My local retro games shop here in the UK is annoyingly hidden in the back of a popular music store in Swindon, as if it's secret, or only known by "locals". This is mostly due to the fact that it has no shopfront, so you could walk right by one of the UK's best games collections and not even know it.
But once you find this place, or an awesome independent publication shines light on it (hint hint) you'll be amazed at what you'll find, and you'll be greeted with a lovely chap named Pete who has been in the gaming retail business for 30 years.
Retro Games HQ is located in Swindon's high street, tucked behind the guitars, drums and keyboards of the store Holmes Music, ran by Pete's father.
We created a whole 30 minute tour and introduction video to partner with this article, and I believe it's the best way to see what this magical gem has to offer, feel free to watch it below and subscribe to the channel to see more The Retroad Show episodes.
The Owner, Pete Holmes
Pete Holmes is the owner of the store and will likely greet you as soon as you step foot into his retro games section of the music store, at times appearing out of thin air to assist with your collection needs and questions.
Pete has been collecting for many years, likely thanks to his father who would return from Japan on business trips with a treat or two, usually in the form of unique Game & Watch consoles. Pete's most vivid Game & Watch was the Donkey Kong edition.
"My dad started the music shop, Holmes Music, back in the late 60s. He's been open 60 years now, so retail is in my blood" states Pete. I got a bit fed up with the music side of things, and my passion was video games. So I started off by importing Super Nintendo Mega Drive games from Japan and America.
Street Fighter would come out in Japan first, then 6 months later America, and then finally hit the UK. So we skipped that, went direct to Japan, ordered copies of things like Street Fighter or the latest games with the use of converters on Super Nintendos as well as importing the consoles as well".
We get people come in downstairs and they're going "Wow, what a collection you got here. I just mention "Have you been in before?"... "No, no, this is my first time." And I say "Oh, you need to go upstairs and have a look." And then they go up upstairs and the phones come out, everybody's taking pictures, videos, sending them to their friends, and it's like "Wow, we didn't expect this!"
I have personally known Pete for a few years now, and often make my way into the store when I pass through Swindon and he informed me that he could have rented shop space elsewhere but his father had the music store, and the both decided to expand the space internally on both the ground floor and the second floor to make space for more business and Pete's game collection.
We literally have people travel from all over the world to visit us. We've had a lot of visitors on holiday from Australia, America, Japan that are up in London, find us on the internet and jump on the train to visit.
- Pete Holmes
The Ground Floor - Japanese-esque and Overwhelming Nostalgia
The ground floor in itself is what I would class as a "typical" retro games store here in the UK, small with an array of choices to gander at, from SEGA Mega Drive games/consoles, to rare 90's gaming statues, to loose Demo PS1 discs only found in vintage gaming magazines and an array of loose carts for Nintendo consoles.
Retro game stores are niche here in the UK, and in themselves struggle to survive the high tax bills and low foot fall due to it being niche and typically "expensive" in the eyes of traditional consumers. That's why many are "small", for example Super Tomato in Cardiff that also shared the struggle with running the business, the same goes for Retro-sect in Tewkesbury.
It feels like a Japanese video game store, jam packed from floor to ceiling, with rare boxed consoles spilling out onto the floor hoping customers don't stand on them, but it's the only place Pete has for them otherwise it would take up precious space in the music section which, I presume would start an all out war with his father, and nobody wants that... we know what Dads can be like!
One of the many gems I found on the ground floor was Spud's Adventure and Amazing Tater, two of the rarest Game Boy games ever made, alongside rare Nintendo Watches from the 80s/90's including Zelda.
The closer you look, the more you will see on this level, from unique accessories to fully boxed consoles, to PS Vita games to pop culture collectibles scattered around.
Pete also labels the loose carts to make it easier to pick out, alongside pricing on every single product... He's a mad man, but it makes it easier for customers to pick up things and bring them to checkout.
The higher end products are behind glass cabinets due to Pete having customers steal his products on a frequent basis, which is a shame as he, like any small business owner is simply trying to mix passion with putting food on the table for his family.
The Second Floor - Space For Retro Exploration
The second floor has much more space, and likely double or triple the product to explore. What I like about this level is that there's places to sit, to read vintage gaming magazines, and even a couple of arcade cabinets for you to lose half an hour in, making it a great location to waste a couple of hours while your partner shops on the high street.
And that's what Pete is trying to build, a unique store that becomes an experience, all thanks to the way it's designed and how the inventory is laid out.
On the second floor, once you pass the collection of retro posters on the way up you will find a cabinet dedicated to boxed and unboxed Game Boy Advance games, hundreds of them.
Next to that a incredibly rare XBOX 360 retail cabinet, the very ones used in stores to test the consoles and games upon release. Then there's the long line of cabinets filled with so much Nintendo gear that it rivals Don's collection from our previous episode.
You'll find Nintendo 64 consoles boxed, rare accessories for the Nintendo Wii, sealed Gamecube games, some of the rarest NES games I have ever seen and a scattering of Japanese imports.
Swinging around to the back you'll find lots of Skylanders, pins, Nintendo Wii games, and even a 5ft tall Nintendo Zelda Watch that has a screen with ROMs installed, to be used as its very own games machine.
Then... my favourite part, the Game Boy section, an array of consoles in various editions, some needing repairs but most ready to play, some even coming with the box. Pete has a large Game Boy game collection too, with some rare Castlevania games, Pokemon games and well over 50 boxed games ready to go too.
Heck I even found a boxed HANDY BOY for the original DMG that I just had to take home with me, alongside GAME BOY carry cases that I wanted to snag but at some point I had to tell myself no... and by myself I mean my bank.
A must visit for any retro gaming enthusiast down south.
The Retro Gamez HQ is one of the last standing retro game shops in the UK, unfortunately as most of us know, there's not many left. It's obvious hearing Pete's story that he has been through the trenches trying to keep this store alive for as long as he can.
He's still swinging, even amongst the battle scars, and he does it with a happy face and a good professional attitude. He tries his best to do what he can for both customers buying stock and curious gamers wanting to sell their collection.
He's passionate, turns up every day to graft for his customers and has created a unique store that i can't help but visit every few months. He understands the struggles and opportunities that a retail store brings, and I believe he will continue to keep the doors open for as long as he can for his community.
It's one of the main reasons why I try to buy from independent gaming stores like this, purely because of passion. They need our help the most and I fear the day that they all close. None of us want the only place to buy retro games to be online or from a mainstream games shop with no passion.
If you are in the South of the UK, give Pete a visit. I am very confident that you won't be disappointed with what you see, it's one of the best retro game shops in the UK.
