Retro Game Store Reviews: Otakara Soko Kyowa (Aichi)

My heart kind of sank after I visited the last Ojamakan in the Kansai area. I only learned about the chain when I moved to the Osaka area, but after a year of living here, I had visited pretty much every single one and it quickly became one of my favorites. I never thought I’d find a place like it again. Then I got some work out near Nagoya that would finally allow me to stay in the area for an extended period so I thought I would do some research and see what kind of stores in Aichi prefecture sold retro games. It was from that research that I heard about Otakara Soko (Treasure Warehouse). I didn’t expect much. I expected it to be a small, most likely disappointing place and after my first visit to one earlier that day, it seems like I might had been right. But then I went to the Kyowa branch.

The Selection

Wow. Just . . . wow. I was totally blown away by the selection this store just outside of Nagoya had. Walls upon wall of game software, multiple cases full of handhelds and more expensive games, and a pretty well stocked console corner. As you can see in the photos, the software selection is their strong point. They had a few larger accessories (and some smaller ones too) and their console selection wasn’t bad, but if you are going to look for a game there you will probably find it.

In terms of the type of games, there were plenty of Sony and Nintendo products to choose from, but the Sega and Microsoft areas were pretty small. They also had another few rows of modern games for the Switch, Switch 2, PS4, and PS5, making their game selection even more impressive than what you see in these photos. I was especially impressed by their N64 and Gameboy Advance collection of games. Those sections of game stores always seem to be anemic these days, but Otakara Soko was almost overflowing with them between what they had on their shelves and in their cases.

The Pricing

Compared to places like Book Off Super Bazaar, Super Potato, and Meikoya in Nagoya city, this store’s prices were very good. They were very similar in style, pricing, and inventory to Ojamakan, and well they should be. I never should have doubted this chain. I found out after I visited this place that Ojamakan is part of the Otakara Soko brand. If you go to their website you can see all the different companies Otakara Soko runs. Ojamakan is mainly their Kansai brand around Osaka, while Otakara Soko is more of their Tokai area brand that is around Aichi prefecture, where Nagoya is located. That means you can expect to find a lot of items much cheaper at these shops than you can pretty much everywhere else.

However this also means that their pricing on handhelds is also similar. Everything they had in their cases was pretty expensive, and was even sometimes higher than the average market value. You’re still probably better off getting handhelds at places like Hard Offs or other stores outside of the big cities, but for everything else you’ll probably want to check here. If you find yourself being priced out by expensive things in the big cities, give it a shot. If you are looking for good deals around Nagoya you should stop here first, or at least holding off a purchase downtown until you have seen what Otakara Soko Kyowa has. You’ll definitely find similar inventory in the Osu Kannon area of Nagoya, but it’s probably going to be 2-3 times more expensive. This is a store that will reward you for hunting for deals.

Access

This store is located off of the JR Tokaido line heading towards Toyohashi/Hamamatsu. It may look far from Nagoya, but it’s actually only about 20 minute train ride from downtown. If you decide to check out the Osu Kannon and Sakae area for games and other things first, you can also take the Meijo Subway line to Kanayama station to catch the JR Tokaido line which will make the time spent on the train even less.

Once you arrive at Kyowa station, you’ll want to head out of the east exit, and then from there it’s less than a 10 minute walk to the store. There is another Otakara Soko on the other side of the station (the Obu branch) that focuses more on trading cards, but it has some games there as well which makes this a good stop for game hunting.

The Verdict

• Selection: 4/5
• Pricing: 4/5
• Ease of Access: 4/5

It’s hard to find something bad to say about this store. Sure they are a little low on their stock of Sega and Microsoft games, and their handheld prices are a little high, but their stock of everything else and the prices on them more than make up for those shortcomings. And while 20 minutes on the train from Nagoya might make you feel like you are going into the deep countryside, in reality you’ll be traveling a lot less going to this store then you would if you were in the Kanto area near Tokyo or somewhere around Osaka.

This store in a sweet spot where it’s just far enough away from the city to be able to support selling things for cheap, but not far enough away that they don’t get to take advantage of all the people in the city who sell off their gaming things. This also means that most tourists won’t stop by, so their stock is going to be full of grail games cheaper than everywhere else and other heaters you can get deals on. Hopefully you’ll consider stopping into Nagoya next time you’re in Japan so you can take in some of its game stores and have a reason to visit this store too!

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