ALL ABOUT FUN — Wintersville officials recently welcomed the owner and staff of Galaxy Games to their new location at 538 Main St. with a ribbon cutting. Taking part were, from left, owner Richard Sherrin, who is holding his daughter, Iris; Mayor Mike Petrella; manager Tyler Andrews; and Councilman Randy Spence. -- Warren Scott

WINTERSVILLE — From a mythical medieval world of wizards and dragons to a race among railroad developers to extend tracks across the 19th century United States, Galaxy Games offers people of all ages an opportunity to lose themselves for a while in an assortment of fantasy- and strategy-based card and board games.

Village officials recently welcomed the store to its new location at 538 Main St., where visitors will find Pokemon, Magic: The Gathering, Yugi-Oh and other popular card-based games as well as games inspired by “Star Wars,” “Star Trek” and “Resident Evil.”

Owner Richard Sherrin noted in addition to Dungeons and Dragons and other well-known games, there are many games inspired by horror, history and current events.

Among them is Pandemic, in which players assume the roles of medical specialists working to develop cures for four far-reaching diseases and which pre-dates COVID-19.

In addition to selling many such games, Galaxy Games maintains a free library in which visitors may try out some of them first.

Sherrin and his staff, including manager Tyler Andrews, are quite knowledgeable about the world of gaming and are happy to answer questions from newcomers.

For example, Sherrin suggests Pokemon for parents interested in trying a card game with their children.

He said games allow families to bond in a light-hearted way and spurs new friendships between people with the same interests.

For those interested in gathering with other game lovers, Galaxy Games offers gaming events, some with prizes and others more casual.

Visitors to the store will find players engaged in Magic: The Gathering at 7 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday; Yugi-Oh at 7 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday; and Pokemon at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday.

Sherrin said players range from youth to middle-aged adults.

To accommodate the game-playing, the store is outfitted with a large screen television on which tournament players and results may be posted and special tables with raised edges to prevent dice from bouncing off.

A vocal advocate for game playing is Sherrin’s mother, Sherry, who said, “One of the best things about it is it’s very inclusive.”

She said such games appeal to teens with various other interests and help to build vocabulary and other reading skills for young players.

A Wintersville native and 2007 graduate of Catholic Central High School, Sherrin earned a master’s of business administration from Franciscan University of Steubenville and works as an accountant.

He said he became interested in gaming as a kindergartener, when he picked up on a card game involving werewolves and later graduated to Pokemon and other games.

After visiting a local game store, he realized he could run his own. His first Galaxy Games store opened in Steubenville several years ago.

The current location is open from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday and noon to 10 p.m. Saturday.