I'd give this place more than 5 stars if I could. The games are fun, and we came home with a bunch of prizes, but the people that work there are really the reason we come back when we visit for Spring Break every year. Justin and the other young man behind the counter are so incredibly friendly and talk to you as if you're a visitor, not a paying customer, which is incredible to me given the location and sheer number of people who pass through the arcade every day. Justin was cheering on our kids on as they played games and celebrating with us when we won... and then incredibly patient when those same kids took about an hour to decide on what prizes they would choose with their tickets. I'm always a bit hesitant to visit the overly touristed, typical beach spots when we're on vacation, but we always make a point to come here when we're in the area. Other pros to the arcade include seeing that the staff are frequently out cleaning the games and machines, and a good variety of games for such a small place. I always recommend that people stop in when they go to Newport pier, so I may as well recommend here on Yelp as well! read more

Came in to check things out and it was really crowded!! They have plenty of games and lots of games that dispense tickets to redeem prizes. The prices of the credit vary on amount and it can get quite expensive, the prizes are not worth the credit we spend but that isn't the point of the prizes. Also you get a reusable card which I think if you come often to make sure to bring it and just refill the amount to waive the new card activation fee. We didn't get to stay long to play the games we wanted since it was crowded and the game we wanted was pretty popular. Would like to try again next time and will bring our card for a refill! read more

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Arcade with a view of Newport Harbor? Yes please. This is a great little family owned and operated arcade in the Balboa Fun Zone. Pro tip: If you need more than one card (so each kid can have their own), you can select the number of cards you need, and then the total amount with bonus credits, and it will automatically split the total credits among each card. This lets you maximize your bonus credits. Nice! read more

Balboa Fun Zone Arcade - Arcades Near Me - Newport Beach, California

This arcade is newly renovated. We kind of miss the one from the good old days, but if you are looking for the more modern games you can find at Dave & Busters, Round 1, & the like, they have a good mix (though quite limited amount). The prize counter was moved to the front entrance. It used to be on the back door side. Prizes were reasonably priced (not too many tickets required to acquire a pretty decent item. Only problem is either the prizes are somewhat mismarked/placed next to the incorrect ticket price, or the employees are not honest (do not know what they would gain from cheating a kid out of his tickets/the prize he wanted). We worked super hard to get a large Mickey Mouse plush (labeled 2,000 tickets). When we approached the prize counter, I knew my kids had earned just over 2,300 tickets. They received the Mickey plush, but the guy behind the counter took their play card. Alarmed, I told my kids to run up there & get it back as they had at least 300 remaining tickets on the card. The man claimed that the Mickey plush was actually supposed to be 3,000, but he had let my kids have it for their 2,300/the card was now empty. Hmmm ... Okay. Awkward. Whatever ... We accepted the compromise, but I didn't like that they didn't accept their posted ticket price for the Mickey. Should have been on them if it was marked wrong (in my opinion). They had some cute merchandise available ... Shirts and hats with the arcade name and logo. Prices were reasonable. I wish they would offer some in women's cuts though. I probably would have bought one had they had those. Kids had fun. They have Crossy Road, Monopoly, Jaws Pinball, PacMan, crane/claw machines, etc. All in all, a good time was had by all. read more

We paid over $100 to spend a good amount of time at this arcade. There were initially some problems with a few of the games but Jack and Beckham supported, resolved and address the issues immediately. I need to give a shoutout to Jack and Beckham. Thank you for making our kids have a splendid time at your cool arcade place. read more

Balboa Fun Zone Arcade - Arcades Near Me - Newport Beach, California

Great place to take the family lots of games. Lotta fun and CHARIS and Elliott was amazing helping us out figuring things out for the kids.

What a fantastic place to host a birthday party!! Wow! The kids had a blast playing games and there is an awesome hang out area in the back for parents and eating etc. Albert went above and beyond to make sure the kids had a blast. He really cares. He has everything set up for you and even helps decorate to make hosting as easy as possible! Also supporting nearby business as well which I think is really special. (Local cake, ice cream from next door, and the big huge pizzas from down the street) highly recommended for parties and just in general to keep the nostalgia alive for the next generation! THANK YOU!! read more

Balboa Fun Zone Arcade - Party space in the back. Great lighting for evening as well as during the day! - Arcades Near Me - Newport Beach, California

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Just visited this place with my daughter and have to give them hands down 5 stars due to Garrett who's gunning for arcade attendant of the year. He made the experience for my little girl one to remember! read more

I've never been to an arcade with my kids before that didn't feel like a little bit of a scam, but this place was awesome! It was clean, all the games were working and best of all Garrett made sure that my kids felt super special! From making sure that they didn't have any unused credits (he boosted their cards to make sure that they could play one last game!) to giving them bonus tickets and extra little goodies, to all the free fist bumps they walked out feeling like champs! And in the end some random nice folks gave my three littles some stuffies that they won in the claw game, so all the good vibes Garrett is spreading are contagious! Awesome time! read more

Amazing arcade! Super clean and great location right on the bay. Staff is super friendly and accommodating. Can't wait for them to open the comedy/music venue next door read more

I would have given this 5 STARS a few years ago because we love visiting the Balboa Fun Zone Arcade in Newport Beach-it's been one of our favorite spots for years. The atmosphere is welcoming, and the prices have always been reasonable until recently. The staff, especially Beckham & Elliot, they are super nice and helpful- they went out of their way to address our concerns and made us feel heard. However, I'm disappointed that the arcade recently raised prices, eliminating all quarter machines and is now requires a $10 minimum playcard to play games. Gone are the days of the true local arcade, and this seems like they are trying to imitate a Dave-n-Busters but missing a big game selection and reasonable prices. This change feels a bit extreme and detracts from the family-friendly experience we've always enjoyed. Personally I do not think that the company realizes how many people actually walk away from the place in the short time that we were there. I really hope that's the owners will reconsider this drastic new policy, as we'd love to keep this arcade a beloved part of our community. read more

Balboa Fun Zone Arcade - They raised the prices so each game cost $2, which is outrageous. - Arcades Near Me - Newport Beach, California

Love the newly renovated space! They recently hosted my daughter's basketball team Christmas party. The hall was big enough to accomodate our large group and had more than enough room for the kids to dance around. And having the arcade across the way for the kids to enjoy was also very convinient. Very spacious and clean event hall. Everyone had a great time! read more

Newly renovated. The owners jacked up the price to around 8 credits ($1.50-$2.00) for every machine. Must of the games now are claw machines with prizes like funko pops but the claw has zero to no grip. Workers were nice but save your money and don't come here. It's not worth it. read more

My girls had the best time here! So many fun games and the best people here to help! Jack was so patience with my girls, allowing them to take their time to pick! We had the absolute best time! It made our vacation!! Thank you Jack and Balboa Fun Zone Arcade!! read more

Garret was amazing!! Such a fun time and he was super helpful! Thanks and we will be back!

Balboa Fun Zone arcade is awesome! Jack delivers the best customer service! Highly recommended to bring your whole family to for fun!

Long overdue review for this arcade and especially for the guys working here, Gary and Jack. My family and I visited not long after they opened. The arcade had brand new machines and looked great. Most importantly, Gary and Jack bent over backwards to make sure we had a great time. There were a couple glitches with the machines and they not only refunded us but gave us a credit for extra games. They clearly cared a lot for the place and for our experience. It was a slow day, mid-week, so the crowd was small - the attention we received was so welcoming and friendly. I 'd recommend this place without hesitation and promised them (unprompted - my idea) I'd leave a very positive Yelp review. We'd definitely come back and enjoyed a terrific day mostly thanks to these hardworking guys who truly understood the idea of lagniappe. read more

Very cool arcade, awesome new games alot of cool prices the staff is very friendly , would recommend everyone comming here A++ read more

Balboa Fun Zone Arcade - Arcades Near Me - Newport Beach, California

The "Fun Zone" has gone down the toilet. I used to love coming to Balboa Island to frequent the arcades. I just went to the newly renovated Fun Zone and there is no longer any fun to be had. All of the classic games are gone. It's a gentrified piece of junk. Avoid at all costs. read more

Nice family fun day at Balboa playing in the fun zone! Great atmosphere fun for the kiddos very clean and nice! Family fun day at Balboa

Jack showcased excellent customer service during our visit. He helped make our time at the fun zone a wonderful experience.

Impossible to profit here and I am an experienced advantage player with 5 years experience. I win all the big prizes from Dave and Busters and I can flip them for a profit if I want to. Balboa Fun Zone arcade is too expensive at $2 game, high ticket prices, 1000 ticket jackpots not worth much here compared to other arcades. Very slim profit margin even if you won every game. I played Crossy Road and it was very hard, I only won one jackpot out of the 10 games I played. Take your money to Dave and Busters if you want a better return. I am a regular and they honored many big prizes to me over the years which I won at a profit. I do not see Balboa Fun Center willing to cater to skilled customers which is why I recommend everyone to support Dave and Busters. . read more

We spent hours here cause the service and games were awesome!! the guys here make the experience amazing! 10/10 stars if we could! Our first time here and we will be back! read more

My daughter went to a friends birthday party at the arcade. Who knew they did birthday parties!?. It was a group of 12 and 13-year-olds and they had a blast. Service was above and beyond. The kids had so much fun playing games and winning prizes- food was excellent and everyone was happy. Love this place and glad that it's been around for so long. What a great idea for a birthday.! read more

We love having an arcade here, but miss the old games! Bring back Pacman, the clown game, Galactica, Deal or No Deal!

This place is awesome. It's the perfect place to get the kids out of the house and have fun as a family. There was something for each of us: skee ball for me, hoops for my husband, all the cool games for the kids that I don't understand. The best part was when my husband and I were done playing games the kids kept going while we sat outside and watched the boats go by in the bay. The kids left with squishmallows and we finished off the night with ice cream next door. We will definitely be back. read more