Apex Gaming at a Glance

History

Brothers Kyle Huck & Terren Huck founded Apex Gaming in 2019, but then the pandemic hit, so things got off to a slow start. As soon as restrictions were lifted, they dove head first into tournament organizing and then the business took off. They quickly built Apex Gaming into a WPN Premium store and made Central Eastern Ohio a hot spot for competitive Magic.

Over the years, they expanded operations at their Caldwell location by knocking down walls, absorbing even more space, and forming it into a massive gaming complex. From the unassuming building right off of Marietta Road, slightly hidden behind the pharmacy in front, Apex Gaming hosts a capacity of up to 300 people across two gaming rooms. There's plenty of parking for when they run their well-attended tournament series, ApexCon. Their larger room is regularly rented out for hosting non-gaming events including weddings and award ceremonies.

Visit on 5/21/2024

I fought with five other wizards at Apex Gaming's Modern FNM and ended up going 2-1, good enough for 1300 prize wall tickets. Considering there would be plenty of Modern action for the Saturday team event and Sunday Modern $5K, players likely took it easy that evening. They typically have up to 8-16 players on a weekly basis. Nonetheless, we all still had some fun battles and Drew Jones took home the door prize of a Foil Agadeem's Awakening.

The following Sunday, I also played in the Modern $5K, starting off 3-1, and then finishing out the day 3-4. Every opponent had the same chill vibe and we all had some great matches. It's new territory for me, but I know I'll only get better at Modern the more I lose.

Formats

At Apex Gaming, the formats played weekly include Standard or Pioneer (alternating) on Tuesdays, and then Modern or Pioneer (alternating) on Fridays, depending on the week. For ApexCon in particular, the team event has seats for Modern, Pioneer, and Standard. Legacy is still a consideration for future events held there.

Inventory

Apex Gaming has their inventory connected to their online store. While foil cards were not a major focus, they still had a few in stock. Their high quality merch is readily available for purchase, along with a vast array of gaming supplies. They support Magic, Lorcana, Pokémon, Warhammer 40K, Dungeons & Dragons, and more.

Food Options

Inside of Apex Gaming, the event center includes a menu of pulled pork sandwiches, hot dogs, personal pizzas, mozzarella sticks, corndogs, pretzel sticks, mac n cheese, and tater tots. Its bar is also fully stocked with sodas, water, power drinks and even a good selection of adult beverages.

It turns out, Kyle Huck is a serial entrepreneur and a franchisee, owning three locations of Wing Etc. The Caldwell location is conveniently down the street from the LGS, which is perfect for post-tournament celebrations with food & drinks.

The small town of Caldwell has a few other food options including Lori's Family Restaurant (traditional American diner, quiet & old-fashioned), Wally's Pizza (pizza & subs), and a whole host of fast food joints.

Transportation

While Caldwell is not very close to the surrounding larger cities, it is reasonably central to multiple airports, followed by a bit of a drive. By car, it's roughly an hour and a half drive from Columbus Airport (CMH) or Akron-Canton Airport (CAK) to Apex Gaming. And if you’re coming from Pittsburgh, it’s about a 2-hour drive. The player base is strong and loyal to Apex Gaming and will typically carpool from all over the region.