Games and Stuff — Local services in Glen Burnie

Things I am: A man that forgets receipts A game lover (video, board, card, or otherwise) Not that smart Very, very patient

Things I am NOT, but I felt accused of after leaving this store: A liar A cheat A scammer

I was trying to return items (90% of which were new in box) in my partner's (name redacted) absence. As background, she is caring for her ailing grandmother, and could not afford the time to aid me. (Obviously, this is corroborated by family, though not a reliable source for review purposes). My partner's love language is gifting, so I have many items to be returned. Every day that went by meant there was another item we could not return :c I did not have the proper documentation to return it, BUT the POS/database system had it (luckily). From the start, I made it clear that I understood that some items were invalid for return, as they are out of the return window. The Operations Manager(Jeff) at the register heavily implied I was "scamming" them. Keep in mind, this is the third employee I'd talked to at Games and Stuff, and the employee previously assisting me told Jeff that I was angry and yelling at her. Angry? Yes. Visibly angry? I hope not. Rude? Never. Yelling? Not yet. Check the footage. You'll see me yelling, but not until far, far later.

So, he started scanning my ~25 items. He told me that Games and Stuff had not sold certain items in the past 30 days, so they are not eligible for return anyways. Makes sense, I get it. So, I opened them on the spot, rendering them void for return (anywhere). I was hoping this would show that I was legitimately trying to return something, which I don't think I should have to do as a customer. I did it anyways, in front of their cash register. And cameras. lol

After more scanning, Jeff even kindly educated me on the differences between 9th and 10th edition Warhammer 40k codices. I unwrapped all of my unopened 9th editions on the spot. There is another reason behind this, and it's this; * there is no signifier telling you which edition the codex is, you just have to know based on the cover art. * Luckily, Jeff does all product ordering, and he knows :D Again, I opened them to make sure that when I returned with my wife, she could be sure they were the proper 10th editions.

For some items, they were found, and could be returned based on the date, and the exact purchase. Awesome! I am very thankful that they offered this, in spite of my missing receipts. I KNOW that they offered this when they didn't have to. So let me be clear, they were awesome in this respect.

At a certain point, he refused to scan my remaining items, and implied again that I was scamming GnS. I offered to come back with my partner the next day, and planned on doing so to get this all sorted out. When Jeff told me that he would not consider today (10/24) as the attempted return date, even if my wife was with me, and displayed receipts/proof of purchase on 10/25, I became absolutely irate. This is my folly, and this is where the yelling happened.

Emotions were high, and Jeff's personal "Scrappy Doo" was unfinished with his twenty minutes of heckling and antagonizing me. He displayed something sinister in his face. This is the moment he had been waiting for. The moment to boot me out of the store. I felt unsafe surrounded by 5+ Games and Stuff employees, and felt like that if I left to return my items to my car, they would not let me reenter to retrieve my remaining items. So, I called the emergency line, and stayed on the phone with the operator until I could do so.

10/25 Edit: "Time yields perspective". After ruminating over this all night, talking with friends/local shop employees, and checking other 1/5 reviews, I have a better understanding of where my miscommunication took place. This store has higher shrinkage compared to surrounding hobby shops. Jeff was doing what he believed to be best for the store, and the "store gaming family". I can only assume that this store's employees have been lifelong friends and gaming buddies, and rightfully came to each...

After a 20 minute drive to get here I was surprised when I pulled up to this place; they’ve got a lot of square footage and easy parking. I walked in shortly after their 2nd afternoon opening, so there wasn’t many people in there and I was looking for a few different types and colors of citadel paints and a Kill Team miniature set to take home.

I started at the paint section and spent a few minutes trying to find all the colors I needed, but coincidentally they were out of the all of the half dozen colors and the types I specifically came there for and held out hope one of the several employees standing around chatting in the front would approach me to see if I needed help, to no avail.

Giving up on that endeavor I went to look for a Kill Team set to take home and assemble. Seeing the huge selections for Star Wars and War Hammer stuff, I was excited to see what they had available specifically for Kill Team. Turns out, not much at all; just five items, and two of them were copies, which took up less than one square foot of shelf space. I’m sure their primary clients are all about the few games they support, but I was really disappointed to see how Kill Team amongst several others, were overlooked for games the employees seem to enjoy. I picked up the one kill team set I had an interest in they had and it was more expensive than any other place I’ve seen it before. Pair that with having none of the paints I needed for that set, and getting no service, I decided it wasn’t worth it and put it back on the shelf and move on with my day.

I tracked down a guy at the back of the store behind the counter and asked when they would refill some of the missing paint. He said he didn’t know, but they did order paint the other day. Asking when it would come in, he didn’t know suggesting maybe sometime next week. I asked what color paints were on order, and of course he didn’t know that either. I ask who I should talk to about this and he suggested I email someone and pointed me to their business cards on the opposite side of the store where all the girls were gathered. Found it strange that the store is literally run by teenagers with no adult or manager on-site. As I walked through the group of girls to grab one of the business cards, one stops talking to ask if I needed help, as I was walking out the door. I told her I couldn’t find anything I was looking for and was going to email the manager to see if I could get help. She said “okay”, and got back to talking with her coworkers, not even standing up off her stool.

For someone like me who doesn’t play specific tabletop games that they cater to, you will walk away disappointed. Not having much of anything I wanted or needed and getting nowhere fast with the employees, I didn’t even bother to search the other side of the store that had other stuff I might have been interested in like board games and RPGs.

I’m all about supporting local businesses, even if they have higher prices, so I can get good service and ask questions but I wasn’t able get any service, which kind of defeats the purpose of wanting to shop local. Im sure they have their regular clients but in my experience, it was a very disappointing trip and one that I won’t be making again . I guess large as it is, with as many people they had standing around, I was expecting to walk away happy with a purchase, but instead walked away empty handed...

What can I say that hasn't already been said? Games and Stuff is the definitive game store for board games, war games, card games, tabletop RPGs, miniature painting supplies, and anything adjacent to them. Their location is massive and yet it still manages to feel bigger and bigger every time I go in. The walls are lined with product, with only the windows and doors being open to let you peer in. They have things that nobody else carries in Maryland and they somehow always manage to have the latest releases no matter how small the game is. They have more games than you could hope to play in a lifetime and then some. On top of this their used games program is some real next-level stuff with games being wrapped in special rubber banding to not damage the box but keep it secure, and a checklist card telling you exactly how complete the used copy is. This same dedication goes to their trading card singles and their old RPG book collection, multiple stuffed to the brim bookshelves of the pen and paper of decades past and some of the rarest cards out there at very reasonable prices. For you painters and modelers out there they have it all. Citadel, Vallejo, Warcolours, and even some rare stuff like Turbodork and Greenstuff World are accompanied by Secret Weapon, FFG, and BSI products to give you everything you need. I have never come in here and not found what I wanted or needed. They even have Grex airbrushes and compressors with the full catalog of replacement parts. If you've never heard of Grex, they're the real deal and I envy anyone who has one of their brushes. By the way, their gaming area is the envy of the biggest gaming clubs. There is a tremendous library of open-play board games and terrain for their warming tables plus over a dozen, maybe even two dozen, tables for card games, board games, and smaller games like X Wing. There's something going on every day in there. Do take time to admire the severed heads of dragons and mindflayers on plaques around the gaming zone, they were a pain to slay and look very cool. Their staff is also not just numerous but diverse and some of the most friendly and genuinely kind people I have ever met. It goes beyond being courteous to the customer, they will legit play games with you to demo them and have a true love for what they sell. On the rarest of days will you fail to find someone on their staff who hasn't played the game you're eyeing up. My most common conundrum is buying online or buying from Games and Stuff, they're that good. Anything I find online they almost definitely have day of. And if they don't they can order it for you, reserved in your name. Do not pass them up, they are a glowing near-flawless diamond in the world of FLGS, and I am proud to be their patron. How often can anyone say they have pride in giving someone their...