The Haunted Game Café in Fort Collins is a different type of coffee shop. Sure, it has coffee, chai, tea and specialty drinks. Sure, its owner is really into good coffee. Sure, it has great decor. But this coffee shop also offers games. Lots of games. Over 80 games that are open and available to customers who want to play. And customers do want to play.
The haunted theme is evident throughout the Haunted Game Café. Electric torches are held by blackened arms that seem to reach out of the wall. Bats and ravens are everywhere. The clock face doesn’t stop at 12, but continues to 13. A door in the back is covered with heavy chains. One wall holds photos of celebrated horror authors. But it doesn’t stop there. Gary Sproul, owner of the Haunted Game Café, didn’t know it when he opened the shop, but there was already a resident ghost. Some might think that Gary invented “Oscar” to sell the haunted theme, but the shop – and its theme – was in place before he ever heard about the ghost. How the ghost got there and why it haunts this building isn’t clear, but Oscar has been there for years.
Although one might think the haunted theme would play into an old stereotype that paints game shops as dark dungeons, this Fort Collins game shop has large picture windows and an eclectic clientele. Couples who are looking for something different from the same old movie night find that here they can play and converse during a date. Families can get away from the television and tensions of home while relaxing over a game. Groups of friends or acquaintances can laugh and play and trounce each other in friendly competition. Whether people want a game that is easy to learn and play in an evening, or something more complex, whether they want a board game, a card game, or something else, they will find something interesting on the wall of open games.
The Haunted Game Café offers more than just open games to play. Every Wednesday night they run a Dungeons & Dragons game. Anyone can drop by and play. There are tournaments for Magic the Gathering. And every Friday night is board game night.
While board game cafes have been around in Asia for quite a while, the Haunted Game Café seems to be the first of its kind to open in the U.S. It’s different from other game cafes in the United States in four major ways: 1) It doesn’t offer online or electronic gaming; 2) Its open games are free to play – there are no game or table rental fees; 3) It sells games, as well as having open board games available for play; and 4) It includes a real, full-service coffee shop. Because it is so unique, the folks in the game industry are watching to see how it does. So far it’s doing great.
The Haunted Game Café is located at 3307 S. College Ave., in Fort Collins.
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