Where to find your nerd tribe in Pittsburgh

How can nerds of all stripes make friends as an adult? It’s a simple question with an elusive answer. When you’re young, there are so many easy ways to forge casual connections. In elementary school, we found a shiny rock and showed it to the person sitting next to us. Instant friends. Junior high kids bonded over which member of the hot new band is the dreamiest. Pickup games of kickball abounded. All you had to do was join and boom, there’s your new group of friends who love something you love, too.

When you grow up, though, these playground strategies don’t always work as well. It may be fun to talk smack about Karen from Accounting, but that same person may not give a tinker’s diddly-damn about the funny anecdote from last night’s D&D session. And try finding someone in the break room who wants to discuss queer themes in video games when that person’s knowledge starts and ends with the Call of Duty franchise.

Hence, the question still stands: where does one go to meet friends who play your way? How do you find the people who fly the same geeky flags as you do? I set out to find places where folks can find one’s nerd tribe here in Pittsburgh. From vegetarian cooks to medieval sword fighters, these seven spots can provide new venues to indulge in one’s specific hobbies and lifestyles while simultaneously scratching that social interaction itch.

Mimic’s Market
4707 Liberty Ave., Bloomfield. mimicsmarket.com
Perfect for: Tabletop Gaming Nerds, Collectible Card Gaming Nerds

Tabletop gaming has found a bit of a rebirth in the Kingdom of Geek. Once relegated to the misfit pile, cast off from its cooler younger cousin, video games, and with an illegitimate affiliation to Satanism hanging around from the 1980s, Dungeons & Dragons began to find new life in the 21st century, even landing a recurring role in Stranger Things.

Today’s tabletop gaming scene includes D&D, of course, but has also absorbed classic board games like Monopoly, Clue, and Risk, as well as miniature-based games like Warhammer 40,000 and collectible card games including Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh, and Magic: The Gathering. In addition, tabletop role playing games cover the aforementioned Dungeons & Dragons but now also vary in concept from the popular Settlers of Catan, the mad science of My Father’s Work, and Fallout, based on the video game series of the same name.

Mimic’s Market touts everything players could need for a game night, from the games themselves down to booster packs, playmats, and dice of all sorts. But for those looking to jump right in, their events calendar is chock full of game days for all sorts of games, including playtesting for brand new games such as Daggerheart, as well as an ongoing D&D game specifically geared towards beginners.

Victory Pointe Arcade
1113 E Carson St., South Side. victorypointe.com
Perfect for: Video Game Nerds, Pinball Nerds, Nostalgia Nerds

Gamers of a “certain age” may recall with varying degrees of nostalgia the old-fashioned bowling alley arcade. Dark, dingy, and usually with a layer of smokey haze, they often held some of gaming’s timeless treasures. Many of us tested the mazes of Pac-Man or made opponents “get over here!” in the original Mortal Kombat in the classic arcade, and that’s the experience Victory Pointe Arcade owner Joe Dukovich attempts to recreate — minus the secondhand tobacco.

“There’s a bit of survivorship bias in what games I have out on the floor,” Dukovich tells Pittsburgh City Paper, when discussing the appeal of some of the arcade’s current selections. “The retro games I have out are games like The Simpsons, and [Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles], and Street Fighter, and Pac-Man and Donkey Kong; these are the pinnacles of the genre that were the absolute best of their kind at the time of release and people who played them have nostalgia.”

In addition to classic arcade cabinets, Victory Pointe also offers modern games such as Enter the Gungeon: House of the Gundead, Mario Kart Arcade GP DX, and Crazy Taxi, as well as classic and hi-tech pinball machines, all of which stem from Dukovich’s tastes as a gamer and as part of Pittsburgh’s fighting game scene.

“I’ve been a long-time fighting game player and part of the Pittsburgh fighting game community for many years so we have a lot of the classics in that genre like Street Fighter 3: 3rd Strike, Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, Super Street Fighter 2: Turbo, and Vampire Savior,” Dukovich says. “Sometimes I’ll see a strange or interesting game during an event like Awesome Games Done Quick or on a YouTube video and try to get that, which is how I ended up with games like Ninja Baseball Batman and Tetris The Grandmaster 2.”

Importantly, where the old bowling alley could be a home for local bullies, Victory Pointe aims for inclusiveness. Dukovich explains that, “like a lot of nerdy hobbies, [gaming and pinball are] somewhat straight masc heavy, and while there are attempts to expand … I think there’s still a fair number of places that feel a bit like a boys’ club in the hobby.”

Dukovich, who identifies as nonbinary and pansexual, mentions that “all my close personal circle is some flavor of queer, so I’ve always tried to make sure my arcade is a safe and welcoming place, and a lot of our regulars are also LGBTQ.”

Rezzanine eSports
1025 Washington Pike, Bridgeville. rezzanineesports.com
Perfect for: Video Game Nerds, Pinball Nerds, Nerds with Children

For gamers who might prefer an arcade that’s a little less traditional, it may be worth the trip to Bridgeville to discover Rezzanine Esports.

Rezzanine eSports keeps a low profile, stashed up on the second floor inside Phoenix Theatres off of Washington Pike, but for those who search it out, a gaming treasure awaits. From Mario Kart to Marvel Rivals, the Rezz, as it’s known, offers gaming “pods” with consoles loaded with games for all ages.

For those who enjoy their playtime a bit more analog, Rezzanine eSports also has a variety of arcade cabinets and pinball machines ranging from vintage to high-tech. The location also served as home to this year’s Pinburgh event, the world’s largest tournament pinball match .

But the Rezz is more than just a gaming space, according to Natalie Bianco, their marketing and sales manager — it’s a social space for modern gamers too. “Our Rezzanine team is very lucky to be able to work with some really talented local esports teams and gaming content creators,” Bianco tells City Paper. “We are always happy to have local streamers visit, and if they are interested in hosting a livestream at the Rezz we would love to discuss with them! We have had streaming live shows and networking events in the past where the Pittsburgh creator community can meet and discuss future collabs.”

Drew’s Clues
drewscluestrivia.com
Perfect for: Trivia Nerds, Pittsburgh Nerds, Nerds who Enjoy Adult Beverages

One of the greatest things about being a journalist is discovering interesting facts and bits of trivia. While researching this article, I learned that Nativity scenes in the Catalonia region of Spain commonly include a pooping peasant called a “caganer.” “I used this fact in a recent round all about poop,” Drew Cranisky, the Drew of Drew’s Clues fame, tells CP. “Drew’s Clues tries to cover a bit of everything.”

From questions ranging from pop culture to academia and even Pittsburgh-based factoids, Cranisky says that being local pluses up the average trivia night. “I think there’s a lot to be said for being a ‘home-grown’ trivia brand,” he says. “I can respond to what people do and don’t like, and throw in some questions tailored to local news and knowledge. Also, I am a real person that players can meet, not a faceless national company.”

Pittsburgh Sword Fighters
pittsburghswordfighters.com
Perfect for: Medieval Nerds, Athletic Nerds

Several martial arts have a weaponry element to them: Kali and escrima are Filipino fighting styles that commonly include sticks and blades, and hapkido, from Korea, incorporates the bo staff and nunchucks. But for those who wish they had a little more Oblivion and Skyrim in their athletic undertakings, Pittsburgh Sword Fighters would like to offer you a little longsword, if you please.

Located in nearby Creighton, Pittsburgh Sword Fighters eschews traditional martial arts styles in favor of classes focusing on longswords, rapiers, and even LED sabers for people to live out their Star Wars fantasy. With both instructional classes and sparring sessions, the instructors put together workouts for those who like their geekery with a little sweat included. For those who don’t necessarily want to use weapons, they also offer historic forms of wrestling and boxing.

Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens
1 Schenley Drive, Oakland. phipps.conservatory.org
Perfect for: Plant Nerds, Environmentally-Conscious Nerds, Foodie Nerds, Vegetarian/Vegan Nerds

Flowers, traditionally, are one of society’s go-to methods for tangibly expressing emotions. Roses celebrate love, poinsettias decorate the holidays, and lilies remember those who have passed on. But what do we really know about flowers?

“There’s so much more to plants than something to look at,” says Joe Reed, senior director of communications at Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens. “They play vital roles in our local ecosystem, they feed the world, they sequester carbon, help capture and clean rainwater, and so much more. No matter what your relationship to plants is today, we’re here to help you discover new dimensions of appreciation.”

The concept of plants feeding the world adds an extra layer to Phipps Conservatory, as within the beautiful displays of tropical plant life and slipper orchids lies a state-of-the-art teaching kitchen where people can discover their inner chef with courses centering on plant-based fare and world cuisines.

“We like to introduce people to new flavors and help demystify unfamiliar cuisine so people feel more confident cooking them at home,” says Gabe Tilove, director of adult education at Phipps Conservatory. “Our very first class was a vegetarian Indian cuisine class, and we’ve run some version of that class every semester for the past seven years, and it nearly always sells out.” The next iteration of that course takes place on Thurs., Aug. 21.

Pittsburgh Opera
2425 Liberty Ave., Strip District. pittsburghopera.org
Perfect for: Opera Nerds, Musical Theatre Nerds, Dance Nerds, Fashion Nerds

There’s nothing to say that various components of the Kingdom of Geek can’t be high-brow. For every tabletop gamer, there’s someone obsessed with the intricacies of chess. Starting with comic books can lead to a fascination with William Shakespeare or the artistic works of the Louvre. However, “opera” isn’t generally what one thinks of when people look for their tribe, and to Chris Cox, that’s a crying shame.

“Opera is essentially all other performing arts rolled into one,” explains Cox, director of marketing and communications for the Pittsburgh Opera. He’s not wrong; though people’s minds jump straight to the powerful voices on stage — and rightly so — opera incorporates dance, storytelling, orchestral music, and even fashion and make-up.

And while opera may have a reputation for being stuffy and old, Cox says that modern opera is anything but. “Some use the same instruments that Mozart and Verdi and Puccini composed for. In other cases, like our [production of] We Shall Not Be Moved, the music includes elements of jazz, R&B, and hip hop. Unlike opera from centuries past, almost all this new work is being written and performed in English. At its core though, opera is still all about telling compelling human stories through music and singing.”

For those ready to dip their toes into opera, Cox says there are others like you out there. Pittsburgh Opera hosts a group of aficionados known as the New Guard, which is designed to serve as “an accessible entry point to opera.” Members get special perks like complimentary and discounted tickets, opening night happy hours, trivia nights, and an LGBTQ+ and Ally Night at their spring events.

This article appears in Aug 13-19, 2025.