Blue Shell Gaming and Collectibles — Local services in Fresno

Local gaming stores have come and gone in Fresno but Blue Shell Gaming has risen above and opened their 3rd location in Fresno. The store is nicely set up and arranged far better than any Gamestop in town, the selection is quite ample from Atari 2600 to the PS5. You'll see games and systems neatly arranged and presented for sale.

Additionally you'll find quite the assortment of Funko pops, Artwork (Anime/Game), Plushies, etc. To catch your attention, there's also an area of the "heavy hitters' these are the rare/uncommon games, system, and statues that command a very high price. Beware on buying Cirka N64/GC controllers those are pure trash and will not stand up to daily use i.e. Smashbros or Mario Party. Buy OEM controllers for the best results as those controllers will hold up.

So the main issue why this store is 3 stars; is that customer service is mediocre and needs to be improved, and the pricing on video games and systems are are very high! Sure the trade in rates for games and systems are slightly higher than what Gamestop would offer (PS4/XB1/PS5/Switch).

But for pricing of all the games I've noticed that all Blue Shell locations are often higher than Ebay, Amazon, etc even when factoring taxes and shipping. Before you buy a CIB (Complete in Box) game do you research, because while I'm all for supporting a local business, the high prices make me wary. I wish Blue Shell Gaming and collectibles the...

I went into this game store simply looking to get a disc resurfaced—something I’ve done at other locations without any hassle. I picked up the game from a thrift store for a couple bucks and noticed some light scratching, so I figured resurfacing it would be a good precaution.

However, the employee refused, insisting I test the game first before having it resurfaced. I explained I understood the risks of resurfacing and that I was fine with spending a few bucks to try and make the game work, even if it didn’t end up playing. I told him I only paid $2 for the game, and I was okay spending another $5 for resurfacing just to be on the safe side. Still, he kept pushing back, saying I’d be “out seven dollars” if it didn’t work—like that was some major loss I hadn’t considered.

It didn’t stop there. He suggested I try cleaning the disc first, so I asked if they had any cleaning materials I could use or if they could clean it in the back—I was even willing to pay for it. But again, he refused and said that was “something I could do at home,” despite having the cleaning materials visibly behind the counter.

It honestly felt like the employee just didn’t want to do his job. I wasn’t asking for anything crazy—just a resurfacing, which I’ve had done plenty of times before at other stores with no issue and no unnecessary lectures. This experience was frustrating and way more complicated than it...

Left disappointed with this place. I walked in and purchased a copy of Pokémon FireRed (looked to be in excellent condition). $150 for it was steep since they were going for $100 at the time on eBay for copies in similar condition, but figured since I can physically verify it in person I'll pick up the copy here.

Didn't realize until I left that the price tag sticker they placed on it was purposefully covering a defect on the actual plastic of the cartridge (see image below). Normally this would not be an issue, but when you're paying $150 for a product you're expecting to be in flawless condition this rubs people the wrong way and is not a good look at all...

I also asked the store clerk to sign me up for text messages to alert me for when other game boy Pokémon games come through the stores. It's been almost 2 months and I haven't received a single text message, when I know that various copies of what I was looking for came through because I saw several social media posts announcing they were in stock.

Ultimately if you're a serious collector or looking for high quality cartridges, do your research and look online or elsewhere first before...