History of Halloween

    Halloween is based on tradition and lore, a long rich history of spooky fun, so what better way to kick off the festivities than reflect back on what made Neopia’s Halloween what it is today. In this article you’ll find a summary of the spooky fun each year, all the different events and items and other exciting features, that have combined into our favourite holiday as we know it.

    Year One

Year One’s Halloween was possibly the spookiest of all, as it—*GASP*—didn’t exist! As Neopia was founded on November 15th, there were no festivities that year. But that’s okay, I hear Y2’s Halloween made up for it. ;)

    Year Two

Neopia’s first real Halloween was already off to a spooky start, thanks to an unrelated round of Sacrificers. But the real festive fun didn’t begin until October 9th, which marked the release of some Neoboard emoticons that we all know and love today:

That’s right, we received these iconic icons during Neopia’s very first Halloween! But that’s not the only big and beloved Halloween gift. On October 18th, Halloween World was released, which would later become—you guessed it—Haunted Woods! With it, we got contests, games, an interactive story, the Esophagor, and the Brain Tree! Not bad for very first Halloween. The next few days brought us beloved pet pets such as Lil Frankie and Walking Carpets, Brain Tree weapons, the Apothecary (a now-retired shop which sold mushrooms, for those newer users), and some new Halloween Paint Brush colours. The biggest part of the festivities came on October 31st, when 10,000 Halloween Paint Brushes were released into the Money Tree. Not too shabby for the first Halloween!

    Year Three

Year Three starts off fairly tame, kicking it off on October 15th with the addition of some new Halloween Greetings to spook some friends with. Leading up to the big day brings us more spooky foods, more Halloween pets, and, for the first time, Halloween Petpets!

    On October 31st, Y3, we get our first glimpse of the Halloween Wocky, new spooky books, and spooky foods. The big celebration involved a bunch of guilds getting together and donating treats to the Money Tree!

    Year Four

The start of Halloween festivities occur on October 11th, with the revamp of some Halloween Petpets, and the introduction of the Werelupe! We get a bunch of Spooky Petpet colours over the following month, and see our first-ever Ghost pet, in the form of a Moehog.

Ghost Shoyrus were released later that same day, but we’re over it by then.

As you can probably guess by now, we also got more spooky foods and Halloween pet colours, as well as some spooky furniture and weapons! We also got the arrival of this new NeoGreeting where the recipient can play a bobbing for apples game (our high score is 14, see if you can beat it!). We also saw the first-ever visit of the scariest Neopian of all, the Tax Beast, on October 30th.

Halloween Day is kicked off with the introduction of the Deserted Fairgrounds! The festivities continue as the Neocam, a now-disabled feature which used to show members of TNT at work, showed Neopians all the wacky and creepy Halloween costumes TNT wore!

    Year Five

I’m sure you get the gist by now, but Neopia kicked off Y5’s Halloween season with, yes, some new Halloween themed items and pets! We got spooky Neggs; an Edna plushie; spooky Usukis; foods; new Petpets; Halloween Kikos, Acaras, Lennies, Tuskaninnies and Moehogs; *gasps for breath* Meowclops colours and items; MSPP items; a Werelupe avatar; and more!

    Halloween Day brings us more spooky items and pets, two spooky PPL winners instead of one, as well as more fun Neocam costumes, and… drumroll, please… the first-ever Trick-Or-Treat bags! These bags could be found randomly around the site, and could reward you with a Halloween Petpet Paint Brush, or… something a little less desirable.

    Late that night, Neopians also found the crypt that housed Count Von Roo, and for the first time, he offered the chance to roll the dice.

    Year Six

Y6 began releasing spooky things a bit late, if you don’t count the inherently spooky Korbat items released on Korbat Day. October 27th brought us our first round of festive features in the form of some fun images.

TAAAARDINESSSSSSS!!!!!!!!

We also got the Halloween Ruki, and, over the next few days, new spooky furniture, Petpet colours, thematic shopkeepers and shop blogs, costumes, spooky food, Halloween colouring pages, pet colours… the usual things you expect by now! We also see the first Halloween Goodie Bag go on sale on the 29th (which is essentially Halloween, as it occurred over the weekend!), and, even more exciting, is the introduction of the brand new Random Contest! This beloved contest (which I hear could be making a comeback…) kicked off with a pumpkin-carving contest, just in time for Halloween. There was no Trick-or-Treating this year, but everyone was busy getting their goodie bags from the toy store anyway! This Goodie Bag gave out amazing prizes like rare spooky toys, weapons, books and foods, and even gave a chance at receiving a Meowclops—who needs Trick or Treating?

    Year Seven

You know the drill by now! Starting October 24th, we see a flood of brand new spooky items for the rest of the month, like foods, furniture, and plushies. October 27th of Y7 was dedicated to Werelupes, so there was the introduction of a new Werelupe shopkeeper, lots of fun images, a plushie, a desktop image, and more.

Halloween of Y7 gave a bunch of thematic items, of course, plus a new game, which has since been renamed to Ghost Bopper! We also see the triumphant return of Trick-or-Treating! If you’re lucky enough, you might’ve come across a Ghostly Trick-or-Treat Bag, which could reward you with an array of spooky items and treats.

    Year Eight

The frightening fun began early this year, as the Tale of Woe was ongoing into October. Neopians were at the edge of their seats, reading about Gilly’s adventures through the Haunted Woods, or the strange happenings in Neovia… getting everyone in the Halloween spirit, ready for the spooky new Buddy Icons and items that would come on October 27th! The next few days gives us some new masks for Neopians to print out, some adorably gruesome fun images, colouring pages, and a ghost cybunny. And, of course, a season staple—Trick-or-Treating!

    Y8’s treat bags have lots of common spooky items, and some exclusive ones, that sell for quite a bit now. Hopefully someone way back in Y8 happened to hold onto a bunch!

    Year Nine

We’ve covered some pretty scary topics here on this article. But none compare to the absolute horror that this year’s Halloween brought with it… that’s right, it’s The Conversion. DUN DUN!

    Okay, technically the conversion happened way back in April. But, still, this is our first Halloween where we can actually dress up our pets without painting them Halloween. There was also a Halloween themed Neovision, for users to submit spooky Neopets-themed videos and animations for a chance to be featured and earn a trophy. We also got some new spooky furniture items, Halloween colouring pages, pumpkin foods, Petpet colours, the usual—and, for the first time, Halloween wearables! On October 20th, we got the Inside a Jack-o-Lantern Background, followed by the Jack-o-Lantern pail on the 25th. There was also the first-ever Halloween Shop in the NC Mall.

    But the festive wearables aren’t the only Halloween first—we also see the arrival of the Zombie Paint Brush later that same day! As well as a return of our favourite yearly event, Trick-or-Treating! This year’s Scary Trick-or-Treat Bag can give a variety of fun Halloween items, as well as some new spooky wearables.

    Year Ten

This year brings us another Halloween Neovision and lots of fun images, but the best new gift leading up to Halloween is the grand reveal of a new festive game, Mutant Graveyard of Doom II! There is not yet an avatar for this spooky classic, but we’re one step closer. TNT also did a spooky-themed buffet within the office to celebrate, where members of the team prepared spooky food-inspired foods, like Blumaroo Steak and Glaring Eye Wraps. Yum?

    And, of course… Trick-Or-Treating! This year’s bags, like previous years, could be found randomly around the site, and contained more Halloween treats, some masks to dress up your pets, and lots of Neohome items compatible with the new 2.0 Neohomes which launched in August Y10.

    Year Eleven

Festivities kicked off early this year with the opening of the NC Mall Halloween Shop on October 6th. Neopians could also redeem a virtual code from their plushies, where you could get an exclusive Ghostkerchief Grab Bag. As usual, we got lots of new seasonal colours and items. There was also a festive Trick-or-Treating event in Petpet Park as well as a new pumpkin themed MME.

    The big day is kicked off with a new Halloween Chomby, some spooky Petpets, and… you guessed it, Trick-or-Treating! This year’s Cute n Creepy Trick-or-Treat Bag contained lots of fun items, including furniture, wearables, snacks, and some exclusive books.

    Year Twelve

Things are already getting pretty spooky as The Faerie’s Ruin continues. We’ve got a Halloween NC Shop with lots of spooky new costumes, our first festive NC Collectible Item, and, for the first time, the Haunted Faire! This Faire gave us our first glimpse of a new favourite, Apple Bobbing with Bart! The Faire also gave out quests, where Neopians had to interview others and follow clues to earn prizes.

    And, for the first time… a full NC Halloween event! The first-ever 13 Days of Halloween launches, where Neopians can purchase up to 13 Trick-or-Treat bags. The Spooky Food shop and Haunted Weaponry both received an update, and we got lots of new items and pet colours, as you’re well aware by now! On October 29th, we also received the new Dark Lurker avatar.

    And, of course, this year had Trick-or-Treating as well! Unlike previous years, it wasn’t just limited to Halloween night… and it wasn’t just limited to one bag! At the Haunted Faire, Neopians could find clues that would lead them to four different bags, all with their own unique prizes. All in all, not too shabby!

    Year Thirteen

Another spooky NC Collectible Item, some eerie Mystery Capsules, scary new pet colours and items… all the stuff you’ve come to know and love from Halloween. We also see the first-ever free spooky NC Mall goodie bag, and the triumphant return of the Haunted Faire. This year introduces Saskia, a collector who uses the citizens of Neopia as test subjects to find the perfect mask (which just means fun masks to Trick-or-Treat with!). Starting October 25th, Neopians could don the masks and explore Neopia, following clues to find tons of exclusive items, including (but not limited to) Trick-or-Treat bags!

    We also saw a Scary Tree Stamp auctioned off by Dr. Sloth, to one lucky winner. If frantically bidding for that stamp doesn’t scare you, I don’t know what will. There was also a new Halloween goodie bag released in stores, the Happy Halloween Bag, which when opened can award the much sought-after Haunted House Porch Background. Another first this year was the introduction of a brand new Halloween NC event, Haunted Hijinks! From the 19th to the 31st, Neopians could take a hammer to ghosts (already very fun) to win exclusive spooky prizes (even better)! We also see the release of a spooky favourite, referencing the events of the previous year’s Halloween, the Wraith Paint Brush!

    Whew, Y13 was quite the Halloween!

    Year Fourteen

You know the drill. Lots of new spooky items and colours, as well as the Halloween NC shop. On October 6th, we go back to our roots from the very first Halloween, and get some new spooky emoticons:

We also have our first (and last) ever Edolie’s Phantastic Finds (technically, we had another Edolie event back in Spring of Y14, but this is the only *Halloween* event) which was an NC event where Neopians could search for haunted items using a magnifying glass. We got another free NC goodie bag in the mall, and the return of the Haunted Faire! Saskia is back with her Masks of Dread for another clue-based Trick-or-Treat event, for a variety of Trick-or-Treat bags and other items, with a bonus NC component for participating Neopians. Bart is back, too—with, y’know, more Apple Bobbing. We got a new Magical Shrunken Heads MME, and, on Halloween Day, a new Halloween Y14 Goodie Bag for sale in shops. For those lucky enough to buy some, it contained a variety of spooky items, including the coveted Black Alabriss Wings.

    Year Fifteen

Halloween festivities started early when, on September 24th, a citizen of Neovia by the name of Tippens unveiled his Spooky Food Eating Contest! Neopians could cheer on their favourites and boo their least favourites, all while earning some pretty spooky prizes. The winner turned out to be a monster who, in turn, destroyed the Haunted Faire (no Masks of Dread this year, though Bart’s Apple Bobbing did survive!). Kell and Corbin make their debut, and, with the help of Neopians, found and captured the monster on the 1st of November. All in all, a fairly eventful Halloween!

    We also got some spooky new mystery capsules, items, wearables, costume packs, pet colours, all the usual spooky stuff leading up to the big day. On October 11th, we also saw some new seasonal icons:

    We also got another free Halloween Barbat Goodie Bag from the NC mall, and saw the return of Haunted Hijinks!

    Year Sixteen

This year had a scary start as we began with the transition! But a few site bugs here and there didn’t stop anyone from getting into the festive season, especially with two free NC goodie bags to help ease the transition. We also saw the first (but hopefully not last!) Halloween Dyeworks, a creepy Skeleton Wonderclaw, and, of course, Haunted Hijinks!

    But don’t worry, not all celebrations this year were NC-related. When the clock struck midnight and it was officially Halloween, Neopians could Trick-or-Treat to find five festive bags given out by different characters, each with some exclusive prizes—and some junk, of course, because they are tricks or treats, after all.

    Year Seventeen

Halloween started off a bit slow this year, as Charity Corner was still ongoing and everyone was busy getting into the giving spirit rather than the spooky spirit. Fortunately, the release of some new haunted items got everyone excited for Halloween, and then we saw the return of Haunted Hijinks, a some terrifying new wearables, an Eerie Halloween Goodie Bag for sale in toy shops, and…

    Trick-or-Treating!! This year also had five different bags hidden around Neopia, with even more exclusive prizes.

    Year Eighteen

Creepy items. Tons of spooky new NP wearables (seven, to be exact!). The return of Haunted Hijinks. It would already be chalking up to a pretty great Halloween, but the icing on the spider cupcakes was on Halloween day itself, for—you guessed it—Trick-or-Treating! This seasonal staple brought us even more goodie bags with even more exclusive prizes, like stamps, books, wearables, plushies, and some very alarming foods.

    Year Nineteen

If you can believe it, we’re in Y19’s Halloween as we speak! Halloween is just a few short days away, and with this year’s Faerie Festival, the MME, rerelease capsules, mystery capsules, wearables, spooky items, Haunted Hijinks, Wonderclaw… it’s chalking up to be a pretty good one.

But, really, we wouldn’t expect anything different from the people who brought us nineteen years of festive fun. This spooky holiday is built on the foundation of a long line of tradition throughout Neopia’s Halloween history, and there’s nothing like tradition to bond us together and get us excited for the big day. Who’s up for Trick-or-Treating?