Illusive Comics & Games, LLC — Local services in Santa Clara

The games part of the name is kind of a misnomer. There's more funko pops than tabletop games in the store beyond TCGs. Additionally the mask rules are a mess. Masks in 2025 ok it's your store and you're providing them so cool. The problem is the requirement changes depending on the time of day(especially before noon for some reason they're required?) and in what part of the store you're in which just leads to people taking them on and off constantly.

Replying to tell me about the product and inventory in the area at the back of the store that I can't enter without going back up to the front of the store to get a mask proves my point. As I said I don't mind a mask requirement, that's fine. Just make it consistent. Who wants to walk into the store, find part of it inaccessible, have to walk back to the front then to the back of the store again? Some people might browse like that, but I wasn't expecting it after seeing that it was past noon and I didn't need to grab a mask per your own policy. It's not like I drove to the shopping center there just for your store, I popped in to browse and see if I found anything interesting while I was already in the area for something else, only to find that I couldn't browse 1/3 of the store without making an extra lap around it. If I have to go back to the front door empty handed without even being able to see the whole place at that point I may as well just leave, which I did.

Additionally, I didn't see any tabletop miniature games besides a couple of small warhammer shelves toward the front. If there were any D&D minis or other tabletop miniature games I couldn't find them. Star Wars? Conquest? Halo? Infinity? Battletech? Bolt Action, Team Yankee, Konflikt '47, Marvel Crisis Protocol? I didn't see any of that. I'm not going to say I expected to see all of those, but there just wasn't anything. Might be easier to browse the store as well without the 8 foot tall funko pop tower in the middle of the place, or not apparently keeping inventory behind a roped off and walled off area that requires people to squeeze in front of eachother in the 3 foot wide gap in front of the cash register at the TCG counter(for which there is a line, so ending up in super close proximity to people with and without...

Hands down the best game store in Silicon Valley!

Best Pricing in the Area Being a pricey area, most games stores in this area charge absurd amounts over MSRP for board games. Illusive Comics and Games is the only store I’ve found with pricing that is close to, if not exactly at, MSRP. I cannot stress enough how rare it is to find a game store that doesn’t charge an absurd mark up for board games in this area. This is a store I am happy to support and is the only game store in the area where I can find games at the prices they should actually be!

Huge Selection This store has a huge selection of board games, comics, accessories, and other stuff. I sometimes stop by just to check out their new in stock shelves and their sale table. Always stuff cycling in and out.

Friendly Environment This shop’s regulars and employees are so kind and friendly. I’ve bumped into some great people here randomly and have had nothing but positive experiences shopping here. It’s surprising how hard it is to find a game store in Silicon Valley that fosters such a great community. This place is really a gem in this aspect compared to the other shops I’ve been to in the area.

Convenient This place is really convenient to shop at. They have a customer loyalty program that actually benefits customers and all of their game inventory is available to search for or purchase on their website. I love being able to check what’s in stock before I visit if I’m looking for something specific. Additionally, if they are out of stock on a product or do not carry it, they can order it for you and notify you when it’s in stock. (I had an obscure RPG I was trying to find at market price for two years and couldn’t. Then one day while I was in looking at board games, the employee overheard me talking about that game and she said that they don’t have it, but could order it for me. Two weeks later, I got a call it was in stock and at the price I was looking for! I’m still eternally grateful for helping me find “Thousand Year Old Vampire”!!!!)

This shop truly is something special. They do such a fantastic job of keeping a great stock of games and comics, fostering a positive and friendly community, and has great prices! If you are in the area, I highly recommend you...

I'm primarily a video gamer who has recently caught the modern board gaming bug. However, I am not interested in Magic: The Gathering whatsoever, so I can't really speak to that very active scene's presence at this location, other than they clearly do carry at least some MtG stuff.

In my opinion, this store is everything a local game shop should be, hindered only by its relatively small size. The staff is super friendly and engaging. They actively host all kinds of special events. At least half the floor space is dedicated to open gaming space which can be used without reservations or fees. The selection of demo games is massive. Their rewards program is extremely generous compared to most stores nowadays. They have plenty of snacks, which are admittedly expensive, but reasonable considering the previous points. Really, this place is a gamer's paradise.

The only issue I have is that the retail part of the business is so small that you really can't expect to go in and find a specific title you want. I'm sure you can order or preorder anything, but at that point, you may as well buy online, save money, and get faster shipping. If you're a casual gamer who is just looking for any board or card game in general, then that's perfectly fine. You can go in, ask questions, find a suitable title, and walk away perfectly happy with a new game. But this place is clearly by and for gamers, and having such a small selection does affect them more.

So in summary, this store is a blessing, and deserves a full 5 stars and a round of applause. However, just because a game is common, popular, or highly awarded, don't expect them to necessarily have it in stock, because the retail section only makes up about 20% of the floor space.

EDIT: In my original review, I listed several discrepancies in their stock, such as having expansions but not base games, but in the weeks since, they've stocked many of the titles I listed. So in fairness to them, I think they probably rotate stock frequently, so if there's a title you want, ask and they may have it. This is really a major improvement over the only weakness I...