The UK has a variety of great locations for gamers to explore, with retro arcades, state-of-the-art VR venues, and betting shops and casinos. Birmingham has proven to be one of the best options for gamers in recent years, with some incredible and welcoming venues and events worth visiting.
This covers all the bases for the gaming community, with a selection of excellent online options for cloud gaming and online gambling, too. Online gaming options are great for playing outside of venue or event opening times.
The UK’s online gambling laws make it easy for players to enjoy their favourite casino games, travelling to and from venues or at their hotels, while players looking for a wider choice of games and greater freedom can explore offshore casinos not on Gamstop. These sites are based overseas, so are less restrictive than UK-based casinos.
Best Birmingham Venues for Gamers
With so many great venues available for gamers in Birmingham, all tastes are catered to.
Grosvenor Casinos on Broad Street and Hill Street
Fans of casino games will love the Grosvenor casinos located in Birmingham’s Broad Street and Hill Street. Both casinos offer table games, electronic machines, and poker, with the Broad Street venue located in the heart of Birmingham’s nightlife, and Hill Street handily located next to New Street railway station.
NQ64
Located in the Digbeth area of Birmingham, NQ64 is an arcade bar boasting a variety of retro games, consoles, and pinball machines, and is the perfect location to enjoy a nostalgia-filled gaming session. The neon lights and downstairs Laser Quest make it a fun and atmospheric experience for visitors.
Sandbox VR
The Sandbox VR experience at the Grand Central Shopping Centre provides gamers with a fully immersive, free-roam VR arena that was created by former Ubisoft, Sony, and EA experts. Haptic suits ensure full-body motion is captured for truly unique gameplay.
F1® Arcade Birmingham
Birmingham’s F1 Arcade is the perfect option for racing game fans, with an F1 racing simulator that provides a realistic racing experience. The venue has 53 simulators to ensure queues are kept to a minimum, and different skill levels can be set depending on the player’s experience.
Otherworld VR
Otherworld’s immersive VR experience allows visitors to explore the metaverse in pods and offers excellent group experiences that are perfect for friends to enjoy.
Birmingham Events
As well as providing visitors with a great selection of gaming venues, Birmingham also hosts some great gaming events that bring exhibitors and attendees from all over the world.
UK Games Expo
The Birmingham NEC hosts the UK’s biggest hobby game convention, with 2026’s UK Games Expo set to take place from Friday, the 29th of May to Sunday, the 31st. The convention focuses mainly on tabletop gaming, with dedicated halls packed with exhibitors hoping to showcase their games.
The strong community helps to create a friendly and welcoming atmosphere where gamers can try and buy new games, or make use of gaming tables for pre-arranged meetups or spur-of-the-moment battles.
Insomnia Gaming Festival
The Insomnia Gaming Festival is a massive UK video game event, which was also held at the NEC. Visitors can enjoy their favourite retro games and sneak peeks of the latest titles, with guest panels providing a great insight into the industry. The event holds meet and greets with gaming creators, as well as holding cosplay competitions and selling the latest gaming equipment at its marketplace.
iGaming events provide a more competitive edge to proceedings, with the best players battling it out for glory. The next event will take place at Staffordshire County Showgrounds between Thursday, the 30th of April and Sunday, the 3rd of May. Early bird weekend tickets are available, while day passes are available from just £35.
EXG
As part of MCM Comic Con at the NEC, EGX will return to Birmingham to provide gamers with everything a gamer could want. Formerly known as the Eurogamer Expo, the event returns to London for the first time since 2019 and brings the best in indie gaming, playable demos, eSports, cosplay, and developer talks.
Running from November 28th to the 30th, the three-day event will combine the best in gaming with an incredible pop culture card of events as the two industry giants meet in one place.
