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I like stores that not only have the stuff I want, but have lots of stuff I didn't know I wanted when I walked in there.

Doesn't smell like pee.
Has a staff that actually cares about gaming.
Space to play, decent terrain.
Enough stock to let me pick stuff out, but still keep the company in business.
And doesn't smell like pee.

Nuwisha wrote:
Doesn't smell like pee.

And doesn't smell like pee.

But poo is fine right?

I travel over 100 kilometres to a GW store that I go to, although there are ones closer, the main thing is I have clicked with the guys there.

Just to say it takes me one bus trip and two trains to get there, the travel is worth it.

Hands down the best store I ever went to was fairly large size, tons of tables, great stock, and a good location. But the best thing that made me really like it were the events they ran all the time and the people who played there. After awhile it became something of a Cheers like atmosphere. While there were a lot of newcomers coming in all the time, there were a large amount of regulars who knew each other fairly well. Sadly said location is no longer in business and I haven't been able to find a suitable replacement since.

The Red Shirts, unexperienced, unaware, ignorant, ...

There's only one gaming store in my town, really a comic book/toy store that tolerates gaming (in the back room so customers don't have to look at our neckbeards) on certain days. They have always kept their tiny stock of GW stuff hidden behind a counter. The next nearest comic/game store is 35 miles away, though they have way more space and don't force gamers to hide in the back.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
So generally what attracts me to a gamestore is the fact that they exist. That's really all I'm asking for.

Goldilocks and the three Game Stores:

In my area, there are three game stores. The first is huge and carries every game known to man. In general, I love this place, but I did go in once and was browsing the 40k stuff. It happened to be comicon weekend, and a nerdy balding dude in full Star Trek garb (I don't think he worked there) was explaining to some poor customer about how broken he thought 40k was. The customer mentioned he played orks back in the day, and this dude says (as I'm perusing ork models) that no one should play orks unless they want to lose every game. I haven't been back since.
The second store is the closest to my house, but is smaller, and I'm pretty sure their bread and butter is MTG. Nothing wrong with that, but I want a store that fully supports my hobby, and they had a decent selection of paints and models, but nothing to write home about. Also, the day I went in, it was like 100 degrees outside, most of the folks playing games were like 13-17 years old, and the whole place smelled like a high school locker room. I haven't been back since.
So, with some trepidation, I decided to try my local GW store. As I pulled up, the owner was helping someone spray primer a squad of marines out front. He welcomed me in, asked about my interest in the hobby, and provided me with a couple online resources to help me connect with other gamers in the area who might want to meet at the store for games. Everyone in the store was roughly the same age as me and seemed perfectly normal. I haven't played a game involving minis in 18 years (I just recently started painting and modeling again which is the reason I started exploring the local options), but I am enthused now about giving it another try.

I realize that a lot of this is situational, but the takeaway is that I want a store that stocks the kind of product I am looking for, encourages people to meet at the store to play games, and allows me to continue believing that normal adults (not just uber-dorks) enjoy this hobby too.

I dont care about stock If they can order it with free pick up.

The Staff must be friendly. The one flgs I frequent i get this punk ass skinny teenage kid who doesnt know gak about wh40k and has so much attitude. But they other staff i like.

Having AC is a must for summer and there needs to be heating.

There needs to be several gaming tables and some terrain.

Also the Patrons them selves must create a good social environment. I brought a model 25% scratch built and modified and the patron who doesnt even play wh40k asks of that is legal. I told him it is and he remarks to the owner that if that is legal then he should be allowed to paint his magic cards to what ever he wants. Next thing I know I am disqualified from my tournament match. Then i was asked by the owner to leave and never come back.