How to Stop Yourself From Becoming a Trading Zombie

And what’s wrong with that? Surely people can do whatever they want with their pets, right? It’s theirs, after all. What right does anyone have to criticize what someone else decides to do with their pets? Absolutely none.

But what if pet trading was affecting everyone else on Neopets?

Preposterous, you say? Not so. Over the past year or so, pet trading has significantly increased the price of Draik and Krawk morphing and transmogrification potions affecting the online economy for all players. People who want a Draik or Krawk now have to work a lot harder to obtain their dream and with the price always increasingly, it’s doubtful that the average Neopian will ever earn enough neopoints.

Additionally, pet trading has changed the structure of the Neopian society as a whole. Nowadays, people are being judged based on how many ‘rare’ pets they have or how great their pets’ names are. Sure, this may have occurred prior to the introduction of pet trading, but it’s becoming progressively more obvious now. For people with wonderful unconverted pets, this may be great, but what about those people without them? Does this mean they should do their best to get one as soon as they can? But what if they don’t want one? What then? Are they simply doomed to be looked down upon by other Neopians forever?

No, this is not a rant at people who own Draiks, Krawks, unconverted pets or any other pets that may be considered “rare” by others. Make no mistake of that. People who own those pets often work hard to get them and shouldn’t be accused of being greedy simply because they have a lot of them or whatever.

Anyway, this article is about more than that. This is an order, or perhaps rather, a plea for people to open their eyes and realize just what is most important to them. Are you really happy with the constant swapping of pets? Does the prospect of slowly edging towards the pet you want truly delight you? Or have you simply become a mindless trading zombie?

I wonder about the truth, I truly do. It seems like most of the people I’ve observed on the boards aren’t particularly happy with a trade they’ve made. Rather, the pets are soon back up for trade and once again, join the never ending cycle of pet trading. Often, the people made the trade simply because they thought the new pet would allow them to reach their ‘dream pet’ sooner or allow them to trade up even more. Everyone is trying to trade up and sometimes, there doesn’t appear to be any particular pet they’re looking for. I’ve seen people who, on obtaining their ‘dream pet’, simply turn around and place said pet back up for trade. It's as if they've becoming mindless zombies whose only aim is to trade, trade and trade. I find myself wondering if there’s ever an end to it, if there even is a point to all this trading.

Some people, I’ll admit, seem genuinely overjoyed at their new pet. They’ve achieved the goal they’ve been working so hard to get for so long and plan on keeping the pet rather than retrading it. And there the story ends.

Or so it seems. But what happens to the pet next?

The truth is simple. Upon achieving their goal, about 20-30% of people will customize, train or do whatever they like to do with their pets. This may include creating a character and story for them or even roleplaying. A large percentage of people, however, will find themselves feeling somewhat hollow and empty because they no longer have a goal to aim for. Without something to strive towards, they find themselves bored and utterly confused at what they should do. To them, there may no longer be a point to being online. These tend to be the people who simply drop off the face of the earth, go on a hiatus or ultimately, quit.

So how exactly can you prevent yourself from becoming like them? With pet trading becoming contagious, it’s hard to avoid becoming a mindless trading zombie yourself. Well, it’s a good thing I’m here to help then.

Stopping’s hard, so here’s a suggestion, why not ease off something? Rather than aiming for a pet that will take you forever to trade up for, why not aim for something that’s more obtainable? Swap that unconverted Draik for a royal or plushie! There are plenty of other beautiful pets around, after all.

Additionally, you can always try the long way and save the neopoints to get that pet you have your eyes on. Sure, this may not work for unconverted pets, but there’s always the option of trading a Draik or Krawk custom rather than trading a million pets to get up to that Draik or Krawk. I assure you, saving up for the pet you’re after is much more fulfilling than simply trading for one. And with the amount of time you spent on bumping your board and advertising, you could probably save up sooner as well! If you’re not too great at playing games, you can always try other methods of earning neopoints such as the stockmarket, entering one of the many contests around, or restocking.

Alternatively, there’s always adoption. Some people believe that the adoption process is incredibly complex and over the top. In some cases, I agree with them, but there are always some people who prefer a much simpler adoption method that’s actually possible for the average Neopian. People like this are everywhere and you need not do more than compose a simple neomail to have a chance at adopting their pet. Easy, right?

And now, the bigger issue of what to do when you’ve achieved the pet you want.

Firstly, don’t put it off; do something with them. It can be anything! Writing, drawing, customizing, whatever it is you like to do. If you wait, chances are that the pet will just rot away and you’ll never do anything with them. Everyone has something they like to do with their pets, so why not show it to everyone? Draw an image of them and enter it into the Beauty Contest or if drawing’s not your thing, why not try roleplaying them or writing them a story? For people who prefer customizing, there’s always the Customization Spotlight. Not to mention the Pet and Petpet Spotlight. Neopets is full of great contests and things for you to do with your pet! Do them today and prevent yourself from trading your pet tomorrow.

Join the Revolution now and create a character today!

Viva la Revolution!