Building community: Hot Off the Press Comics and Coffee hosts Friday game nights – Austin Daily Herald

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Each game night is a fun night out heading into the weekend. Jed Nelson/intern@austindailyherald.com

Gamers sit down for some board game fun this past Friday night during Friday Night Game Night at Hot Off the Press Comics and Coffee. Jed Nelson/intern@austindailyherald.com

By Jed Nelson

Walk into Hot Off the Press Comics and Coffee any given day, and you’ll find a place where comics and coffee coexist seamlessly. With menu items donning the names of popular comic book characters, a sense of community is created for those who love all things comics, and for those who can’t start their mornings off without some coffee.

When owners Martin and Jade Burnham were approached by Ben Green to get game nights up and running, they saw that as a perfect opportunity to cater to another community: gamers.

When Hot Off the Press’s doors were opened three years ago, the Burnhams wanted to have a place where people could gather again post-Covid.

“We had the space for them,” Martin Burnham said. “It keeps us happy on a Friday night and leads into the weekend really nicely.”

The goals of Green and the Burnhams matched immediately.

“There was definitely synergy between us and Ben,” Martin said. “We shared the goal of having a place where people can come and feel comfortable and amongst their own in a social setting.”

Green, who started the group originally at Ratatoskr Games, which is now Gypsy K here in Austin, was in search of like-minded gamers.

“The idea came from the need to build a community,” he said. “I think a lot of people want to play games, but there are not many public groups.”

Green stated the difficulties people face when searching for public gaming groups. There are a number of private groups that meet, but it’s often hard for the public to access those groups due to them being privately run friend groups.

“I wanted to create a more inviting community for whoever wanted to play games,” Green said.

Green saw success soon after the group’s start. With 60-70 members, Ratatoskr Games was a large enough location to house the members on game night. But after the business’s closing, Green was forced to look elsewhere.

To the Burnhams, bringing in the group made perfect sense.

“Our goal is to always create a sense of community,” Jade said. “Having game nights here just added to that. As humans, we’re all looking for community space and to belong, so we really try to provide that space.”

As happy as the Burnhams were to invite the group into their space, Green was just as excited as he looked at Hot Off the Press as a great location to continue game nights and build membership.

“The drinks are great; the atmosphere is very chill; the Burnhams are awesome and inviting and they know their nerdy, geeky stuff really well, so when I went home from the first game night here, I thought it worked,” Green said.

With Hot Off the Press and the game nights being a hit, Green stated how the room is getting tight for space, but that’s not stopping the group from gathering around the tables on Friday night to enjoy themselves.

“I find being here to be joyful,” Green said. “There’s a missing aspect to some online gaming, especially playing with people online you don’t know.”

Aside from meeting on Friday nights, group members take to online games to play with each other. This is something Green says strengthens the community aspect of the group.

“Online gaming allows for a blended aspect of the group,” Green added. “We come in on Friday night and get to talk about it.”

But being around people who share the same interests and hobbies as each other is what makes the game nights special to Green and others.

“The tactile nature of it, especially post Covid, leaves me with a hopeful feeling,” Green said. “It’s just joyful and nice to be here with people.”