BACKSTAGE PASS: North of Exile Games

Arguably, board games offer one of the best ways for friends and families to connect.

Locally, there’s a great option to help you enjoy this time-trusted method.

Since opening its doors in 2017, North Of Exile Games Inc. at 61 Main Street in Penetanguishene has become a very popular destination.

“We are in the business of providing affordable fun for everyone,” explains North of Exile president Jason Malott, who co-founded the business with his spouse Janis Freeman.

“Our goal has always been to create a welcoming and family friendly space where people of all ages can gather together to meet new friends and discover new ways to have fun.

“A fun evening out for a whole family of four can be had here for under $20.”

The board game cafe has playable copies of more than 100 different board games available for people to enjoy.

“We don’t even charge any fees to play with all of our games – access to our game library is complimentary to all of our customers,” Malott says, noting each person who wishes to play simply needs to make a purchase before they begin.

“They could order one of our hot drinks such as a latte or cappuccino, or maybe a colder treat such as a delicious soft-serve ice cream cone.”

North of Exile Games also hosts tournaments every week for the very popular collectible card game Magic: The Gathering, including a free tournament every Thursday night in which people can win fun prizes just by coming out and participating.

“Our tournaments are suitable for everyone ages eight and up, and we currently have a wide variety of age demographics who enjoy playing here weekly, from younger aged kids up to people in their 40s and 50s.”

Mallot says he and Freeman have worked very hard to create a one-of-a-kind offering in Penetanguishene that you simply won’t find anywhere else.

“As far as we know, we are the only game store in Ontario that serves soft-serve ice cream while also offering board games available to play with in store,” he says.

“We also believe we are the only game store in Ontario that offers a selection of Jones Soda drinks on tap. We 

have 5 different flavours of Jones Soda that you can combine with any of our soft-serve ice cream flavours to make some pretty incredible ice cream floats.”

In fact, their Berry Lemonade Jones Soda and ‘Blue Goo’ ice cream is so popular, they’ve nicknamed it their “Blue Special.”

“When you also factor in that we have a fully automated hot drink machine that will create a latte, cappuccino, espresso, cafe mocha and other drinks to perfection every time, we feel that we are truly a special experience and a hidden gem for our local community to discover.”

North of Exile Games also ships games across Canada.

Adds Mallot: “Our prices on most board games will often be the lowest you can find anywhere in Canada.”

For more information, check out North Of Exile Games at www.northofexilegames.com