Level Up Games — Local services in Duluth

I used to love going to places like this. To talk to others that share my enthusiasm about board games etc... Each and every visit to this location service is getting just a little worse. This last visit was kinda a big deal. When I go to a store who has 50% of their store taken up by board games/card games etc, I would expect them to be knowledgeable in what they sale... I asked the sales representative at the register if he could check his system to see if they had a specific game in. He told me I could look myself because if it's not out there on the floor they didn't have it. I told him I did check very well but was just trying to make sure I didn't miss it as they are not always organized and it's easy to miss a game. He looked directly at me, never touching the computer and told me he has never even heard of the game. Very very rude in general like he was to bothered to deal with me. He obviously didn't want to be their... I then asked him if he might be able to price match some games for me like some other stores do. It was kinda like he had an attitude about me even asking... Honestly guys, if you are going to expect people to come into your store and spend a 50% markup on games I can easily get on Amazon for half off with free two day shipping then you have to up your game. And I'm not just talking about offering Funyuns and Mountain Dew for the patrons playing games.

UPDATE: I have bumped up the review because they did reach out to me and want to know who it was that helped me and apologized about my visit. I still shop here often but still think they need a heavy board game knowledge presence at the store. Just keeping games on the shelf and in stock is nice but if it's just another shop to pick up games at I'd rather grab a game from Amazon with two day shipping and a lower price then spend over 2 hours driving to and...

I want to start this review by saying that I've been a loyal customer to level up for the past five years. I started shopping there and having great experiences back when they had a tiny shop in the corner of the mall. I have been to countless pre releases for MTG and played countless hours of tabletop games at level up as well as spending several pay checks on products. The staff has always been friendly and extremely helpful to me and my family. Because of how great level up has been I have been more than happy to try and buy everything I need from them before going to other stores or online retailers. Not once have I ever had an issue with level up and have always felt it was a fantastic LGS before today. For several years I have been apart of their loyalty program and met the highest tier. That tier consisted of 15% off of most products. Due to how much I spend at level up this was a big reason I continued to keep shopping here. Today I went in to buy some tabletop miniatures and while checking out I noticed that my 15% off discount had not been applied. Now if it was a little purchase I would have let it go but spending over $200 that 15% makes a difference. I asked and the employee went to grab a manager. The manager, who has always been great, stated "it's our April fools joke that's not a joke". The manager stated that upon April 1st a new loyalty program came into effect and you now had to spend Five thousand dollars to get that 15%. Now even though that's a lot of money I understand that the business has every right to change a loyalty program. But why not grandfather people in? Especially people who have been loyal customers for 5 years and had that discount roughly the same...

I visited Level Up yesterday for Yugioh cards, hoping to support the shop. While a kind lady tried to assist me, the overall experience left me feeling unwelcome. The gentleman behind the counter seemed apprehensive, making it uncomfortable when I wanted to view the booster boxes. The booster boxes are always 30+ dollars more then their online retail value but still I’m there to support, but if I’m going buy something almost worth 100 dollars I’m going want to hold and see the boxes to make my final decision. I understand the prices can be high, but I'd appreciate the opportunity to choose which box to buy, without the staff thinking I’m going to run off with merchandise.

I ended up purchasing $100 worth of cards and sleeves, although I typically spend $200-300 each visit. I'm a devoted supporter of local card shops, but this experience was disheartening. It felt as if I were being watched or followed due to unwarranted suspicion. Me and my partner could not walk around the store without being followed or stared at.

I have fond memories of this shop when it was smaller, and I miss that era. Sadly, unless the environment improves, I'll have to remove Level Up from my list of regular card shop visits. My girlfriend, who was with me, felt the same way. I expected camaraderie among geeks and nerds, but sadly, that wasn't the case...