Ron Brown announced Off The Charts Games is closing. 

Another beloved Downtown Gresham business is closing its doors.

Off The Charts Games, 30 N.W. Second St., announced it will be closing due to the continued spike in costs, which compounded during the pandemic, and Owners Ron and Lynn Brown desire to do more than just take short vacation jaunts.

“We extend our gratitude and appreciation for the support and love we have received from all of you over the years,” the Browns wrote on social media. “It is what made our store successful and a fun place to be.”

As part of the closure the business is having an “Everything Must Go” sale, with all in-stock games and jigsaw puzzles 20% off.

“We have enjoyed introducing people to Euro and higher-level strategy games and the camaraderie of game nights,” they wrote.

Ron and Lynn Brown grew up in families where game nights were a tradition, with evenings spent crowded around a table overflowing with cards. So, after getting married, they began to have game nights with other couples.

In the 1980s and 90s, that meant coming together for pinochle — a trick-taking card game — often gathering weekly to play that same game over and over.

Eventually it lost its luster.

“One night, driving home I told Lynn, ‘I cannot play another game of pinochle again in my life,’” Ron said with a laugh.

So, the next day they drove to a shop at the Clackamas Town Center, chatted with the friendly clerk, and bought a game called Filthy Rich, where players put up billboards to score points and purchase luxuries.

“We loved the game, it was this totally cool new thing for us,” Ron said. “We kept going back to the store to discover new things to play. Our passion spiraled out of control.”

After going cold-turkey on pinochle, the Browns discovered a new style of board game. They moved away from American-style games (Monopoly) to European-style (Ticket to Ride, Catan), and the couple never looked back.

“The major difference is with Euro-style games everyone keeps playing until the end when the score is calculated,” Lynn said.

“With games like Monopoly someone is going to lose first and then have to drink coffee for three hours as everyone else plays,” Ron added with a laugh.

That mindset is what created Off The Charts Games 13 years ago. They had both retired from 30-year careers as accountants in the corporate world, so the idea of opening their own shop was a breath of fresh air — plus Ron admitted he was going stir-crazy in retirement.

Off The Charts was a longtime haven for tabletop gamers, with hundreds of classic and new board games, card games, dice games and strategy games for all ages and interests. On Wednesday and Friday evenings they also hosted community game nights.

“The best part for us was always sitting down with each other and playing,” Ron said.