Newt's Games And Puzzles

Newt's Games And Puzzles is a playing card specialist at 4648 State Route 674 in rural Circleville, Ohio, a small town just south of Columbus. It sells playing cards, card games, jigsaw puzzles and accessories, and it designs and makes a good share of its own product in house. It suits collectors of playing card decks, card players, and anyone shopping for a gift or a fundraiser item, rather than players looking for trading card game events.

What the store carries

The stock centers on playing cards, card games, gifts and accessories, with an average of more than 200 different decks of playing cards, gifts and accessories on hand at any time. Hundreds of different card games and decks from around the world have passed through over the years, and the selection keeps growing as the store adds unusual items that are hard to find. A wide variety of jigsaw puzzles has been part of the range since 2009.

The store also makes things itself:

• Custom photo playing cards. Customers can design a deck online by uploading an image and adding text, and see what the card will look like before ordering.
• Real Souvenir Playing Cards. These decks feature old-fashioned photos from local historical societies, Main Street associations and museums, and are produced for organization fundraisers around the country.
• Original decks. The store has published its own decks since 2002, beginning with a deck called WILD featuring artwork by playing card artist Peter Wood. Later decks include Busy Bears and Cats - Pips and Paws, both drawn in a seek-and-find style where the suit pips are hidden in the artwork.
• Poker mahjong tiles. A set of 56 tiles (52 playing cards plus four suited smiley jokers) is designed and made in the USA at the store from biodegradable bioplastic, with the artwork built into the tile. Tiles come in a small, thinner size and a larger, thicker one, in several back colors. These items are made on demand and take extra time to produce.
• Playing card trays. When the US manufacturer of the trays shut down in 2020, the store began making its own.

Orders, returns and shipping

Orders ship by UPS or USPS. Handling time varies by product because some items are made on demand and need extra time. Defective merchandise should be reported within thirty days of receiving an order, and the store ships a non-defective replacement at its own expense after the defective item comes back. Damaged shipments must be reported within 2 business days of receipt, ideally with a photo of the damage, which often allows a replacement or refund without sending the set back.

History

The business began in the spring of 2000 as Newton's Novelties, first as a game site with more than 400 online games, then as a seller of sports collectibles. Playing cards arrived in the fall of 2001, and by spring 2002 the store had narrowed to games, then converted fully to playing cards and items for card players and collectors. That timing landed just ahead of the poker boom, which fueled its growth.

One of its biggest sellers was Newt's Iraqi Most Wanted, published in 2003, which has sold more than 25,000 decks. It was one of four American-printed decks of its kind and was added to the Ohio Historical Society. Real Souvenir Playing Cards followed in 2005. In 2008 the owners decided against closing the brick-and-mortar retail operation and moved everything to Circleville. The store is a division of E-Quiver, Inc. and also trades as Newt's Playing Cards.

The local scene

Several game and collectible stores sit nearby in Circleville. Game Depot and Puma's Rest, Your Local Game Store are both about 0.8 miles away, Game On is 2.2 miles out, Journey Into Comics is 2.3 miles, and Game Time Sports Collectibles is 2.5 miles. For card shows, the Pokemon, TCG, & Sports Card Show is about 32 miles away, with dates on November 4, November 11 and November 18, 2026. The Grab A Centerpiece Card Show, about 43 miles away, runs October 31 and November 28, 2026.