Retro Game Store Reviews: Surugaya Sannomiya (Kobe)

I want to apologize for not being able to keep up with posts on here. Between work and traveling, I haven’t really had a chance to sit down for a few hours at a time to knock them out. Because of this, I have a backlog of stores I need to write about now. At least you guys have a lot to look forward to in terms of content over the next month or so. You can see most of the stores I visit on my Instagram and Bluesky account if you want to follow me there though. Information about my socials is always posted at the end of every article, so be sure to check below if you want up to date tips on stores I have visited.

I don’t think I’ve visited a Surugaya yet that I wouldn’t recommend checking out, but not all of them are the same. Each one has a different set up, different inventory, and where they are located tends to dictate the overall vibe of the store. For today’s article we head to Hyogo prefecture, where the Sannomiya store is located in Kobe.

The Selection

The Surugaya Sannomiya store has more software than you’ll find at any Book Off or Hard Off, but when compared to other Surugaya locations it isn’t the best. From the pictures above you might have noticed that there are a lot of front facing games on the shelves. When you go into a well stocked store, you’ll usually see nothing but spine after spine of games, but that isn’t true of this store. When I visited back in the end of January, it felt like this location was somewhat under-stocked and that they either needed to get more inventory from their main warehouse in Shizuoka, or they need to up their buy listing prices to get more software into the store. I’m not saying the selection was bad or anything, there was actually a lot of variety to it and some rare games there, but in terms of volume it was a little low. You MIGHT find the game you are looking for there, but there is also a possibility it’s already been sold and won’t be back in stock for a while.

Another weak point of this store was the hardware selection of both consoles and handhelds. You might not be able to see it too well, but most consoles they had were at the top of the shelf for each area of software. They did have a few Sony and Nintendo systems, but I feel like you can usually see a larger selection of hardware when you go to any Hard Off location. The same for handhelds, They did have some PSPs and PS Vitas in the case above, but not many other things like DS or 3DS. Don’t expect much on the hardware side of things if you go shopping here.

One neat thing that I did see at this store that I haven’t seen anywhere else in Japan were demo discs. I thought that was one of the coolest things about this store. They had a small shelf of about 20-30 demo discs for a variety of systems, so if you are a collector of those types of things you should find some joy looking through them.

The Pricing

As usual, this Surugaya’s prices were in line with the rest of the chain; not too expensive but not really cheap either. The stuff you find on the shelves at Surugayas are affordable but nothing you’ll be bragging about finding on social media. The stuff in their locked showcases do tend to be really expensive though, sometimes even more than what the other specialists shops sell them at. While Kobe is a major tourist destination, it isn’t as popular as say Kyoto, Osaka, or Tokyo so you might find that prices are affected by the ‘tourist’ tax a little less than in other major cities. To be honest, I think that Book Offs and Hard Offs have raised their prices a lot more to fleece tourists these day than the Surugaya brand. They are all still trying to make a profit, but Surugaya is less greedy about it.

Access

This Surugaya was located in one of the cooler places I have ever found one of their shops in. Japan has a lot of covered shopping streets called shotengai all over the country, but the one in Sannomiya near the station is one of the biggest I’ve ever seen. It has two floors and is also incredibly wide. If you’ve ever visited a shopping arcade in Namba, Osaka then you know how cramped and busy the smaller ones can become. The shop can be reached from either Hanshin Kobe Sannomiya, Hankyu Kobe Sannomiya, or JR Sannomiya station. Depending on which one you take to arrive there, it’s about a 5-7 minute walk. Once you arrive in the shopping arcade area, you’ll have to head up to the 2nd floor to find the Surugaya, but there should be signs about. Just be careful about which sign you follow because they do have 2 stores in this area. One is more for anime goods and figures, and the other is full of games.

The Verdict

Kobe is another great sightseeing area with lots of cool places to shop and eat, but I don’t think it’s that good for people into retro games. There are definitely shops spread throughout Hyogo prefecture that might be worth visiting, but Kobe feels more like an afterthought to me. If you’re already going there to see the Chinatown or Himeji Castle, you’ll probably be pleasantly surprised to find some retro games, but otherwise I don’t think that this shop in particular warrants you coming out of your way for a visit. There are definitely more shops in Osaka worth checking out and you don’t have stay on the train for so long. The greatest thing about it is definitely the close vicinity to the station.

• Selection: 3/5
• Pricing: 3.5/5
• Ease of Access: 4.5/5

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