Kingdom Games LLC opened its doors in Ukiah on October 1, 2019. The store had been originally based in Lakeport, where it had been called Gameshop before being purchased and owned by Brandon Costner in 2015. The hope for opening a Ukiah location had come immediately.
“It’s been a really good experience for me, being able to meet people, and having a gamer community is really great. I’m doing what I love, being around video games all day and talking about video games,” shares Costner.
Along his business journey, Costner had met Tony Pearce, who had been commuting to Lakeport daily for work and had shared a serious interest in games. Pearce had visited the Lakeport store often and was involved with his college student council and gaming club in which Costner had donated to. Eventually, Pearce had purchased the un-electronic gaming inventory such as board games and card games from Costner and opening his store called The Nerd Cave, also located in Lakeport.
Opening a Kingdom Games store in Ukiah and becoming business partners had only made sense to Pearce and Costner, who had also partnered with Jeremy LaMar. LaMar had been a resident of Ukiah but is also the second owner of The Nerd Cave.
The space where Dig! Music had once been was available for rent and had already harbored a local business supporting new and used inventory. It was perfect for a game store specializing in newer and older games.
What stands out most about the Ukiah Kingdom Games store is that they carry a lot of collectibles, such as statues, posters, and retro games, but also maintaining current and newer games and consoles. Many shoppers had been surprised or shocked at being able to find older, nostalgic games such as Super Mario brothers or an original Nintendo. The store offers trades and values the variety of having older games available for collectors and enthusiasts.
“Adults would come into the store and see this stuff from their childhood where friends and family could reminisce about from when they were kids. It brings people joy to see something that was good from their childhood,” says Costner.
After having been open for just a few months, the store had already donated up to seven different consoles and money to schools and youth groups. At the Ukiah High School, where they now have classes supporting computer science and game development in which Costner and Pearce have been looking into working with to offer a student showcase.
A large focus that Kingdom Games has is being involved with the community and supporting other local gaming stores like Sword and Board. A big benefit of having different store locations between Ukiah and Lakeport is that they can keep a specific inventory located where there is a demand that won’t interfere with other local businesses.
“There are not a whole lot of entertainment options around here, every year we lose something like the bowling alley or the skating rink. It’s really important to have a fun and safe environment for all ages in the community,” shares Pearce.
By the end of January this year, the store is planning to begin hosting weekly gaming tournaments. The idea is to welcome all ages and alternate video games, mixing some older and newer games. A small entree fee may be requested to go towards prizes for the top three winners per tournament. The store in Lakeport had had a lot of success in the past, having at times up to 50 people show up to compete and sometimes having to turn people away.
The Ukiah location has also begun to offer repairs on systems and controllers, eventually adding computer and cell phone repairs to the list.
For Costner and Pearce, video gaming has had a positive influence on their lives, which is why they want to keep it alive and local. Costner had grown-up in a cyber-cafe where he had been allowed the opportunity to create genuine friendships and a feeling of camaraderie while playing social games.
Pearce had also met a lot of his friends growing up through playing games while going to the boys and girls club, where they had an arcade.
“Gaming, you can get pretty good value for your money. You can go to the movies where you can spend 20 bucks for two hours, or you can spend 60 for a hundred hours,” concludes Pearce.
Kingdom Games LLC is located at 362 North State St. in Ukiah. For more information about the store or to find updates on events, you can find them on Facebook at Kingdom Games Ukiah.
