A local card shop offers its community members opportunities to bond via games and competitions.

Founded in 2002 with a focus on Magic: The Gathering and Beanie Babies, Shane’s Cards is a Renton based card shop that has evolved and expanded to include various forms of tabletop games and paraphernalia. 

From big names like the Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game and Pokémon Trading Card Game to slightly less well known games like Weiß Schwarz and Flesh & Blood.

A full list of what they specialize in can be found on their website, here.

Aside from offering goods for customers to buy, Shane’s Cards also offers community events like tournaments where players can compete with one another. 

Thomas E. Schulke Jr., a long time employee who tries to keep things running smoothly, said that the community is seeing increased interaction now that tournament restrictions from Covid-19 have been lessened.

“We’re getting back into Yu-Gi-Oh!, Vanguard, Weiss, Magic: The Gathering, Digimon, Final Fantasy, and Pokemon,” said Schulke. 

“Possibly Dragon Ball Super but that one’s not guaranteed,” he adds. “[They’re] all tournament play, and when there isn’t tournament play you can play at the tables.”

The community, despite being built on the grounds of competitive play, is very open and receptive of new players.

“They’re all pretty much easy going, pretty much polite, and eager to teach others,” said Schilke. “99.5 percent fantastic people,” he added.

A couple of community members describe what it is they’ve seen that prevents newcomers from joining in on the games.

“The biggest barrier for getting more new players that I’ve noticed is the growing complexity from older games constantly evolving,” said Michael Woodard, a long time member of the Shane’s Cards community. 

“Cost for ‘competitive’ decks can also be a determining factor in keeping people from wanting to get into a card game as well,” he added.

“I think it’s a confidence issue for most people,” said Joseph Cervantes, another long-time community member. 

“They think it might be too complicated or they wouldn’t get it. You just have to try it out. Maybe it’ll click,” he added. 

But it isn’t all that complicated to get started playing in community events like tournaments, said Schulke.

“Just come on in and ask, we’ll tell you everything you need to play,” said Schulke.

To play in tournaments, players will need an official I.D. card and I.D. number for the game they want to play in.

The players have described their experiences joining the community and where their interests originated from.

One community member was drawn in by the awe he felt from the T.V. show as a youth.

“I’ve played Yu-Gi-Oh since I was young, maybe seven or eight,” said Cervantes. “Didn’t really understand it then, but when I became an adult, it was much easier to understand and I play even now.”

“I think seeing the T.V. show really hooked me. It seemed so fantastical and amazing. I wanted so much to be a part of that world that I started playing Yu-Gi-Oh!,” said Cervantes.

“I started going to Shane’s back in 2014 or so. And I went for a few years. Then I fell out of playing Yu-Gi-Oh!, but recently got back in,” he said.

Another community member describes how their interest in card games stemmed from one card game to the other.

“I’ve been coming to Shane’s card shop for around five years now,” said Woodard. “I first started getting into card games with Pokemon back when I was around 7 or 8 years old, then shortly after got into Yu-Gi-Oh, which really fueled my love of card games further,” he added.

Some players may be drawn in by the artistic side and by the suspense they feel from opening new packs.

“I think it’s the cool artwork and a slight gambling factor to it,” said Cervantes.

“The art is so diverse and unique in Yu-Gi-Oh!, so that’s a plus. And when buying packs, you never know what cards you may get, so you wanna buy more and see what you might pull out of them. It’s exciting,” he said.

Card games can also be seen as a good excuse to spend time with buddies.

“The thing I enjoy the most about card games overall is being able to get creative with multiple ways to win, as well as the comradery they can bring to a group of friends,” said Woodard.

Thomas E. Schulke Jr. believes that all of these card games should allow for the community to grow closer.

“The people who work, the customers, everybody looks out for each other,” he said. “We try to treat each other like family, that’s how we’d like to be treated.”