Retro PC and Game Store BEEP Akihabara Relocates, Grand Opens June 6
The relocation of a decade-old retro gaming hub to a newly developed elevated commercial zone signals a shift in Akihabara's retail geography, as the area under the train tracks becomes a new destination for niche hobby culture.
Reporting from 2 sources: GAME Watch (Impress), Game Spark.
Retro PC and game specialty store BEEP will grand open its relocated Akihabara store on June 6. The new location is inside SEEKBASE AKI-OKA MANUFACTURE, a commercial facility under the elevated railway between JR Akihabara Station and Okachimachi Station in Chiyoda, Tokyo. The previous Akihabara store, which operated for 10 years in the Chuei Building B1, closed on May 17. The new store, operated by Sangatsu Usagi no Mori, will maintain business hours from 11:00 to 20:00 and be closed on Wednesdays. BEEP buys and sells retro PCs, games, and electronic hobby culture items, and is also working on the Bishoujo Game Revival Project, which recently released Windows versions of Kurutta Kajitsu (originally from 1992) and Metal Orange EX on May 29. The new location is about seven minutes on foot from the East Exit of JR Akihabara Station and about five minutes from the Electric Town North Exit, with easy access from Okachimachi Station as well.
The new BEEP store occupies Building 3 of SEEKBASE AKI-OKA MANUFACTURE, a commercial facility that has been drawing attention for its location directly under the JR railway viaduct connecting Akihabara and Okachimachi stations. The address is 15-1 Uenohirokoji, Sotokanda, Chiyoda-ku. The store's phone and fax number is 03-6206-9116. BEEP's broader mission includes preserving Japanese game and PC culture, and its Bishoujo Game Revival Project has been actively re-releasing classic titles. The most recent releases, Kurutta Kajitsu and Metal Orange EX, launched on May 29 and have drawn advance play reports from Game Spark. The Akihabara store had been in its previous basement location for a full decade before closing on May 17. The new space is designed to be more accessible from both major stations, with walking times of about seven minutes from the JR Akihabara East Exit and about five minutes from the Electric Town North Exit.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 2 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.
Sources
- GAME Watch (Impress) レトロ PC・ゲーム専門店「BEEP」秋葉原店、新店舗が6月6日にグランドオープン
- Game Spark “美少女ゲーム復刻プロジェクト”にも取り組むレトロPC/ゲーム販売「BEEP」の秋葉原店が移転―6月6日より新店舗としてグランドオープン！