Neo News: Wheels of Neopia Tullerby Need Saving

Me: Good morning Moss, and thank you for agreeing to this interview.

Moss: It’s my pleasure, Ale.

Me: Ok, good. My first question is basically what everyone thought when they first saw that Save the Wheels banner. To quote, even though the campaign is over now, “What is this all about?”

Moss: Of course. The five Wheels of Neopia became rusty and unusable and ran dry. There wasn’t enough Neopoints to continue running them and they were beginning to grow stale. They needed a revamp.

Me: And why was this? Why did they run dry?

Moss: Can I ask you one question?

Me: Yes, sure.

Moss: When did this campaign start, right after what?

Me: Hmm, I was in Maraqua then came back home to see the banner... it happened right after the Altador Cup!

Moss: That’s right. Neopians were so preoccupied with the Altador Cup more than ever this year. Not many bothered to visit the Wheels for a spin, meaning no Neopoints were being put into their fund. After the Altador Cup, Neopians went back to spinning the Wheels. The Wheels give big prizes, so since they didn’t have much in their fund, they couldn’t give out the prizes or continue their maintenance. They basically went bust and had to be shut, one by one.

Me: Why were they shut one by one, and not all together?

Moss: One less Wheel to take care of really does help. It meant whatever we had could be used to support the other Wheels while the one could receive donations which we would use to fix it up. Next we’d close the next Wheel, using what we had left from the previous donations to start work on that. This speeded things up and meant Neopians could still access some Wheels.

Me: I see. Neopia collectively raised over 12,000,000 Neopoints! Give yourselves a hand, Neopia! In return, our Wheels got face-lifts. Why did the Wheels need to be refurbished? That cost Neopoints that could have just been put into the Wheels’ fund and make the whole campaign take less time.

Moss: Maintenance just isn’t enough after some years; you’ll need a whole new object. Luckily, the whole of Neopia is changing. Haven’t you noticed? Things need to move on, people need to move on. We can’t keep lingering in the past. So to fit in with the rest of its surroundings, the Wheels needed to be revamped. After the success of the Wheel of Knowledge, we knew that all the generous Neopians out there would support us with the other Wheels, so we went for it.

Me: Did you have to make spins cost more?

Moss: The Wheel of Knowledge costs less.

Me: Let me re-phrase that, did you have to make the Wheels bar the Wheel of Knowledge cost more?

Moss: They give out bigger prizes now.

Me: Yes, but they cost more. We didn’t ask for bigger prizes.

Moss: If we’re giving a revamp, it’s not just the look that’ll change; the features will have to change as well. By making the Wheels cost more, the funds won’t run dry.

Me: You just said they give out bigger prizes. How will they not run dry then?

Moss: The probability that those who spin the Wheels get the top prizes is slim.

Me: What if everyone – don’t give me that look.

Moss: I’m sorry is this an interview or condemnation? You’re not being very professional.

Me: Coming from the guy with no interviewing experience – what? Don’t go, I’ll, I’ll stop now.

Moss: Fine, you’ll be editing out that part, right?

Me: Yes, we only add the important bits. Back to the questions, this one regards you Moss: Why did you feel that the Wheels in particular needed to be fixed up?

Moss: Well, I had this whole campaign in mind long before it actually began. I noticed how the Wheels didn’t have their usual lustre and knew something had to be done. They had to be brought back to life. Also, everyone loves the Wheels of the Neopia! We love their colours, unpredictability, prizes, and keepers! I do especially. That’s why I felt the Wheels in particular needed a revamp. And trust me, it’s a hard job. Setting things up with no one else to help, begging top-class Wizards to assist me with the cause, asking Neopians to donate what they can to help; thank you again everyone, designing and actually building the new Wheels. You think Esophagor’s tasks are hard? You should try running a Neopian Conservation Society campaign!

Me: Right, I have one final question to ask you, Moss; is the Neopian Conservation Society planning another campaign like this for other prize giving attractions in Neopia?

Moss: We wouldn’t dare. After all the generous donations from Neopians across the globe, it’d be an absolute insult to ask for more. Besides, every other thing seems to be running fine.

Me: Are you certain? I’m sure there must be something that needs a little flair. Neopians would be happy to donate more.

Moss: It’s perfectly alright. Besides, the economy is better now.

Me: What about the economy?

Moss: Nothing.

Me: The Tombola guy is getting stale, he even asks for donations now and then, which we give him. He could do with a new do. The Fruit Machine in Lost Desert, they use cards for crying out loud. They need some help, and besides, you very, very rarely get the top prize from them anyway. Same goes for Test Your Strength. Listen Moss, other attractions need to be revamped, and Neopia will be happy to help.

Moss: You think?

Me: I know.

Moss: I’ll go tell the society right away!

Me: Thank you for the interview Moss. And off he goes, one man on a mission to change Neopia.

This was Aleonare the Blue Nimmo reporting live from the Neopian Conservation Society’s office where I interviewed the Moss Tullerby of the Save the Wheels campaign. We got to find that lack of lustre sparked the Wheels’ new look and how the campaign was carried out. It looks like we could be expecting another campaign; Save Neopia’s Dailies? Goodbye!