Super Slushies

The appeal of the Slushie can be traced back to Terror Mountain and to the Slushie shop. This igloo shaped building is tucked away in the bottom left corner of Happy Valley. It has an air of mysteriousness, with no windows and only one, small signpost, teasing neopets into getting closer and wandering into this rainbow coloured heaven. Manned by a striped Eyrie, Slushies are sold here in the hundreds every day, but magically, the shop remains stocked with these delicious drinks. So, what’s the secret?

“We have huge batches of each flavour brewing all the time,” said Mr. Slush, the owner of Happy Valley’s Slushie Shop, “That way, whenever we have run out of a flavour, we can restock instantly. And the flavours are so simple and easy to create, it takes no time at all!” Mr. Slush politely offered me a free Stone and Slime Slushie, but there was much more I needed to find out about these mysterious drinks, so I declined.

Next I turned to the faithful Shop Wizard to show me the prices of Slushies in the marketplace. Choosing my favourite Slushie flavour - Snow - I followed him round the wide range of stalls in the Neopia Central Marketplace. I was expecting the price to be around the suggested 792 NP. The cheapest we discovered was 1100 NP, showing that there is a clear demand for Slushies and shopkeepers of Neopia are trying to make the most out of it.

“Shopkeepers in Neopia want a good price for their product. When it is in demand, they raise that price, making them benefit,” explained the Shop Wizard, as we walked past some of the huge sky-rise malls of the marketplace. The quest to find out the appeal of the Slushie was being thrown into disarray! Why would Neopians want to spend 1100 NP on a plainly flavoured ice drink to satisfy their thirst when they could simply turn to a cheap 250 NP Neocola? I was becoming frustrated.

My next step was to buy several flavours of Slushie and give them to my faithful test-subject, my Koi - Fins_abc. He is a long-term fan of Slushies and was keen to help me with my experiment. Below are the flavours I bought:

1.

Tchea Fruit Slushie

“The blue bits of this slushie taste like banana, and the yellow bits taste like blueberry.”

2.

Kiwi Slushie

“Eww someone forgot to take the skin off the kiwi fruit; this slushie has hairy brown bits in it.”

3.

Lemon Slushie

“A super sharp citrus treat that will soon have you feeling refreshed.”

So let the tasting begin!

1. “It tasted surprisingly sweet, not at all fruity,” said Fins_ABC. “It does become slightly sickly after a while, surprising for something that is practically all fruit!!”

2. “I didn’t really like the taste of the Kiwi Slushie,” announced Fins_ABC. “The fact that it hadn’t been peeled properly and there were parts of the skin left in it made my fins crawl!”

3. “I’m a long term fan of anything lemony, so this was by far my favourite,” cried Fins_ABC. “It was very sharp and it tasted clean. I loved how it was plain in comparison to the others, simpler.”

This told me that there are certain preferences to your pet’s choice in Slushie. Some may go for the sweet Tchea Fruit and others, the Lemon. This also showed me why the market for Slushies is so extensive in its range of flavours; they want to attract many pets to drink them and as these pets all have different preferences, they have to make them all!! But this only shows me how the Slushie market grew, it doesn’t tell me why it is so popular. I returned to Mr. Slush, armed with my information.

“I believe it is so popular, simply because of the flavours. So many pets with so many tastes, and they all have to be satisfied.” He chuckled to himself. “Personally, I do not even like the Slushies! I find them slightly overwhelming. But that is just my taste!” I became intrigued. An Eyrie, devoting so much of his life and time to a business that sells something he doesn’t even like?

“I began this project (of making Slushies) liking them. But I am older now, and things do change! I would never give up this work as I get joy every day when neopets come into my shop to buy my creations. I would hate to see the glint fall from their eyes if I shut my shop,” Mr. Slush explained to me. So, the business is demanding, like a baby neopet. It needs constant attention from its owner to keep it going. The essence of the Slushie is contained within this igloo and is demanding its attention from Mr. Slush, who after years of production, is still willing to give time to his business.

When I asked Fins_ABC what had attracted him to the famous Slushies, he said it was Mr. Slush’s enjoyment of his business and the fact that after so many years, he is still creating these delicious drinks. My two other neopets agreed, and also added that colour was an important factor. The fact that the Slushies were bright and interesting made them appealing. After all, it is the neopets’ opinion that counts, as they are what has made this business so successful!

So pets are demanding these drinks not only due to the unique taste, but due to the colour of the drinks they are about to indulge in. Mr Slush’s zest for keeping the Slushie Shop running has attracted millions of pets. The mysteriousness of the Slushie Shop intrigues neopets, young and old alike. So it’s not really that surprising why they are so popular and will continue to be for many years to come!