Computer City

Pigman II

Anyone remember this place? It was a shop at Parnell Square in Dublin that used to rent computer games for non-console platforms such as the C64 and Amiga (amonst others).

Renting games is commonplace these days but the idea of renting games in the early 90's was a novel one and I used to eagerly look forward to my Saturday morning trip into town to see what could be picked up and rented for a week before it had to be returned.

I think the place closed down sometime in the mid-90's and is now a restaurant.

Anyway I thought it'd be nice to have a thread about this place.

CCCP^

I thought I saw some kind of Computer Game shop up around those parts recently, but not in Parnell Square.

RuggieBear

cathal brugha st wasn't it.

Great for ST games too.

Skatedude

I was so pissed off when that place closed, used to get most of my games there.

unclebill98

My Bro worked there!!!

I think the started off on Capel Street and then moved over to there, was at the back of the old Eircom/Telecom E building on O'Connell Street.

monkeyfudge

RuggieBear wrote: »

cathal brugha st wasn't it.

Great for ST games too.

Yep. It was on Cathal Brugha Street... next to the Lions Den coffee shop.

I used to use it all the time through my C64 and Amiga years.

RobbieMc

Ah yes, Saturday mornings in Dublin city centre. Spending time in Computer city. That brings back memories.
How about the Atari computer club, held once a month in that hotel on Kildare street.

The good old days, carting all my ST gear into town.

Rob

superfly

yes i used to go in there every saturday in my Spectrum and Amiga days and i remember one day they said they weren't renting out due to a stock take but then it closed down
But i do remember one of the guys in there set up his own shop on Capell St. but they were dearer and a longer walk and shut down pretty quickly
I heard CC closed because of a protection scam

dazberry

Computer City is still going - but its not the Computer City you all remember - but its run by the same guy (just don't accept offer of one of his music CDs - they're terrible).

I had a C64 and saw a C128 there, and they let me do a swap for £20. I was of course delighted until 2 weeks later having come into a sum of money they wouldn't take the C128 back as part exchange on an Amiga - I was gutted. In fact so gutted was I that I think my mother went in and gave them an ear full over it!

D.

superfly

where is it?

Dexterm99

I think that place also used to be called Complete Computer Systems. They also had a place out in Palmerstown shopping center.

I remember going into the Cathal Brugha shop to buy a C64 and having to bring it back about a dozen times so I never went back.

Tallon

I remember my mam use to rent the PSone from xtravision for me and my bro every weekend

Solidius

I goggled computer city and found there website https://www.ccity.ie/site/ there computer traders now...and I fondly remember this shop too..loved there amiga PD section..all that 17-bit software without sending to the uk...sweet..and the owner Greg Gaygon..small tom cruise wannabe..lol, the one up in capel st..was "Premiere Computers"..ran by the scam artist Jason Elliott..he didn't last very long..due to tax evasion, god knows where he is now...I used to trade 8-bit warez with that guy..

Royale with Cheese

There's one in Ballybrack village. Used to rent pc games (well once you'd installed it you had the full game back in those days), and later master system games from them. It's been trade only for years at this stage. Not 100% sure it's still there but it was a few years ago.

Ha, remember seeing the greg.ie posters in the windows a few years back, never heard the music, but remember reading somewhere about how innovative his approach to distributing it was supposed to be.

devereux08

Jesus thats a blast from the past "computer city" !i remember going in with my father to get my c64 tapedeck fixed (for all you youngings a tapedeck is a device whereby you put a cassette in typed in load and return and you sat and watched a very basic coloured screen and listened to dodgy binary tunes fo upto 15 minutes before you could play ....ah simple times)
very friendly guys! i got a copy of f16 combat pilot that day too,absolute class!

TinCool

I believe he actually started out from his parents house in Knocklyon for a few years before moving in to town.

hoppo254

Such a shame these type of shops are almost all gone now thanks to GAME and GAMESTOP.

Having worked in GAME i was dissapointed at how sales focused they where , i brought me back to thinking of the older types of shops.........

Maybe Nostalgia is tainting my view but i like it better that way !

Dexterm99

TinCool wrote: »

I believe he actually started out from his parents house in Knocklyon for a few years before moving in to town.

I must have been one of his first customers so :-)
I went up to have a look at the new Atari ST and he had Barbarian (the first one) running on it. After picking my jaw up off the floor, I convinced myself that I wanted one so I bought my only Atari ST FM from him in that house.

He was a good guy so I hope him and other Irish entrepreneurs don't die out.

ShawnRaven

I remember this place. Amstrad CPC section, walk past the counter up to the right hand corner. Couldn't remember how many games i ended up getting out of that place between 1989-1991!

VR!

Jip

I used to pop in there every Saturday morning with my little membership card. Those were the days.