Winning the Game: A Guide to Key Quest Mini Games

Key Quest is one of the most competitive games out there. There are many factors involved in a Key Quest game, from luck to the power-ups to the starting positions to the mini games. Mini games are an incredibly important factor in the outcome of any Key Quest game, as the winner earns awesome prizes like keys and power-ups. Someone who knows the best strategies in mini games will have a huge advantage over their opponent.

Before you begin playing Key Quest, you should try to make your computer run as fast as possible. A lack of lag on the board saves you hassle and headache, and a lack of lag in the mini games themselves can mean the difference between winning and losing. To reach your maximum speed, try closing out of any programs except the game so that you can focus.

Now that you've done that, you can head into your Key Quest match with your head held high! Your Neopets will thank you for your trouble when you can give them gourmet foods and the most stylish paint colors with your fabulous earnings.

Berry Blast

Berry Blast follows a simple procedure: You have to 'blast' as many berries as possible before your opponents do. The berries will grow atop lush greenery in three different colors. Each color yields a different amount of points.

A gray/black berry will stay on the screen for the least amount of time, but it's worth three points, so click it quickly!

A red berry is worth two points, and stays on the screen for a medium length.

A purple berry is worth one point, and lingers on the screen for a long period of time.

When you're playing the game, you should target the black berries first. These berries will up your score at triple the speed of the purple berries. Knowing which colors will yield the best results is the first step to winning this mini game.

You'll be able to see your opponent's cursor on the same screen. They'll be going for the berries as well. Speed is the ultimate key - not only are you rushing against the clock, but you're rushing to be faster than your adversary.

Flower Frenzy

Flower Frenzy is a mini game that has less interaction with your opponent. You can see their score lighting up at the bottom of the screen, but you don't share the same exact game.

In Flower Frenzy, various types of flowers are surrounded by square rocks. They're arranged in a certain formation. One by one, the rocks around a flower will light up. You have to click on the flowers in the exact sequence that they were lit. And be careful - if you click on the wrong one, you'll have to start all over again!

This is a game of memory and concentration. Like Berry Blast, there's also an element of speed. You're trying to get more points than your opponent even if you don't share the screen. Keep in mind that you don't have to click on the flowers in the same speed that they lit up. Your fingertips can follow the sequence as fast as possible without being penalized. (Just make sure you don't go too fast and accidentally mess up the sequence!)

Fruit Picker

Fruit Picker is similar to Berry Blast in several ways. You're given foliage with fruit already grown on it in a game screen that's similar to Berry Blast. And like Berry Blast, you're competing directly against your opponent, rather than by yourself.

However, the game is played differently. Rather than simply clicking on berries as they grow, you're taking on a different task. In Berry Blast, the pressure is on to blast berries before they disappear. In Fruit Picker, you're not in danger of the fruit disappearing - but you are in danger of your opponent getting to it before you do!

You'll have a basket neatly placed at the bottom of the screen in whatever color you chose to play with. You need to fill this basket with fruit by clicking on the fruit with your mouse and dragging it down to the bottom of the screen. Each fruit will give you one hundred points, and whichever player has the most fruit at the end of the game wins.

One tip is that fruit will fall directly downward when you click and release the mouse. If you click on the fruit directly above your basket, you don't need to drag it - it'll simply fall into your clutches. Be careful using this method, though, as sometimes the fruit doesn't fall exactly where you want it to! If a fruit you clicked falls into your opponent's basket, they'll get the point. You have to be sure that you're dragging or dropping it in the right spot.

Ghastly Guzzler

Ghastly Guzzler transports you to the Haunted Woods to feed the Esophagor. In amidst the spooky trees, this creature rises, wanting to be given a meal. You and your opponent have food that you can throw into his mouth. Click repeatedly on his mouth to toss the food in. Each item that lands inside is worth twenty points.

The Esophagor will sometimes change positions on the screen. When this happens, you'll have to adjust your cursor so you can throw the food into the new spot. You'll be able to see your opponent throwing food as well, although you're not directly competing against them - you're just trying to land more meals than they are.

At times, the Esophagor will decide that the meal didn't quite agree with him and spew sludge everywhere. There's a small down arrow beneath your character. When the creature shows danger signs of an oncoming spew, click on the down arrow to duck. If you don't duck in time and you're hit by the spew, you lose ten points.

Neogarden Grow

When you play Neogarden Grow, you're attending to your very own garden, being given a watering can and a pair of clippers. There are four seeds that have been planted in the ground. You use the watering can to water the seeds, whereupon they grow stalks. If you water the stalks one more time, they'll bloom into beautiful fully-grown flowers.

Once a flower is grown, the player needs to harvest it. This is where the clippers come in. You click the button for the clippers and then trim the flower at its stem. The first player to harvest all four flowers wins the mini game.

The fastest method is to water all four flowers at once and only make the switch to the clippers when all are ready for harvest. In fact, with some practice, you can position the watering can so that it grows two of the flowers at once. There are specific spots right in the middle of the flowers that encourage two stalks to grow. It's not the easiest thing to do, but it's possible!

Nova Matcher

Nova Matcher is another mini game in which you play directly against your opponent. You're given a screen filled with dozens of different types of novas. Each unique nova has a pair. Match the pairs together and they'll spin and disappear off the screen. You're working against your opponent, though - they're trying to match the pairs before you can. Whoever matches the most pairs will gain the most points and win the mini game.

When playing Nova Matcher, you should first match the nova pairs that are directly beside or atop each other. These are the quickest to reach with your mouse, and they're also the easiest to pick out visually. Once you've done this, get rid of the other pairs.

If the screen is taking a long time to load, you can start matching the novas before they're all fully turned around and present. Some of them look the same from a side angle, though, so be absolutely sure you're clicking pairs. Clicking two novas that aren't a pair doesn't have a penalty, but it does let your opponent get ahead!

Orbliteration

In Orbliteration, you're brought to the fascinating world of outer space and Kreludor. You are a Cuttlebot petpet who is leaping from spark to spark. These sparks are green and blue, and you jump between them with a click of your mouse. Each spark that you jump to will give you twenty-five points.

The most important part of the game for racking up points, though, is the orbs. Orbs are pink and hover outside of the sparks. You have to obtain these orbs, as each one is worth five times the amount of a spark! To pick up an orb, move to a spark close to it and then click on it with your mouse. The Cuttlebot will reach out and pull the orb toward itself.

Some orbs cannot be collected. I like to call these the 'decoy orbs'. These orbs will seemingly appear on the screen out of nowhere, and no matter how much you click, they simply won't cooperate. The orbs that can be collected will shoot out of the geysers at the bottom of the screen. Be on the lookout!

However, be careful of the geysers themselves. If they hit your Cuttlebot when they explode, you'll be stunned. When this happens, you won't be able to move and your opponent will have an advantage. Though this only lasts for a few seconds, it can be detrimental to your score.

Petpet Pamper

In Petpet Pamper, you're presented with a Meowclops who has clearly been spending too much time rolling around in the mud. You are meant to operate a hose so that you can clean the dirty petpet off. Each opponent has a hose as well, and whoever cleans the most wins the game.

The Meowclops has a habit of moving back and forth while you're washing it off - apparently it doesn't like water very much! You'll have to keep the hose trained on the clods of dirt despite the squirming. The more dirt you wash off, the more points you'll get.

The two prime dirt places are on the tail and the body. Your opponents will be washing off the petpet as well, so you should try to get to these areas first. Once those are cleaned off, aim for the legs and the head of the Meowclops. These are a little harder to reach, but still rewarding.

Petpet Pond

Petpet Pond pits you against your opponents in a fishing competition. You're meant to toss your fishing line into the water and reel in various petpets.

There are three kinds of petpets in the pond. A Goldy is worth the most at a whopping one hundred points. A Nuranna is worth fifty points, and a Bubblebee is worth twenty-five points.

If you toss your line too close to a Petpet, they might be scared off. But if you toss your line too far away, they might not notice it at all. It's a delicate balance. Once a petpet notices your line, they'll take a nibble. You have to wait a few seconds for them to be caught on the line, and then click repeatedly at the bottom of the screen to reel them in.

Only after you've reeled them in can you get the points. Be careful, since a petpet can escape the fishing line if you don't act fast enough! A Bubblebee can be reeled in with just a few clicks, whereas a Goldy takes more work.

You're competing to gain the most points, so your best bet is to aim for the Goldys first. This will allow you to gain points quickly, and will give you an advantage over your opponents. If you're having trouble snagging a Goldy, a few Bubblebees might get you into the swing, as they're easy both to attract and reel.

Petpetpet Snare

In Petpetpet Snare, you're doing your best to pull in various kinds of petpetpets. You're happily sitting around a campfire, but the petpetpets just won't leave you alone! You have to get rid of them somehow.

Your opponent will be presented the same screen as you, although you won't be able to see their cursor. You will, however, have to work against them to snare petpetpets. If you're not fast enough, they'll get to the petpetpets before you and steal away all your points.

At the top of the screen, you'll see the "Target Petpetpet". This is the petpetpet that you'll be catching at that moment. No other petpetpets can be caught during that time. To catch a petpetpet, draw a circle around it with your mouse.

Getting multiple petpetpets into the same circle will drastically increase your points. However, only do this if you're sure you have the time. It might be more advisable to keep your circles small, as this will allow you to draw more quickly. You don't want your opponent to take the petpetpets away from you.

Whoever has the highest score at the end of the mini game wins.

Shenkuu Showers

Once again you're transported to another part of Neopia with Shenkuu Showers! Many Neopets walk over a bridge in Shenkuu itself, desperately trying to keep dry as storm clouds burst overhead. You and your opponents operate one umbrella each. You can drag the umbrella around the screen in order to cover the Neopets.

The more Neopets you cover with your umbrella, the more points you'll get. Each Neopet gives you twenty points every few seconds. Sometimes they'll walk in groups, and sometimes they'll pass each other by. Look for groups of uncovered Neopets in order to gain the most points.

When a group is covered by your umbrella, they'll light up with your game color. When a group is covered by your opponent's umbrella, they'll light up with your opponent's color. A group that's being covered by one person cannot be doubly covered - if a Neopet is covered by your opponent, you can't get points for hovering near them.

If there are no groups onscreen the second the game starts, cover the Neopet closest to the edge of the screen. There's a good chance that another Neopet will join them when they reach the edge, and you'll have a group to cover.

Sometimes there will be rewards and mishaps that come from the sky as well. An angry black storm cloud will occasionally roll in and hover over the umbrellas. If this happens to you, get away from it immediately. It will send down a lightning bolt that will incinerate your umbrella for several seconds, uncovering your pets and costing you points.

If your opponent is hit by a lightning bolt, take advantage of the opportunity by stealing their group away from them while they're uncovered. All is fair when it comes to Key Quest.

Sometimes a pink storm cloud will roll in as well. While this may look friendlier, avoid it as well - it will shrink your umbrella so that you have a much more difficult time covering pets.

Power ups might fall from the sky. A circle with an orange lightning bolt on it is excellent. If you catch it with your umbrella, your points will be doubled for a time. This means that every pet you cover will give you forty points rather than twenty. An orange cloud will turn your umbrella gray and keep it from getting struck by lightning. And a green umbrella will have the opposite effect of a pink stormcloud; it will expand your umbrella so that you can cover more pets.

The opponent who gains the most points at the end of the mini game wins.

Spyder Scare

In Spyder Scare, you operate a simple Spyder who's trying to do its daily job by collecting various nuts and bolts. Your opponent will operate a Spyder on the same screen, and you will be vying for the same parts in a manner similar to Fruit Picker.

The Spyders will crawl across the top of the screen. Yours will have eyes and light beams the color of your game token. These beams will sweep across the game screen. The direction in which these beams face is the direction that the Spyder will descend when you click on the mouse.

When the beams are facing a piece of equipment that you want to pick up, click on the mouse and let the Spyder do its work. Items that are closer to the Spyder will be picked up faster.

When a purple orb is picked up, it will paralyze one of your opponents for several seconds. Getting a purple orb at the beginning of the game will give you a huge advantage. Once your opponent is frozen, you have free reign of the board and can pick up as many items as you want.

Different items are worth different amounts of points:

• A hex nut is worth the most, at four points.
• A bolt is worth three points.
• A four-sided nut is worth two points.
• A blue orb is worth one point.
• A purple orb is worth one point (but with the aforementioned helpful paralyzing effect).

Now that you've learned about different mini games and the tips and strategies for playing them, you're ready to go out and play Key Quest! Hopefully this guide will help you to become a more experienced player. As you go through your games, you'll probably come up with strategies of your own. And your Neopets will leap for joy as you reap the rewards!