The closing of Funan Shopping Mall is incomprehensible to most. Even now I cannot understand how a mall that has nearly 100% occupancy for many many years can be closed while other shopping malls like Orchard Central, for example, with its incredible number of empty shops, can remain open.
Now Funan is remembered differently by people. Some remember it as the lazy man's Sim Lim, slightly more expensive but way more convenient location wise and reliable. You hardly hear of any customer being scammed at Funan.
Others see it as an anime mall. You have the first maid cafe in Singapore (closed years ago), anime matsuris, and various hobby shops for different otakus.
But for gaming otakus like me, Funan was a fantastic place for buying games. There were an incredible four game shops on the same floor (level 5)! This concentration of shops in such proximity is unheard of in Singapore.
Starting from the right, Gaming World was always cluttered with stuff. It has everything from games to toys to even Pokemon merchandise. I probably frequented this shop the most since my friend was working there. Mostly English titles, therefore I didn't buy much. They are supposedly venturing online now, but there is no update at all to date.
Gamescore was probably on of the oldest game shops in Singapore. Many gaming vets hang out there playing a huge variety of games. They had Monster Hunter parties, Musou runs, etc. It was always more interesting to see what they were playing than what was being sold! Gamescore used to sell Japanese titles but they shifted to all English games years back. They also expanded to another unit, purely selling merchandise like game T-shirts and posters etc. The owner has decided to close for good after the end of Funan.
Now I have never understand G3 much. The boss did not seem to be interested in doing business. The shop was always very dark and the interior very sparse. And yet the unit is quite huge. Honestly I have never bought anything there.
Gamemartz was the latest to join the floor. It used to be a very tiny shop beside the food court before they took up an entire linkway. It used to have a lot of Japanese titles and even limited boxsets. But as with most shops, it shifted to nearly all English games later on. Gamemartz is still operating at Bugis junction after the fall. And it looks to be set a survivor.
The closure of Funan affected a lot of people. Tourists for example can only flock to Sim Lim Square now for electronic goods. Gamers like us have shifted to online shopping, less expensive but slower. And the anime scene lost yet another hotspot, from the old Clarke Quay, which shifted to Chinatown Square, then Funan being wiped out. Even Sunshine Plaza seems to have lost its shine. One more hit for local otakus in an already small community. All for an upmarket mall that will probably become as vacant as the others in a few years time.
Also read my fellow writer Ebel on his last trip to Funan Centre as he grabbed some good deals.
Written By Don
