Community Corner
Failed Geek Trivia Night Spawns Successful Game Day
Board gamers from across the St. Louis Metro area flock to St. Charles Fantasy Shop every other month for a 12-hour buffet of games, pizza, candy and fun.
It’s odd to see a strip mall parking lot overflowing with cars on a beautiful Saturday.
Step inside the Fantasy Shop in St. Charles and the serene summer weather gives way to a loud hum of enthusiastic voices. At one table, people ask if anyone has wood for sheep. At another, half a dozen calm people suddenly point foam-gun silhouettes at one another’s heads then break into giggles. Everyone is hopped up on the seemingly limitless variety of sugary snacks.
“This is amazing,” said Jennifer Keith, a visitor from Missoula, MT. Keith and her husband play board games at home so she decided to stop in the Fantasy Shop to see if they stocked anything new.
“I’d never heard of Game Day before," she said. "The store staff told me everyone was friendly, so I thought I’d give it a try. What do you know? I’ve been adopted by these guys.” She waved at a quartet of gamers in their 20s.
Game Day began six years ago as a failed trivia night.
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Mark Finefield, who also runs multiple Magic: The Gathering events at organized a geek-themed trivia event complete with food, prizes and table competitions.
“Mine was the only team that showed up, so we played board games instead,” Finefield said. Everyone had such a good time they asked to do it again. One failed trivia night turned into 36 incredibly popular bimonthly Game Days. Finefield said he’ll keep organizing them as long as people keep having fun.
On even-numbered months, Finefield hauls his collection of more than 400 board games to The Fantasy Shop. A couple weeks before the event, he starts shopping at Costco for gamer fuel in the form of an assortment of full-sized candy bars, chips, cinnamon rolls, cupcakes, brownies, sodas, plus healthier options such as an immense veggie tray with dip, and Diet Snapple for the healthier set. He provides chicken, beef, pork, and vegetarian Mr. Goodcents subs for lunch and 42 pizzas for dinner.
“It’s 12 hours of gaming,” said Finefield. “If they have to leave for food, I’m not doing my job right.”
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In addition to what several participants described as an “epic” amount of candy to tide people over between meals, Finefield also raffles off a dozen games throughout the course of the day.
The Fantasy Shop staff said they were incredibly lucky to have someone from the community run such a well attended, popular event at their store. Between 100-150 people show up on an average month, and many of them buy games they just played.
“Mr. Finefield is amazing,” said Daniel Wolf, an employee of The Fantasy Shop. “Anything he makes on Game Day he puts right back into it. The entire 400-game library is his personal collection, and he’s always buying more and sharing them with people. He’s such an organized, generous man.”
Finefield modestly brushed off any praise, insisting he had many friends to thank for helping make the bimonthly events successful.
“It’s a 16-hour day,” said Andrew Bott, who assists Finefield with game days. They met nearly a decade ago and bonded over Magic: The Gathering.
“We show up around 10 a.m. to start setting up, then clean up the place after the store closes at midnight,” he said.
In between, both Bott and Finefield make time to relax and play plenty of games themselves. “It’s a great atmosphere," Bott said. "Everyone’s relaxed. They’re here to have fun.”
Ami Wessler, a St. Charles mother of three, said her husband has come to the Fantasy Shop since he was a kid.
“I like the Game Day," she said. "I have kids at home, so all my board games are on a kid level. I like playing the more complicated grown-up games. I played Settlers of Catan today. I think I want a copy of my own.”
Ben Whiteman, who has attended for more than a year, brought along three first-time friends. He said there are so many great games on the market these days that trying to decide which ones to try without playing them first can be almost crippling.
“I buy more games because of Game Day," he said. "If I didn’t get to try any of them out first, I probably wouldn’t buy many games. I’ve never seen anything else like this.”
Jennifer Keith agreed. She said she and her friends in Missoula play board games for fun, but the city doesn’t have a full, daylong buffet of games. “If I lived here I’d come every single month,” Keith said.
Game Day takes place at the Fantasy Shop in St. Charles on the second Saturday of even numbered months. The next one will be August 13.