Choosing A Basic Colour

     In our current time in Neopia, we are all striving to push and push through to the next greatest iteration of our pets. Saving up for mutant transmogrification potions and Fire, Fire, Your Pants On Fire Paint Brushes. What is the latest and greatest in fashion and style, and how can we paint our pets to really maximize their appeal? It’s extremely rare nowadays for someone to have a pet in one of the four basic colours: red, blue, green, or yellow. They are seen as basic, cheap, maybe they might even make you seem like a *gasp* newbie!! First of all, there is nothing wrong with being a newbie, and second, there is nothing wrong with the basic colours!

     Back when we all took our first foray into Neopia, when we signed up and logged in for the first time, we were presented with a choice. We were given a long list of Neopet species to choose from, and we spent who knows how long trying to figure out which was the most appealing to us. Do you like the cutesy species like Meerca or Cybunny, or were you looking for something a bit tougher like a Skeith or Grarrl? Maybe you were seeking a studious Aisha or a sturdy Elephante! And once you finally found the species that spoke to you the best, it was time for the next choice: the colour!

     Sometimes it came easy, that decision on what colour you wanted your first pet to be. “My favorite colour is red, so I want my pet to be red!” But sometimes it felt like a really tough decision. See, before we all started on Neopets we didn’t know there were so, so many paint brushes available that could colour our pets every shade of the rainbow and beyond. Was the decision of our first pet’s colour going to be permanent? What if we could never change it? We had to make the right decision, we had to weigh all the possibilities. For me, I took a very pragmatic approach based on the following.

     Red:

     Red is a powerful and striking colour. It demands attention, and always stands out in a group. It is bright and harsh, and also associated with toughness and anger, while also being a bit slick as well. A red pet was sure to be a leader, whether leading through a boisterous personality or with brute toughness and intimidation. This is perhaps one of the more popular basic colours because of the boldness behind. Owners with red pets have a sort of fearlessness behind them that is admirable.

     Yellow:

     Yellow strongly represents kindness and softness. Yellow is the colour of a sunflower, standing tall and proud among the group, keeping a kind eye on all the other flowers. Yellow is a nurturing colour, and shines warmly like the sun. When you see someone dressed in yellow you are never afraid, and they usually radiate with a smile as well. A yellow pet is sure to attract many friends, and be an amazing energy in whatever situation they end up in.

     Blue:

     Blue is the colour of the sea and sky, and is very easy on the eyes. It isn’t a shocking colour, and it doesn’t demand attention. Blue can easily fade into the background, but if a blue pet has a charming personality they are sure to easily integrate in any group. For many, blue is a safe choice, it isn’t as much as a risk or a shock as red and it isn’t as locked in to a personality like yellow could be.

     Green:

     Green is a fairly out of the box colour compared to the other three. It is almost alien, and it isn’t a primary colour so it stands out even more. Green is the colour of grass, but also the colour of slime and toxic goop, so it can have connotations either way. A green Elephante is earthy, blending in with the trees of the forest, but a green Aisha could be straight from outer space. This is a colour for creative minds, those who want a little extra intrigue to their pets and to stand out from the rest.

     Of course, there are still a few other colours out there that are considered basic, like White or Orange, that don’t garner much favor with the Neopian community as a whole. These days, a lot of influence over colour comes with what type of wearables are included with the colour. Things like Royal Paint Brushes and Halloween Paint Brushes come with cool clothing that can be swapped around, creating really cool “cross painted” pets. As time moves on, it seems like a lot of the more basic colours are being forgotten, and customizing those pets has become a thing of the past.

     It seems like a lost art now that a lot of us have been playing so long, the idea of choosing a basic colour when we create a pet. A lot of us have a healthy bank account and can paint our pets within minutes of creation or adoption, but the base colour you choose lays the foundation for the pet that you’ve created. To a degree, your pet’s spirit always carries that first choice, just like a morphing potion doesn’t change every aspect of a pet’s stats. Their original form always remains deep inside, so this decision still carries some importance no matter how many times you have navigated the create-a-pet menu. So what do you choose?

     There are some brave souls out there that have stuck with the basic, single colour options and have created incredible looking pets with those. And some people just favor a basic looking pet that might be a gourmet food champion or can rock the Battledome like no other. To some people, having the most aesthetically beautiful pet is not as important as having a happy, healthy, and successful pet. So I cheer those on who have taken the unique road of sticking by the basic, traditional colours, and to those pioneering new customizations for pets that others would consider too boring.