It’s Your Move Games & Hobbies

Oakland, United States

3.9

Closed now

20 reviews

Accepts Credit Cards

Contacts

QR code, vCard

Telephone:
+1 510-547-4386
Website:
www.itsyourmovegames.com
Address:
4920 Telegraph Ave Ste B, Oakland, CA, 94609
b/t 51st St & 49th St
Temescal, North Oakland
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
0.6 mi59th Street
0.6 miMacArthur
0.8 miMiles Av & College Av
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Bussiness info

Accepts Credit Cards
Yes
Parking
Street
Bike Parking
Yes
Wheelchair Accessible
Yes
Dogs Allowed
Yes

Today

Today 10:00 am – 7:00 pm
Closed now
Local time (Oakland) 09:57 Sunday, 29 June 2025

Business hours

Monday –
Tuesday 12:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Wednesday 12:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Thursday 12:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Friday 12:00 pm – 12:00 am
Saturday 10:00 am – 7:00 pm
Sunday 10:00 am – 7:00 pm

Description

Specialties

Games

Board Games

Party games

Stratagy games

Silly games

Educational games

Role Playing Games

Kid’s games

Euro games

major collectable card games

The games that you remember from your childhood and ones that you have never heard of before.

You can also just come in and play a game here.

We have a Scrabble Club on Odd Saturdays and a First Friday’s Oakland Boardgame Meet-​Up And Heroclix on Sunday mornings for the kids

We would love to have chess nights and Magic nights and after scholl games when we can find someone who wishes to anchor them.

We are here for FUN!

History

Established in 2003.

Rulette Mapp and William Kreber were pregnant with thier third child when they opened It’s You Move

He did all the painting and built the office. He also was the resident Role Player and gamemaster.

I and my then husband bought it from them when it was just a year old.

Will still runs D&D in the store occasionally.

This neighborhood is really Fabulous and will continue to grow moreso.

Meet the Business Owner

Sally A.

Business Owner

The good thing is that I really like people and have become good at guessing either what game they are thinking of but cannot remember the name or what they would like and do not yet know about.

The story of my owning this store is a series of coincidences almost 20 years long.

I was born and raised in the East Bay and lived in the Temescal for 15 years before I bought this shop.

luv, Sally

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20 reviews of It’s Your Move Games & Hobbies

No registration required
Place rating: 5
Oakland, CA
Love this place — great owners withs suggestions of games for all ages. You can rent a game and take it home for a few days to see if you like it. Or play it there. Support your local game store!
Place rating: 1
Truckee, CA
We have been in this store several times and for a store that should be kid friendly it is far from it. I’d rather drive to go to Endgame or Eudo where they hire staff that inspire the kids not reprimand them.
Place rating: 1
Oakland, CA
Last night my husband and I took our children out to walk around the Temescsl a bit. We live in the neighborhood and enjoy supporting our local businesses. My 11 year old wanted to stop in the game store since it was the Friday night open play time. After a bit of browsing my husband was looking at the pictures in a gaming book with our 2.5 year old, making up a little story for him. Our son wanted to look at another before we left, but as my husband picked up a 2nd one the person behind the counter (white male) shouted very rudely to him, «Sir, this ISN’T a library»… So first, in case you were wondering, my husband was being very careful with the book so our soon wouldn’t damage it. Second, if you have something to say come say it TO ME and not shout it to the room. Third, we are not idiots. We know it’s not a library. And maybe you have gamers who like to come in, grab books and read for extended periods without buying books, but this was clearly not us. This was a dad showing his little kid some cool stuff, and you just EPICALLY FAILED IN CUSTOMER SERVICE. You lost future customers, including our kids, and other presents we might buy, by being a jerk about nothing.
Place rating: 1
Hayward, CA
Very limited selection, unknowledgeable and unclean staff, dirty store. I didn’t appreciate the way the staff member talked down to me. She literally spoke to me like I was a mentally disabled child when I asked if they carried a particular game – which no one on staff had heard of, by the way. My first time there, and I was so disappointed. They need to give that store (and it’s employees) a deep clean. Use soap!
Place rating: 2
San Francisco, CA
The hours posted on Unilocal are not accurate. Took me 30 minutes to get there and you were closed.
Place rating: 5
Oakland, CA
I’ve only been here for the Thursday night Magic drafts, but it’s always been great. As someone who hadn’t played in more than a decade, it’s very easy to be intimidated by the potential for Simpsons-​esque «Comic Store Guys,» but everyone here has been awesome. That includes both the employees and the other people in the shop.
Definitely a great place to get your nerd on.
Place rating: 5
Minneapolis, MN
The owners have created a store with a sense of community — the game nights are pretty relaxed and I always meet intersting folks when visiting.
I’ve been here a couple of times for the game night and am sure I will go back on a Friday night in the future.
Place rating: 5
San Francisco, CA
Love this spot! Super fun. They have great kids programming (there are always kids in there around after school time having a blast). There is a Friday night game night that was BYOB last time I checked. Great date night/​first date material here! Awesome selection. I played my first magic game ever (and won) here. Thanks for letting me live up the childhood dream of beating all the bro’s at MTG once and for all.
Place rating: 5
Oakland, CA
I’ve stopped in here a few times to buy Magic cards with the teens… but they aren’t really huge players… just every once in awhile friends get them back into it. So we had already learned about their Friday night game nights and the welcoming environment that would await. This week we were waiting for the barber chair in Diagon Alley (you know that’s what it is, right) and wandered in again. We were looking for one thing but then remember that we actually needed a game that mom, dad, teen boy and teen girl would all enjoy. Not an easy task.
The owner walked us through a few options after asking some questions about our interests. She is unbelievably knowledgeable about how each and every game works, move by move. In the end she directed us to one that both the boy and I agreed we would probably like, and we think the hubby and the girl will as well. Haven’t had time to crack it open yet but we will soon. It definitely cost more than what you would pay online, but in my opinion it’s worth it to support a shop that is not only expert at their wares, but also a great community space.
And we still want to come play free board games on Friday nights and/​or rent some of their games for $ 2/​day to check them out. What an awesome option!
Place rating: 5
Oakland, CA
What an excellent community resource! My nine year old son has taken part in the youth programs (RPG) at the store and loved every minute. All in all this is a very welcoming space run by two people who really know and love games. There are huge stacks of games you can play any time the store is open (a $ 2 per hour table fee is asked per person on the honor system; please be honorable — this place offers a lot to the community) or you can rent games for a couple nights to try them at home. There are lots of great games for sale as well and tons of advice available to make sure you pick one that you’ll love. Highly recommended all around.
Place rating: 4
San Francisco, CA
I came to It’s Your Move Games & Hobbies to kill some time before dinner. I was expecting a room with shelves crammed from top to bottom with games for sale, but I was wrong.
Just inside the entrance is a large play area with tables. I saw a huge selection of board games available on the shelves. It looked like you could rent any game you saw there for a modest fee, but we didn’t have time for that.
Along the side wall was a good sized selection of games for sale. I have two friends who are serious gamers, and I was thinking of getting a game for them. But I was afraid I might buy something they already had. I also didn’t know how the prices compared with other game stores. But as expected, some of the items I could buy cheaper online.
I gravitated to the discount rack in the back as usual. I found a few things I really wanted, and all of them were on sale!
Place rating: 3
Castro Valley, CA
It would be nice to see some family friendly games nights. The game night on Fridays is full of adults playing with other adults and children who only play Magic. From the feel, and the service I got, the kids games for Magic on this night are not really beginner friendly nor are they helpful to help teach it/​offer tips/​etc. but they will sell you the cards and tell you when you learn to build a deck to come back. Well, when my son figures that out we will likely try a game here, but in the meantime try less competitive, for the fun, game nights for kids and families.
The game organization here is not easy to follow for consumers and overall the customer service is hit or miss.
Place rating: 5
San Francisco Bay Area, CA
This is such a fun place to hang out in the neighborhood! The owner Chris and her friends made it to be so homy for us^^ It’s been our every other Friday night to go place so far. Don’t forget to make the donation (2 – 3 USD/​pp) to help the store open late.
Place rating: 4
Oakland, CA
Family friendly store with specialty gaming store with board games, role playing and other types of games. Good selection, knowledgeable staff. Provides a fun, safe place for people, including young people and teens, to hang out.
Place rating: 5
Palo Alto, CA
Okay, this revue is for a comedy show … Yes, a comedy show — I partook of last night.
This game store one night a month opens it’s doors in the evening on a Sat. night for something called «Critical Hit Comedy» — Which last night was a truly Critical Hit. All the comics were terrific and I was amazed how they managed to transform a really cool looking game store into a really passible and comfortable comedy club for the night… btw, did I mention it’s free, and there is free pizza and candy? (BYOB) — well, there is. The Store itself looks like a very special place full of games of every sort — and because of the way the space is layed out you can play the games right there in the store (they also hold tournaments and such)
So check out the game store when you can and when there check out when the Critical Hit show (or other community events) is taking place.
Place rating: 5
Kihei, HI
I had a blast playing at the open gaming night on Friday night. They’ve got a big library of games to play, and many people bring their own as well. Best of all, the crowd was great — friendly, diverse, and fun. It’s much more casual and much more fun than the game nights at the more competitive /​serious stores in Berkeley.
Chris was super-​welcoming and introduced me to several people and several games. I’m in town for a couple of months and will make this a regular part of my itinerary on Fridays.
Place rating: 5
San Francisco, CA
minus 1 b/​c the pricest are the the best bargain. + 1 b/​c this is the store my husband would open when he retires from the computer science job that he currently has.
This is a geek’s heaven. They have LOTS of great games
and the owner can guide you to what would be best for your family.
I love that you can try out stuff there.
A great place to get a gift for any little one in your life. and the big ones too. =)
Place rating: 4
Oakland, CA
I love this store! I have been playing Magic the gathering for years and tried a few stores in the bay area for MTG events. Most places I went to it was just too stuffy, crowded and the kind of players who ruin the fun of the game. This store however feels more like playing at home to me especially when drafting and having random classic radio song on.
Plus this store has a variety of so many games you could probably spend lifetimes getting through just a few. Oh also this store seems to be one of the few Bay Area shops that still holds My Little Pony trading card game events.
I would strongly recommend this store for the more casual level gamer looking for a good time and not worrying about knowing rules or feeling that competitive pressure that embitters a gaming experience.
Place rating: 4
Berkeley, CA
Very locally minded game store with a decent selection. Worth a stop if you’re in the area!
Went in here a few months ago and had a great time at their game night. Loved how the owner greeted me and found me a table right off the bat. That’s how you run an event!
Their board game library is always available though, in case you just want to drop by with some friends.
Place rating: 4
Oakland, CA
Man, I wish those super old reviews about IYM employees demanding customers pay with cash would fall off the main page. They don’t do that anymore! I’ve never had problems paying with a card here!
What I do have problems with is finding new games in abundance. They don’t carry a lot on the shelves and it can really cut a visit short to not have a lot to peruse. However! they will happily order something for you if requested. If it isn’t something they usually carry they might make you pay a deposit, but if it’s a common enough game they may even give you 10% off. What I appreciate most about It’s Your Move is the friendly, knowledgable, and so-​not-​pushy staff. I’ve always felt welcome and wanted here, even if it’s busy.
For a first visit, I’d highly recommend coming in and playing some games from their free library. You don’t have to buy anything (though donations are accepted+appreciated), and it’s a fun way to kill time before, say, a dinner reservation. They don’t necessarily sell all the games you can play, but as I mentioned, if you fall in love with something they might be able to order it for you OR they can recommend something similar.
I came in here once and there was a local guy testing out a game concept he made up. He had pieces taken from other games and hand drawn cards, but it was really fun to play a game almost no one has played before and to give him constructive feedback. It was also good to meet some other local board game enthusiasts to play with. It’s community events like this that make IYM so special. There’s all kinds of weekly game nights as well as special every-​once-​in-​a-​while things. If you want to be the first to know about special events, sign up for their email list. They won’t spam you every week, or even every month, but it’s practically the only way to find out about some things.
No, their prices aren’t the best, but that’s not why I’m proud to support It’s Your Move. I like to put my money back into Oakland, especially to businesses who care about their customers and perform a service to the community.