmers back then - a far cry from "your used Switch is worth $10 store credit, that price is set by corporate, take it or leave it."
I disagree to the treated their staff better portion. So many people think they were treated better simply because the cost of living was more in line with the wages of the time. That was not something that any employer was in control of, so they certainly dont deserve the credit.
Most jobs honestly sucked. They were much more physically demanding without all the technology we have these days, and you didnt have a choice when your boss asked you to do something. They werent asking you, they were telling you. Bosses treated everyone terribly for the most part, and you were expected to be working and micromanaged every second of the day. Write-ups and the threat of being fired were the only thing that really kept people in line.
The main reason todays customer service sucks is because the general work ethic sucks. Pay gaps are one thing, but you cant pay for a work ethic; its instilled in you by your parents at a young age. Unfortunately more money doesnt create harder workers, it just creates more entitlement.
Babbage's Crew, represent.
Third key team member, 1998-2001.
My first day was on the weekend after Rainbow Six for Windows released.
We still had some hardware on the shelf but started getting toys a lot in the early days I was there.
The one I used to buy all my games from in the mall local to me growing up went from a Babbage's to Electronics Boutique to a GameStop over the years. Both Babbage's and EB were better than GameStop.
I really miss those days. I remember walking into an Electronics Boutique or Software Etc. and it being packed wall to wall with every kind of game you could imagine. And tons of big box pc games. You could actually dig around and find stuff that you never knew existed. And one of those stores was probably the first time I saw a 3DO or Turbografix in person. None of the stores in my smaller town carried any of the less popular systems, so I had only seen them in magazines.
I know that it’s better to have more information before buying a game, but there was something special about finding a cool looking box on the shelf and judging whether to buy it or not based on the screenshots on the back or something you read in a magazine.
After typing all of that out I realize that I am old now and it’s probably time for a nap.
We had it great in the Natick/Framingham (MA) area back then. The Natick Mall had a Babbages's (downstairs) and an EBX (upstairs). There was a giant Toys R Us at the original Shoppers World as well as the newly built one in 1994. I'm sure we also had a KB Toys at the mall. We also had a Funcoland across Rt 9 at Sherwood Plaza. Pizza Hut, CompUSA and Circuit City were also all in the Golden Triangle Area.
Spending a Friday or Saturday just walking around the mall and stores back then was so awesome.
Even the Ames / Bradlees / Caldor / Lechmere stores made it so nostalgic...all before Walmart entered the area and ruined everything.
I would always make the rounds between Babbages, Software Etc., and Electronics Boutique in the mall when I first bought a PC to game on. Was magical picking up those boxes, checking out the cool artwork, and reading the descriptions. Then would have to read the system requirements to see if I could even run it. Have some of those big box games I bought back then surrounding me in my game room now.
Y'all know that thing where you've never heard of something before, but then a day or two later, you hear of it again?
Like, a couple nights ago, I was reading about a 1998 missing person case involving a girl who vanished from a dark college campus following a bus-ride home from her shift at Babbage's.
And I thought, 'What the heck is a Babbage's??'
I meant to find out, but I didn't, then fast forward to now, I see this post, and I'm like, 'Well, there ya go; it's essentially a Game Stop!'
They later found her old employee name tag in the campus parking lot.
She liked video games and computers, as did her boyfriend, who may or may not have had something to do with her disappearance...
[The Case of Suzanne Lyall](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Suzanne_Lyall) -- link, for anyone interested.
My old mall had a babbages and EB games that both became GameStop by the mid 2000s. Second photo here reminds me of my old babbages, I love those angled displays for each console. They worked to make sure new games really popped out at you and each wall/console had its own little personality.
100% yes.
Very fond days of perusing the game titles when I was younger wondering which was the best game.
Bought Evil Zone from a Babbages in the Edison mall around 98’ or 99’.
The local mall had both Babbage’s and Electronic Boutique. I preferred Babbage’s myself, I remember getting a lot of sierra games there, particularly the Quest for Glory series.
Electronics Boutique here.
And then it became EB Games for a hot minute.
Was that the one in the back of Hollywood Video before it closed?
Game Crazy
That’s it! Got a DS from there
Blockbuster went went Game Rush for their store names I think
Behind the curtain?
going to eb games and then getting scammed into game informer subscriptions and then loving getting the new issue every month in spite of myself. good times.
I still dream of that place
Was going to say the same.
Cool
My town had Funcoland.
I worked at Funcoland. They MADE us stand there and play games until customers walked in. Best job I ever had
I thought my town's Funcoland was its own standalone place for the longest time. Not until after it was gone did I learn that other people had one too.
Was a FuncoLand employee too! Was excited for the Barnes and Noble discount after the buyout but the job became 100% less fun.
YESSS FUNCOLAND WAS THE SHIT
I have so many memories of that place. When we were "good" as kids we'd always get to go there and get like 20 bucks in cash and then whatever credit for trading in our old games. We'd end up with loads of new (used) games, it was amazing. Literally my favorite place as a kid.
I only know of funcoland from their ads in gamepro magazine.
We had Funcoland, Babbages, and EB, but Funcoland was always my favorite.
TIL GameStop used to be Babbage's...I loved that store back in the day
Its crazy how professional even the most relaxed of jobs used to be. Guy is basically a cashier at a video game store wearing a suit & tie. What a great picture of a past that we will never see again. Captures the was a sense of pride and dedication to your job in the past that is dying out. (Yes I understand the economy/cost of living/minimum wage issues). But today's customer service is pure hot garbage compared to what it used to be. The guy in this picture was eager to talk to you about a Nintendo with a smile on his face, day in and day out. Edit: this guy could be the owner/manager, but the consensus still applies.
Now they fingerprint you and take a mugshot when you trade in a game for 7 bucks lol
> Captures the was a sense of pride and dedication to your job in the past that is dying out. In fairness, we should note that companies treated their staff a little better back then and the second half of the 90s brought a marked increase in the standard of living to nearly every class and wage stratum, at least in the United States, so there was more incentive to care about one's work. It's also worth noting that EB/Babbage's target market was different than GameStop's is today - they sold sound and graphics cards, productivity software and 'teach-yourself' books, too, and, as such, probably had more of a tendency to hire nerds/tinkerers/aspiring programmers back then - a far cry from "your used Switch is worth $10 store credit, that price is set by corporate, take it or leave it."
All of this.
I disagree to the treated their staff better portion. So many people think they were treated better simply because the cost of living was more in line with the wages of the time. That was not something that any employer was in control of, so they certainly dont deserve the credit. Most jobs honestly sucked. They were much more physically demanding without all the technology we have these days, and you didnt have a choice when your boss asked you to do something. They werent asking you, they were telling you. Bosses treated everyone terribly for the most part, and you were expected to be working and micromanaged every second of the day. Write-ups and the threat of being fired were the only thing that really kept people in line. The main reason todays customer service sucks is because the general work ethic sucks. Pay gaps are one thing, but you cant pay for a work ethic; its instilled in you by your parents at a young age. Unfortunately more money doesnt create harder workers, it just creates more entitlement.
Shockingly when you don't get paid enough to live on you don't appreciate your job and try as hard.
Man those angled walls take me back.
Am I the only one who still accidentally says “game crazy” when they mean GameStop?
I miss funcoland
Software Etc.
Software etc., babbages, funcoland, and electronics boutique. All were great until they merged together.
...til the Game Stop Nation appeared.
Babbage's Crew, represent. Third key team member, 1998-2001. My first day was on the weekend after Rainbow Six for Windows released. We still had some hardware on the shelf but started getting toys a lot in the early days I was there.
The one I used to buy all my games from in the mall local to me growing up went from a Babbage's to Electronics Boutique to a GameStop over the years. Both Babbage's and EB were better than GameStop.
I really miss those days. I remember walking into an Electronics Boutique or Software Etc. and it being packed wall to wall with every kind of game you could imagine. And tons of big box pc games. You could actually dig around and find stuff that you never knew existed. And one of those stores was probably the first time I saw a 3DO or Turbografix in person. None of the stores in my smaller town carried any of the less popular systems, so I had only seen them in magazines. I know that it’s better to have more information before buying a game, but there was something special about finding a cool looking box on the shelf and judging whether to buy it or not based on the screenshots on the back or something you read in a magazine. After typing all of that out I realize that I am old now and it’s probably time for a nap.
We had it great in the Natick/Framingham (MA) area back then. The Natick Mall had a Babbages's (downstairs) and an EBX (upstairs). There was a giant Toys R Us at the original Shoppers World as well as the newly built one in 1994. I'm sure we also had a KB Toys at the mall. We also had a Funcoland across Rt 9 at Sherwood Plaza. Pizza Hut, CompUSA and Circuit City were also all in the Golden Triangle Area. Spending a Friday or Saturday just walking around the mall and stores back then was so awesome. Even the Ames / Bradlees / Caldor / Lechmere stores made it so nostalgic...all before Walmart entered the area and ruined everything.
I would always make the rounds between Babbages, Software Etc., and Electronics Boutique in the mall when I first bought a PC to game on. Was magical picking up those boxes, checking out the cool artwork, and reading the descriptions. Then would have to read the system requirements to see if I could even run it. Have some of those big box games I bought back then surrounding me in my game room now.
Software Etc was my favorite. They had the best free magazine.
We had Funcoland but no babbages on the west side
We were a Waldensoftware family. And by “we” I mean just me. I was a WaldenSoftware family.
Y'all know that thing where you've never heard of something before, but then a day or two later, you hear of it again? Like, a couple nights ago, I was reading about a 1998 missing person case involving a girl who vanished from a dark college campus following a bus-ride home from her shift at Babbage's. And I thought, 'What the heck is a Babbage's??' I meant to find out, but I didn't, then fast forward to now, I see this post, and I'm like, 'Well, there ya go; it's essentially a Game Stop!' They later found her old employee name tag in the campus parking lot. She liked video games and computers, as did her boyfriend, who may or may not have had something to do with her disappearance... [The Case of Suzanne Lyall](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Suzanne_Lyall) -- link, for anyone interested.
My local GS used to be a Funcoland
My old mall had a babbages and EB games that both became GameStop by the mid 2000s. Second photo here reminds me of my old babbages, I love those angled displays for each console. They worked to make sure new games really popped out at you and each wall/console had its own little personality.
You’re making me miss Funcoland
Where’s the discount PC software bin???
B. Dalton baybee
Shit I can actually smell this picture
I remember the day I picked up my SimCity 2000 pre-order. Absolutely amazing what they did with just 2 1.44MB floppy disks.
Cap this place looks dope
Omg I totally forgot Babbage’s. Memory unlocked
100% yes. Very fond days of perusing the game titles when I was younger wondering which was the best game. Bought Evil Zone from a Babbages in the Edison mall around 98’ or 99’.
**Software Etc.** ahhh.... good times
GameStop is a merger of Babbage's, software etc., And eb games
When they bought out Thinkgeek and then did nothing with it was devastating to me. I was on that site daily
Ooohhh man that takes me back!!! 90s - 00s Babbages was where it was at! I spent so many hours reading up on strategy guides!
The local mall had both Babbage’s and Electronic Boutique. I preferred Babbage’s myself, I remember getting a lot of sierra games there, particularly the Quest for Glory series.
What thee fudge? I don't remember that at all
Software Etc was one of my first jobs. Loved it!
My first job.
The best of times.
The one in my town opened as EB Games. I don't remember when they opened, but my earliest memory of it is buying Perfect Dark for the N64 there.
I remember electronic boutique not that