This humble gray box is a cultural icon for video gamers young and old. While video games certainly preceded the Nintendo Entertainment System, the NES popularized in-home video gaming. This classic system and dozens of game titles grace the shelves at Game Monkey in downtown Derby Line. Photos by Richard CreaserDERBY LINE — Like fine wines, some ideas take a little bit longer to develop. The newest addition to Derby Line's downtown core, the electronic gaming paradise Game Monkey, is one such venture. For the co-managers Dave McCausland and Sue Stenta, though, that fine wine could very well have turned to vinegar.
Game Monkey was originally slated to open in January 2010. However, due to a conflict with the Main Street building's owners, the concept was aborted mere days before its scheduled opening.
"It's been a rocky year," Mr. McCausland admitted. "I did want to give up for a while."
The pair scouted numerous locations in and around Newport and Derby seeking a location to replace the one they had lost in Derby Line. Nothing quite fit the bill.
"We looked at some space in downtown Newport, but there was just no storefront parking," Ms. Stenta said. "Other places we looked at the rent Game Monkey game specialist Dave McCausland is dwarfed by the virtual reality of Pac-Man on the store's enormous projection screen. It is the centerpiece of an evolving game room that will soon include a pool table, a lunch counter and arcade games.was so high we could never make it work, not as a small start-up."
When the old Derby Line store location became available under a new landlord, the couple returned to the space with equal amounts of hesitation and enthusiasm.
"This space had a lot of bad memories that were still pretty fresh," Mr. McCausland said. "But it also has something that we wanted for our store. This is a great community with a lot of foot traffic."
"And it's only 15 minutes from Newport," Ms. Stenta added. "If people were willing to drive two to four hours round trip to get a video game, 15 minutes each way doesn't look so bad."
The distance to video game retailers is one of the main reasons the pair believes the Game Monkey concept will work. Game Monkey strives to be an all-inclusive video gaming destination. Want a game lickety-split? Mr. McCausland said they can work with their distributors to have games in hand within 48 hours. For pre-paid special orders, that game might be available later that same day.
"We had a customer come in looking for a game for Christmas," Mr. McCausland said. Game Monkey first opened its doors on December 23. "I drove down to Littleton to pick it up so he could have it that day. That's what Game Monkey can do for you."
Game Monkey offers more than just the latest PS3 or XBox 360 titles. Stepping into the shop is like time traveling back into the 1980s and witnessing the evolution of console gaming firsthand. There is nothing more iconic to hardcore video gamers, and even their waning adherents, than seeing that simple gray rectangle with two big, red buttons with a cable leading back to an equally unadorned geometric gray box.
"This is where old video games go to die, except, at Game Monkey, they never really die," Mr. McCausland said. "We have had so many people come in and say 'Wow, I haven't thought about that game in forever!' Go into your basement and dig up that old console and make something old new again."
In addition to a selection of games for the most current platforms, the store carries a wide selection of archaic video game formats ranging from the original Nintendo line through Sega Genesis, N64 and the inaugural Playstation. Owners of the Nintendo Wii system might be interested to note that Gamecube games are backward compatible with the Wii system, Mr. McCausland said.
"A lot of the games out there are remakes of classic titles," Mr. McCausland said. "So save yourself a few bucks and buy an older game and see where the franchise came from. The visuals might not be as intense as modern games, but the fun factor is still there."
That kind of knowledge is what sets Game Monkey apart from its corporate counterparts, Ms. Stenta said. Mr. McCausland is himself a consummate gamer, having played games through all of their incarnations. And if he can't answer your question off-hand, he'll make an honest effort to find out.
Game Monkey co-managers Sue Stenta and Dave McCausland have scoured the video game graveyard to breathe new life into titles from Nintendo through the original Playstation."It's the difference between having a store run by a gamer and having a store staffed with people who play video games," Mr. McCausland said. "The gamer goes beyond the experience and gathers knowledge that he can pass on."
Game Monkey is piloting a new kind of gaming experience. Players will have the option to rent screen time to play on the store's massive projection screen. That same screen will also be used to host gaming tournaments throughout the year. Alternatively, Game Monkey is also offering $99 one-year memberships. The membership confers some specific perks such as half-price screen rental, guest passes offering reduced fees for their friends, free entry in tournaments and preferred access to screen rental timeslots.
"I've played games on big screen TVs and they look awesome, but playing on this screen is taking it to a whole other level," Mr. McCausland said. "You play a racing game on this and it looks just like being behind the wheel."
The mega-screen has the additional benefit of enabling consumers to try before they buy from the store's enormous used game stock. With strict return policies at many traditional game retailers, the minute a title is opened it is either no longer returnable or will be bought back at a significant loss to the consumer.
"If it doesn't work or it isn't what you thought it would be, we'll either replace it for a different copy or help you pick out a new game," Mr. McCausland said. "We will go that extra mile to make sure you get what you want."
In addition to the retail space and mega-screen, Game Monkey offers video game trade-in services backed by measures to prevent the circulation of stolen games. In order to trade in a game, sellers must present a valid photo ID and sign a statement that they are the true owners of the game. Handling potentially stolen goods is not only bad for the store, but bad for its customers as well.
"We don't want our customers to lose their games because they were stolen," Ms. Stenta said. "That's not the way we do business."
Right now Game Monkey is a retail space with some really cool features. By the end of January the shop's owners hope to expand their offerings even further. The lunch counter will reopen and feature gaming fuel like Philly cheesesteak sandwiches, fries and deep-fried Twinkies. The game room's offerings will include a pool table, air hockey and a selection of arcade games.
"There's something timeless about Ms. Pac-Man that keeps people coming back for more," Mr. McCausland said. "We're still working out the details with distributors, but we will have some new games and some classics."
Eventually Mr. McCausland hopes that the store will become a haven for gamers of all types. If the demand is there, Game Monkey will start to carry board games and collectible card games. The exact selection will be based on consumer demand and feedback.
"It's taken us a year, but we finally lived up to our promise to deliver a video game store to this area," Mr. McCausland said. "Now we just need people to come and support us. We have a lot of great ideas, but we need you to come in if we're going to make them happen."
