Reminiscing About the Golden Days of Video Game Stores

There’s something about the golden era of video game rental stores that brings a wave of nostalgia like no other. Before digital downloads and instant access to any game imaginable, there was the thrill of walking into a store, browsing the shelves, and picking out a game to take home for the weekend. For me, that place was Game Mania, nestled in the heart of Arndale Shopping Centre in Adelaide.

Growing up in a migrant family, we didn’t have a lot of money to spend on video games. Buying them outright was a rare luxury, so renting was the only realistic way to experience a variety of titles. However, my mum always made every Thursday night shopping trip special by letting me rent a new game to play. It became a tradition—one that I always looked forward to. For a while, renting a game became the default reward or gift for just about anything. School holidays? Let’s rent a game. My birthday? Let’s rent a game. Even small achievements, like doing well in school, sometimes meant getting to pick out a game for the weekend. Renting wasn’t just about playing something new—it was about the excitement, the anticipation, and the simple joy of having something fresh to look forward to at the end of the week.

Game Mania wasn’t just a store—it was an experience. I can still vividly remember most of the games I rented and even purchased from there. It was a ritual, scanning the shelves for something new or familiar, reading the back of the game cases, admiring the cover art and making that crucial decision of what to rent. Whether it was a hidden gem or a blockbuster title I had been waiting for, every rental felt like an adventure.

I still remember the layout of the shop, from the demo kiosks they had at the front with Nintendo 64 on one side and PlayStation on the other. It was at the N64 kiosk where I saw Pokémon Snap for the very first time, and I was absolutely blown away by it. Seeing Pokémon in a fully 3D world. The new releases were neatly displayed on the left-hand side of the store, while the rental games were arranged on the right. At the front, there was a table full of pre-owned games available for purchase.

One of the biggest things I remember about renting from Game Mania was the pricing structure. New releases were only available for overnight rentals, and they cost more, making them a rare treat. However, older games were available for weekend rentals, and they were much cheaper. Because of this, a lot of my rentals were from the weekend section. I’d carefully browse through the selection, looking for something interesting to take home for the week. It was always an exciting feeling knowing I had a few days to fully immerse myself in a game before having to return it. Sometimes, if I really liked a game, I’d rent it multiple times just to keep playing.

As time went on, the gaming landscape started to shift. A new competitor arrived on the scene—Electronics Boutique, or as it's now widely known, EB Games. While it didn’t offer rentals, it brought a whole new kind of excitement. Thursday night late-night shopping became a weekly tradition to walk into EB Games and admiring the treasure trove of new releases, gaming merchandise, and, most importantly, Pokémon cards. They always seemed to get the latest sets first. I remember coming in almost every day, eagerly asking the staff if the new Jungle expansion had arrived yet. There was nothing quite like finally getting my hands on a fresh booster pack, carefully opening it up, and hoping for that elusive holographic card.

I also remember grabbing the latest EB Games catalog, flipping through the pages, and circling all the games I wanted. It was all just for fun, though—I knew there was no way my parents were going to buy them for me. But that didn’t stop me from dreaming about which games I’d love to own one day. It was a fun little ritual, imagining what it would be like to own each title and hoping that maybe, just maybe, I’d eventually get my hands on them.

Eventually, EB Games became a sort of makeshift daycare for kids while their parents went shopping. Groups of kids would gather inside, browsing the shelves, checking out the latest games, and talking excitedly about new releases. However, the staff eventually caught on to this and started enforcing a new rule. I still remember the store clerk repeatedly saying, "You're not allowed in the store without your parents!" It was disappointing at the time, especially when all we wanted to do was browse around, but looking back, I can’t really blame them!

With the rise of EB Games and the shift in gaming culture, Game Mania slowly began to fade away, struggling to keep up with the retail giant. At first, the changes were subtle—fewer new releases, a shrinking rental selection, and fewer people browsing the shelves. But over time, the store felt quieter. The once lively atmosphere, filled with the excitement of kids picking out their weekend rentals, wasn’t quite the same anymore. You could just tell that business wasn’t going too well—some shelves looked emptier, and there weren’t as many staff members around. It felt like the magic that made Game Mania special was slowly slipping away.

As a kid, I didn’t pay too much attention to it—I was too focused on what game I’d rent next or which one I could convince my parents to buy. But looking back now as an adult, I can definitely see it for what it was. It wasn’t just a store closing—it was the end of an era. The place that had been such a big part of my childhood, where I had discovered some of my favorite games, was slowly fading away. What was once a lively, exciting space was now reduced to clearance bins and empty shelves. The magic of video game rentals was disappearing, replaced by something new. One small silver lining was that ex-rental games were now being sold for really cheap, and I managed to snag a few at bargain prices. But even then, it felt bittersweet—buying up the remnants of a store that had once meant so much to me.

Looking back, things are definitely more convenient now with digital downloads and instant access to games at our fingertips. But even with all that convenience, I still miss the old days of video game stores—the excitement of walking in, browsing the shelves, and discovering something new. There was a certain magic in those moments, a feeling that every visit could lead to a new adventure. While the days of video game rentals may be behind us, the nostalgia of places like Game Mania and the early days of EB Games will always hold a special place in my heart.

Unfortunately, I can't find any photos of Game Mania, and there is now very little information about it online. However, I will leave you with a remnant I found in old commercials, a small but cherished reminder of a time when video game rental stores were an essential part of our gaming journey.

If anyone out there has photos, videos, or even memories of working at Game Mania, I would love to have a chat. Please feel free to reach out to me!