West Coast's First Create-A-Controller Display in Mission Viejo

As the video gaming world prepares for new consoles, new ways of buying games and plenty of new technology, a Mission Viejo business is looking to stay ahead of the pack.

As it celebrates its first year in business, Mission Viejo's Play N Trade, 25106 Marguerite Pkwy., erected the West Coasts's first do-it-yourself video game controller display last week, built by Gamermodz.


The display comes with a touch-screen menu of controller parts. The parts come in chrome, see-through, glow-in-the-dark and dozens of colors and patterns. Buttons, triggers and cases are all customizable with the new system, which offers both parts and brand new controllers.

Staff are still adjusting to the new process of building controllers from the ground up. One lamented the lack of a save feature on the touch-screen display.

If customers are interested in building their own controller from the store, they have to come to Mission Viejo—or Garfield, New Jersey, River View, Florida, Abilene, Texas or Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. The Mission Viejo location is the first on the West Coast.

The point of the display is to stay ahead of the curve, franchise owner Shaun Jackson said.

Jackson, a Mission Viejo High graduate, said the industry presents new challenges. Earlier this year Microsoft announced they would make buying and selling used games for their long-anticipated new console, Xbox One, more difficult. Following bad customer reactions, they retracted the plan, but Jackson said it was a reminder to stay competitive.

He said he makes about $5 on every new game he sells. Used games come with "way more" profit, he said. And retro games in particular have been a big money-maker, he said.

Over the last year, Jackson estimates he has broken even on his franchise, and said "it's been getting better and better." He collected 25 pre-orders for Grand Theft Auto 5 Saturday (the game is being released Tuesday), and said he anticipates a big line for Call of Duty: Ghosts, which releases Nov. 5.

Two new game consoles from Sony and Microsoft give him high expectations for the holiday shopping season.

"It's going to be huge," he said.