5 Tips to Key Quest Domination

Tip #1: Know more than just the in-game directions. Reading the directions that Neopets has put on KQ is a great start to getting into the game. However, there are many user-created guides that would be fantastic additions to your existing KQ knowledge. Many of these guides include greater detail that may help you throughout the game. If you would like a current and up-to-date guide, stop by the KQ neoboards.

Tip #2: Start your own game. Starting your own game puts the ball in your court because you are able to decide where you play. My personal suggestion would be that you pick one board and stick to it, although this may prove detrimental if you are easily bored with the same situation over and over again. Knowing the location of all the spots and keys on the board may help you strategize as you can then plan your routes based on where the better spots are, especially spots like those with your element alignment! If you want to pick different boards, be sure that you know the outline of the board that you are playing on. Either way, I would suggest that you start off the game with four players, even if you are more comfortable playing with two or three. The reason for this suggestion is simple: People quit. Unfortunately, many four-player KQ games end up being two-player KQ games because some players are unreliable. Unless you are playing with a trusted friend, having more people in the game ensures that the game will end with a winner.

Tip #3: Be consistent with your in-game color choice. At the beginning of each KQ game, you are given the opportunity to choose what color you would like to represent: red, yellow, green or blue. Being consistent in which color you choose is key to starting up a good game, which is another reason why the previous tip is of great importance – being the first one in the game means you get to be the first to pick your color. Always having the same color will help you when it comes to some minigames. While you can always look up to the top of the screen to figure out which color you are in case you forget, those few extra seconds may cost you the game if you are against stiff competition, especially if you do not realize that you do not know your color until after the minigame has started. Additionally, knowing your color also makes it easier if there is another player with the same token as yours, which is extremely likely if you are using the default token. After all, you wouldn't want to accidentally send yourself home instead of your opponent just because you confused the colors.

Tip #4: Know your opponents. If you are playing with strangers, you may not know your opponent too well, nor may you care to. However, you may be interested in knowing how proficient your opponent is at the game, and that is where their Key Quest Collector's Case comes in handy. If you visit a user's lookup, you can click on their Key Quest Tokens link to see how many keys a player has redeemed. These numbers should be pretty good indicators of how skilled your opponent is at the game. For example, a user with 1000 gold keys is most likely more skilled at the game than a user with only 10 gold keys. However, keep in mind that the keys that show up there reflect the keys that the player has redeemed. Your opponent may have earned thousands of fourth place keys but they will not show up there if they are not redeemed. Another indicator of your opponent's skill level? Their Key Quest token! Many dedicated players will find ways to get unique Key Quest tokens either through plushies or the Neocash Mall. But please keep in mind that a default token does not guarantee that a player is a newbie or not dedicated to the game – some users prefer the default token or are unable to purchase other tokens. Knowing your opponents is important, especially when playing with more than one other person, as it shows you who you should be watching out for the most. Experienced players are more likely to have strategies and tricks up their sleeves.

Tip #5: Be able to determine when to use and when to save a power-up. There are some power-ups that are awesome to have at the end of a game. For me, those power-ups are anything that allow me to alter another player's keys and location on the board. But while I love having these power-ups at the end, it would be kind of silly to save them if I get them when all players only have one or two keys. The beauty of KQ is that power-ups go as easily as they come. You may go three turns without getting a power-up, or you may be fortune enough to get three during one turn! My main suggestion with regards to power-ups is that you do not let any (excluding those you dislike) go to waste throughout the game. If you find yourself constantly having to choose which power-up to get rid of in order to make room for a new one, you probably aren't taking full advantage of the power-ups! Even if your power-up only moves a player back two spaces or prevent them from moving or picking up items early on in the game when no one is really in the lead, any and all little things that can set back your opponents should be utilized as they may prove beneficial in the end.

Much of Key Quest relies on luck and chance as you cannot determine what you roll every time. While it is not always possible to turn the tables around through strategic moves, it definitely helps more than it hurts. Ready, set, Key Quest! :-)