Pink Gorilla Games, the famous Seattle-based retro gaming store, has been subjected to armed robbery, forcing the owners to consider relocating after 17 years.
As reported by our friends over at Time Extension, the incident occured on Monday night, during which a hooded and masked man demanded money and collectible cards after pretending to check out. He allegedly repeatedly asked the store assistants for a bag before branishing a firearm.
The exchange was caught on surveillance, but this was not enough to deter the offending individual, who - according to Pink Gorilla spokesperson Jordan Carson - carried out the crime because "his brother or someone was in the hospital".
In speaking with Fox13 Seattle, Carson said:
"It was very casual, he had his hands in his pocket the whole time, it was a subtle motion, but it got the job done. I knew he had a gun.
"In the moment, the conern was for me and Ash (co-worker) to just get out of there with no harm. It was an easy choice to give him what he wanted."
The incident folows multiple instances of theft from the store in just the last six months alone, with store owner Cody Spencer now indicating that a relocation may well be in order:
""This is our original location. We’ve been there 17 years. It’s a major Seattle tourist attraction. Relocating would be heartbreaking and financially devastating."
In responding to a thread reply, Spencer also indicated that his focus remains on the safety of his colleagues over any monetary value potentially lost, stating that "I just can't operate with this type of threat".
At the time of writing, police are still searching for the offending robber.
[source q13fox.com, via timeextension.com]
Comments 91
It's really sad how often these locations get robbed. I know of a few local game stores that have lost tens of thousands of dollars due to robberies. Lots of these places don't necessarily have the funds to install high-end security systems, either.
This is why we can't have nice things... Guns in games is one thing, guns in life is something else... ☹️
The saddest thing is these types of stores are already in short supply.
If anyone truly cares about gaming they wouldn’t do this as it ensures these stores won’t be around for their kids to enjoy.
"Last July they were broken into twice"
Welcome to the new crime wave. Back to the 1980's & 90's.
Metal Jesus gone rogue?
Hope the Police catch this punk. People that have spent their lives working hard and building up a business don't deserve this.
Well that’s incredibly rough. I know this store, from it being owned by Kelsey Lewin, who puts great content out every week for her charity, The Video Game History Foundation and even more with MinnMax. And the store itself, I’ve heard nothing but glowing reports from those who visit it, so it really is a shame that it might have to go through a relocation process.
I’ve never thought about the risk of running a store based largely on their collector-value and how that attracts the absolute worst kinds of people, but it does help explain why local game/card shops are few, far between and thinning.
Super sad. All the comics/collectible/card shops near me closed up years ago because the business isn't exactly lucrative to begin with... now this place has to deal with punks trying to take a cut? Ridiculous.
That’s horrible. Hope they catch the scumbag. Down on your luck doesn’t give you the right to take from others. Hope the dude’s family in the hospital figures it out and condemns him. This is never ok.
I didn't mean to insult somebody but I really hate to see a Western culture where you must be a badass people by using gun, harming peoples, doing criminals to make you a truly adult people in America especially because I oftenly heard about those criminals mostly from America.
Why do those sad peoples have to lost their compassion with other people's and built their selfnishness by harming other peoples?
I suspect the Western movies / video games with every single things about rated M stuffs probably gave them some ideas to be the baddest peoples as possible to be look cool.
Maybe my opinion is wrong, give me some correction since I'm not American people, I have no idea how was living in America.
Crazy and sad. Niche standalone stores like this are great in a world filled with massive chains and warehouses.
Seattle is a very dangerous city these days, no real law enforcement, and the city leadership seems like they couldn't care less about issues like public safety, so this isn't surprising.
@Anti-Matter half the population lives in poverty. Healthcare is a luxury, not a right.
Poverty causes desperate and terrible acts.
@Anti-Matter I don't really want to be turning this into a political debate, but there is a lot going on in America that has created an issue with gangs and crime where theft has become rampant in many big cities across the country. In some cities it's gotten out of control. Thief's are always opportunistic though, most of them are just doing it because they are desperate for whatever reason and know they can get away with it.
@Anti-Matter That is an irresponsible comment. As ketrac pointed out, the main driver of crime in America is poverty, institutional racism and misogyny, as well as access to weapons. There may be a toxic masculinity component, but this and other cultural problems America has are not due to violent media itself. But, thats not to say its the only thing, there are serious and violent crimes everywhere to a degree. Its a very very complicated subject.
Blaming media for giving people "ideas" both isn't true and unproductive, it takes focus away from real causes and real solutions using a bogeyman. Blaming media only does harm to innocent people who consume it responsibly. Anyone who does something "because" of media was already willing and capable.
@spottedleaf Pretty sure misogyny and toxic masculinity aren't what's driving theft and armed robbery lol. Sounds like unrelated issues.
Given the above comments, I’d love to see Anti-Matter’s comment, but he blocked me after he clearly misunderstood that I was trying to stand up for him in a comment section a few months ago 🙃
@JayJ Actually, the reason for those things is because people who view use of force as a masculine ideal or obligation and are under sociel pressure to be "tough" over dealing with things in a productive way may be swayed to crime. Do some research.
Re:misogyny, gendered violence is a huge issue in itself.
@Belatarr Honestly, drugs are probably the #1 cause for these issues. It's no secret how many major cities have serious problems with drug abusers, and they are usually the people ripping people off for drug money.
@spottedleaf That sounds more like domestic abuse than theft.
@Markiemania95 He blocked me too, and the comment section of Nintendolife has been a lot more pleasant ever since haha
@JayJ reply was talking about crime broadly to a post that was talking about crime broadly. lots more gendered violence than domestic abuse.
@spottedleaf Well I suppose that's included in generalized crime, but then again this is a topic about theft and armed robbery.
@JayJ but Jay, the misogyny! LMFAO. You nailed it originally, unchecked crime and basically handing out a free pass to looters with zero repercussions has got us here. But lets make this kotaku and pretend that someones little sausage is to blame for all this. TOXIC MASCULINITY!
@Belatarr This 100%. Its easy to blame the left but at the end of the day they are the same exact party beneath the skin. Our system has gotten us here.
It only took 15 comments to turn political. Haha. Ill join!
1) This is of course very sad but the owner did the right thing to comply. Things can be replaced. Lives cannot.
2) Being in Seattle was thier first mistake. Haha. Terrible, anti-freedom leadership at the state level.
3) This is why I carry everywhere. I'm a concealed carry license holder and never go anywhere without my firearm (Taurus G2C 9mm). I pray I'll never ever have to use it but won't regret for a second if I need to defend someone or myself. Statistically speaking, criminals don't want a gunfight and often thier guns are airsoft or painted toys OR they are untrained and can't use them well. They just wanna get in and out with no trouble. If more people in the US took advantage of the 2nd Amendment and responsibly carried and trained, crime would actually go down a lot. Criminals will get guns no matter what so we may as well increase defenders everywhere as a deterent.
4) I dont know what the specific gun laws are in Seattle but here in Utah, its still the wild west. Many people carry and if someone draws a weapon on you like in a situation like this, it's considered a deadly threat and lethal force is justified.
Ok, I'm done!
PS. I won't be replying to any argumentative comments. Just thought I'd leave my two cents before the comments got shut down. Haha.
Hope the store owners can recover and the baddie gets caught.
Hang on, let me get my popcorn out.
It's really sad that this is happening. The way the world is, it makes me want to do some crazy things. Why can't we just have online retro stores that won't just price gouge you? I mean, DK Oldies is a good one. It's where my parents bought Banjo-Kazooie for me.
@JayJ I'm so grateful for people like you who have thier head on straight. Lol
@Anti-Matter well, it really ain’t just in the US. I’m actually from Canada and moved here, and there were gun crimes all the time up there, knives too. As hard as it is to believe, the US really isn’t all bad. People just target them cuz they’re big and have the 2nd amendment.
@invictus4000,
My issue with this is that carrying a concealed firearm in most cases is the illusion of safety, rather than a thing that would actually keep you safe.
Almost like being a gun owner at home, do you sit there with your gun in hand just waiting for a criminal with a goon to show up, if you were in bed do you politely ask the gun toting criminal, to just wait a second while you go and grab and load your weapon.
Same as being out in a restaurant, as you surely could not eat with your gun in your hand, and this of course making sure you are on guard as it were in the first place.
There are certain circumstances, but as a regular law abiding person these situations would be very rare.
@JayJ it’s actually really depressing, yeah. Vancouver is pretty bad too though… We just need some good leadership and things will get better. They always do.
@johnvboy I own a few guns myself, mainly for hunting purposes, and the sad thing is, most of the steriotype of constantly having a gun on you is only true in poorer areas… I’m lucky to live in a very safe town where crime is rare, but if people would just lock up their weapons properly, crime would be much less, specifically from younger people who can’t buy them themselves…
@johnvboy Good comment. Luckily, these self defense situations are indeed rare which I'm grateful for but they do happen. But thats the difference between just owning a gun and having it locked up in the basement and actually carrying and TRAINING with it. I do have a gun ready to go in several places in my house and when I carry outside, I'm always alert for danger and locked and loaded. If a goon is suddenly coming at me whether on the street or at home I feel I'd be ready.
I'm a 20-year martial artist though so maybe my sense of defensive situations is a little higher than the average person. Haha
@spottedleaf exactlyyy! Thank you for pointing this out! I was gonna say something but I was afraid to lol.
@Eagly Funny you mention High School DxD. Coincidence, perhaps?
@Belatarr we’re gonna be okay. America always finds a way through tough times. We were also extremely divided in the 1960s and we got through that. We’re gonna be fine. Things will get safer and better.
@PARK1755 I like your optimistic attitude.
@Eagly,
This crime has nothing to do with slavery.
The people who have committed the crime are to blame, no matter who they are.
@invictus4000,
I still think I would do what you do, as you just never know.
@spottedleaf Despite loving Zelda, I don't carry swords, bows, hookshots or other things.
......at least in public.
Aww, that sucks. I hope they manage to find the culprit, especially because a lot of retro collector stores these days are always closing down or going through similar things.
@invictus4000 Aw thanks. This is my adopted homeland and I want to do everything I can to preserve it for my children. May god bless America. 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
@PARK1755,
You are correct, every country will have it's no go areas, but on the whole you are still very unlikely to be the victim of crime.
The media pushes the agenda of streets being unsafe, it's just a way to give more power to their chosen political party.
@Eagly,
I am not sure it's as big an issue as the media suggests, but like you say can't be used as an excuse, if true or not.
@johnvboy yeah… the media just slanders this poor country into oblivion…
@spottedleaf petty teft like this has nothing to do with 'being though' or gang culture. These are usually very sad people that believe its a last resort or are addicted. Not defending the thief here btw.
@jcboyer515 Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, which is one of my favourite games, has caused increased theft of shiny objects.
The robbers are always found to have threatened violence by throwing vegetables and shining bright lights into eyes.
IT IS MADNESS.
I wonder if it was during "A mainly peaceful protest" ?
This is awful but glad to hear the employees are safe.
It's events like these why I'm ok with emulation (I know it sounds weird but hear me out). Older consoles/games are being stolen more and more frequently, it's even happened to a friend of mine. Thefts range from high profile like this to casual ("it was in my dorm room one day and the next gone"). The value of these items are skyrocketing because parent companies will not re-release/support older items. Some of these things are worth as much as a used car and the problems are only going to get worse. At least emulation gives an opportunity to everyone to play older games at little or no cost.
Who knew that defunding the police and letting criminals out with little more than a slap on the wrist would cause things like this to happen. Obviously I am glad the employees are safe and nobody was harmed, but at the end of the day, you get what you voted for.
But you know, people will blame guns and not the people handling them or the DA’s who let out violent criminals.
Also why the heck is this considered gaming news.
@PARK1755 Amen to that! 🇺🇸 🇺🇸
@Brad_Hogan This was definitely a mostly peaceful robbery. No harm no foul. 🤣 😂
@Axecon Justifying steeling with steeling are you!!
(joking)
@Belatarr
Yeah that is true. I just don’t see how this is relevant to gaming news, much less Nintendo news. But I did make a decent sized political comment so I really don’t have much room to talk
@PARK1755,
Your country is fine, if you looked at the situation in proportion to the 330 million or so people that live there, then the issues are very small indeed.
And none of this would stop me taking holidays in the U.S, been to the west coast and Orlando thus far.
@blindsquarel,
It's for the outrage and clicks, and the site sure knows it's audience.
@Eagly,
Listen there will always be various circumstances behind some crimes, but at what point do you draw the line, in the eyes of the law it's all crime no matter how hard we try and justify it.
Terrible news to hear. Local video game stores are already in a tough position post-pandemic (retro-focused ones especially) and stuff like this only makes things even worse in that regard. Hope the owners can carry on in Seattle and not have to move, that'd be a devastating blow for the community if that were to happen.
@Belatarr,
Totally agree, in the U.K the police are more interested in punishing people for posting mean Tweets, rather than actually tackling real crimes.
@JayJ I completely agree. I used to live in greater King county (and also Seattle for a while years ago), and it is a scary place now. All of my friends and family that were still living there have all moved.
I also know a lot of businesses that have had to move or closed down because crime is so bad.
these comments are mind-numbing. sorry for the terrible news to the store owner, i've watched them stream a couple times
@JayJ It's as bad, or worse, in Portland. Almost completely lawless. That being said, I hope this turns around for the store! I hope this idiot gets caught.
@JayJ - You made some points, but forgot to mention, Seattle is one of the cities that reduced the police funding and has not since reinvested into the city in any shape or form.
I lived in one of the other cities, did auditing for retail stores in some bad places. There was a consistent stabbing attempt up until that point. Even the local McDonald's closed shop after a robbery happened hours after they opened from a previous robbery.
@Belatarr @blindsquarel As big retro gamers, news that one of the most well-known retro game stores in the US has been robbed feels absolutely relevant to our readers and worthy of an article.
Given the subject and some of the comments above, I'd like to remind all commenters to keep our Community Rules in mind before posting. Thanks.
@dartmonkey,
Thanks for the warning, but we both know this will be closed at some point.
@Belatarr,
For the most part pretty good natured.
@Belatarr,
The problem is outside of the more trolling posts, there are reasonable posts from any side of an explosive debate.
Problem is most times you are divided into agree or disagree, with very little room for either nuance or context, or in most cases either on the side of good or bad.
@Belatarr "Canada is trying to pass laws that allow depressed people to commit suicide"
Funny how you moan about the West "employing totalitarian laws", yet endorse totalitarism by opposing euthanasia/the right to die. Hypocrite much?
@RubyCarbuncle Nope. Never. Not in Seattle. We have a very lax policy on crime. You can start by blaming our idiot judges:
https://komonews.com/news/local/king-county-presiding-judge-explains-why-some-defendants-go-free-after-arrest
Can't say I have heard of the store, but it is sad that they are at a point where they even have to consider moving because of this. This is why we can't have nice things. Regardless of what they do, I hope they land on their feet.
Off-topic, been skimming through the comments, and noticed I've been blocked by someone, which I don't think has happened before. Not sure what I did to **** them off, but whatever.
Oh no - I was in Seattle a few weeks ago, visiting from UK, and very close to one of their stores! I would have popped in if i had known it existed!!
@johnvboy oh nice! I’d recommend you visit Utah. Probably my favorite state and I’m very happy I moved here. Cheers mate, what’s a good place to visit in the UK if you don’t mind me asking?
@Anti-Matter That is absolutely a stereotype.
People aren't going to think you're a "badass" for owning a gun.
We don't think you're a "truly adult person" if you're a criminal. If you're a criminal, we're just going to think you're an ***** better off avoided.
Thinking everyone in the US owns a gun is incredibly stereotyped information.
Most people don't own guns, some people own many guns.
Crime is almost certainly more common in the inner cities, probably through factors like population density, and distribution of public funds (particularly like education).
It is very complicated.
Being a terrible person only makes you impressive to other terrible people.
bruh... if you are gonna rob a store... just rob a bank or something... not a gaming store for some pokèmon
@Belatarr So earlier on you were harping about "keeping the discussion civil" and "the marketplace of ideas", but when a flaw in your argument is pointed out you resort to childish ad hominem? What a load of BS, but that's to be expected with you people.
@invictus4000 I live in Washington (not Seattle, thank God), but I agree with you.
I think there is one important thing you declined to mention: from what I have heard about Utah, you guys still have a high level of respect for each other. That isn't present in a lot of Washington any more. I have heard nothing but good things about people from Utah, so you are definitely doing something right.
@PARK1755,
Sounds good, there are so many cool places to visit in the U.S.
@Belatarr.
Yes the side that sees itself as good, will always say the other side is not reasonable and non inclusive, which is why these discussions rarely end well, a lot of stuff is based on feelings rather than actual facts, and when somebody mentions facts, the name calling and labeling starts.
@Belatarr "I was just called a hypocrite based on one comment mentioning facts" No, you referred to the right to die / legal euthanasia as totalitarian, which is objectively incorrect. Assuming that you want things to be banned, then who is the totalitarian? It's you.
@jcboyer515 you know, I don't think he's totally wrong. I think maybe it's part of a bigger puzzle. As a parent, I've noticed a BIG change with my kids' friends that have unchecked access to violent media.
Don't get me wrong, I consume violent media myself, but I also can self-regulate and lead a balanced life with happier things. I'm beginning to wonder if these "researchers" have kids, because you can't tell me a young kid with a developing brain that watches stuff like Squid Game, listens to aggressive music more often, than goes off to play more violent games isn't somehow affected over time.
If I did that non-stop as an adult I can tell you for a fact that it would affect me.
We consume media more than any other time in history (especially our children), and I think it is worth noting that my kids are limited by what my wife and I think is appropriate, and they seem way happier than those that are unmonitored. But what do I know? I'm probably ignorant too.
@johnvboy It's gonna get even worse with our new PM!
I live in Seattle and know this area. It is indeed sad to witness the decline of downtown Seattle these past several years.
I think there have been two big factors contributing to this problem that I haven't seen mentioned in the comments: the extremely rapid growth from the presence of major tech companies (Amazon + Microsoft), and then covid.
With the huge economic growth brought by Amazon and Microsoft in the 2010s came a lot of collateral damage. Those who were participants of the boom experienced huge spikes income in the form of rapidly rising stock prices (amazon, microsoft) while local residents not part of this boom got almost none of the upside while experiencing all of the downside in the form of increasing rent and housing costs (caused by the former bidding up housing). People who were already struggling before this tech boom would have had it the worst. Alongside all this wealth was a big increase in inequality. An income $100k is not nearly enough here unless you live very far away.
Then came covid. Things were already getting bad before covid but this really accelerated it. Essentially all the tech people went to work from home in the wealthy suburbs while downtown seattle became a ghost town. All those restaurants and shops that sprang up to serve the Amazon employees lost a lot of customers. This is now slowly coming back but its not the same yet.
Anecdotally I remember back in summer of 2013, when the Amazon boom was in its early stages, talking to a local blue-collar worker about the nearby construction of two large Amazon towers (with many more to follow), plus "the spheres" . He was gushing with optimism and excitement about how great it all was for the local economy, how when the construction is done there will be new restaurants and shops and those will create jobs as well, in addition to the Amazon offices. His prediction mostly panned out but it didn't end being as beneficial as expected sadly, and I wonder what that person would say today.
Full disclosure: I was one of the lucky ones who gained from the tech boom
Watching this site devolve into r/KotakuInAction is really depressing. We even have the obligatory debunked political articles being used to prop up fantasies of things that are not actually happening.
I am in Seattle and my God is the crime bad. I moved to the suburbs but work in Seattle proper. The crime and homelessness and drug abuse is disgusting. The politicians DO NOT CARE about the average working citizen. They only care about letting criminals and homelessness run rampant and blame the system (that they are running) and treat the criminals as the victim. I've been attacked by homeless people twice while walking near work. Absolute BS Democratic stronghold of a government that refuses to actually make the city work for the average citizen.
@Belatarr I agree with you there too. We have social media pretty locked down at our house. I can't believe I forgot to mention that!! My daughter's friends are so obsessed with social media and the people on it (and by extension, my daughter to a smaller degree) that it is absolutely frightening.
I think that with all of these elements combined, can we really be surprised that we have kids and adults that are extremely narcissistic and lack basic compassion, without the ability to kindly reason with or discuss issues with others in a respectful way? Instead, we have adults being cruel to each other over differences of politics and opinions, and our kids are watching and emulating all of it.
Thanks for the reminder. You're totally right.
@invictus4000 whew, took me a while to stop laughing after the "anti-freedom" comment in your first post.
I was in Seattle back in 2015 for a conference. The Space Needle was cool and so was the original Starbucks. The piles of poop in the highway park were not, and neither were the streets that filled up with druggies and derelicts every day. Sounds like the city has just become more of a garage pit since then. Sucks for them, but that city is a lost cause.
@umbreon_sylveon I hear ya. I live in Spokane and it is getting terrible here too. The last 5 years have turned this town into a cesspool. We used to have a shooting or 2 every year, now it's almost every day. Tons of drugs, violence, etc. We really want to move somewhere smaller.
I'm Canadian living in America in New England, and sure there is gang violence and general crime, but I haven't seen too much negative stuff that didn't happen in Canada. Actually I have seen less out in the open stuff. mostly drug related stuff/ seeing a guy shoot up in front of me stuff like that. comparing Canada to the USA is apples and oranges. the USA has over 300 million people compared to 36 million in Canada. its a country that is constantly under a microscope. certain things do need to change here definitely. but I think when you have international recognition such as this gaming store, unfortunately you are a target. and from what is happening with them lately people know there is $$ in this place. they should probably move to better location like in a mall with security. they will pay more money for the location etc. but at least they are protected somewhat. I think the Japanese saying is the nail that sticks out the farthest gets hammered first? something like that anyway haha
Okay, it's the end of the day in our part of the world, so we'll be closing down the comments section for the evening.
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