A Returning Player's Guide to Keeping Busy

     All that done, you now find yourself logging in, completing your daily checklist, aimlessly perusing the Neoboards for a few minutes, before you inevitably log out for the day. You’re unsure of where to focus your energy and efforts. You’re seeking a niche activity or community where you can further immerse yourself into the Neopets gameplay, but you’re stuck in decision paralysis because, let’s face it, while Neopets boasts an impressive trove of twenty-eight years’ worth of content, twenty-eight years’ worth of content can be overwhelming. Rest assured we’ve all been there, and I’m here to provide an easily digestible, high-level overview of options to help you fully immerse into the vast world that is Neopets. Here are ideas on activities to complete, goals to strive for, and communities to join.

     Collect & Tend to Pets: You Know, the Whole Point

     A seemingly obvious callout, sure, after all, the site is named NeoPETS, but how many of us login, throw our pets into the Neolodge, and then promptly turn our attention to other matters? There is so much more we can do with them and, as they are the heart of the site, it is worth investigating.

          First, we’re fortunately beyond the days of being limited to only four pets per account. All accounts now start with seven pet slots. An additional seven are available with a premium membership, and twelve more are available for purchase from the NC Mall. That means if you have a premium subscription on your main account and the maximum slots unlocked on four non-premium side accounts, you could own a whopping 102 pets! With that much space to fill, I recommend spending some time at the Rainbow Pool browsing the different species and colors. I bet there are combinations you’ve never noticed, or which may be new since you’ve returned to Neopets. Perhaps you’d like to have themed side accounts: one dedicated to fruit and veggie Chias, another for cuddly Plushie pets—the possibilities are endless!

     As you’re assembling your pet collection, you may be interested in trading with other players for specific aged pets, a pet with certain stats or trophies, a pet with a specific name criterion, etc. There’s an entire Neoboard dedicated to Pet Trading where you can wheel and deal for the next addition to your collection. If you’re looking to make a game of it, WonderTrade and PAHs (Pet Auction House) are a popular draw and a fun way to meet fellow avid pet traders.

     Now don’t get so caught up in acquiring new pets that you neglect to tend to and improve the ones you already own. When your pet isn’t checked into the Neolodge, try feeding it gourmet foods. Feed a pet enough delicacies and you might find her name on the Gourmet Club exclusive list. Likewise, reading is an activity that offers its own goals to work toward. Well-read pets can be eligible for The Neopian Book Award and The Booktastic Book Award. Lastly, training your pets can be a smart investment particularly with events like The Void Within Plot soon to return where a Battledome pet will be useful.

     Fight in the Battledome: Super Attack Peas Assemble

     On the subject of training, the Battledome deserves an entire section unto itself. Many a Neopian consider battling to be their favorite part of playing Neopets. Saving for the dubloons and codestones needed to level up your designated Battledome pet(s) and then investing the time into their actual training will surely give you plenty to do here on Neopets. Battling itself is a fun way to pass the time. You can earn 15-20 items and 50,000 Neopoints per day in the Battledome. Invest those resources back into your pets and watch their stats soar.

     You can connect with fellow Battledome aficionados on the Battledome section of the Neoboards where you may even find yourself on the receiving end of an exclusive, invite-only offer to join a skirmish guild. Now, what are these guilds up to during the two weeks between Obelisk battles—I can’t really say myself. I’m a writer, not a fighter, but I imagine more training and battling! There are plenty of foes awaiting you in the arena!

     Join a Guild: No Need to Go It Alone

     Speaking of guilds, join one! Guilds are a fantastic way to connect with fellow Neopians with similar interests and to find a community within the site. There are plenty to choose from: guilds for avatar collectors, stamp enthusiasts, pet trading, battling, writers, artists, book lovers, returning players, fandom specific, country specific…if you can think of it, there’s probably a guild out there for it, and if there isn’t, start your own!

     You can visit the Guilds section of the Neoboards to view the different guilds advertising or make your own topic requesting invites. Guilds offer a place to chat and check in with Neofriends daily and often host their own activities to keep you engaged. Guilds are also a place to share current Neopets events with others to keep players informed.

     Participate in Events: What in Neopia is Going on Here?

     There are oftentimes special events happening in Neopia to keep your gameplay fun and exciting. The Void Within Plot is expected to return this Spring, we’ll have the yearly Altador Cup to compete in come Summer, the Fall brings us the annual Faerie Festival, and a personal highlight of the Winter holidays is the famed Advent Calendar. That’s only a sampling of the many activities here in Neopets. Stay tuned and be sure to participate whenever you can!

     Make sure to visit the Community Central tab to stay up to date on the Latest News. The Site Events section of the Neoboards is another place to check the latest happenings, and lastly, don’t forget the good, old-fashioned word-of-mouth. Share news and events with your Neofriends and guildmates. In addition to being a good time, events offer exclusive prizes including rare books, valuable stamps, and new wearables for your pets. Friends don’t let friends miss out on cool stuff!

     Customize Your Pets: Time to Hit the Mall

     Another way to utilize your pets is to give them a glow-up with customization. Dress your pets for the next holiday. Choose an outfit based off the character persona you’ve created. Design a look that is the perfect complement to your pet’s name. There are hundreds of wearables—both Neocash and Neopoint items—available with endless combinations to turn your vision into reality. For those returners who miss the older Neopets’ art, look into Pet Styles, colloquially called “tokens.” There are a number of Nostalgic styles that allow you to display the early aughts pet art you remember. Once you become more comfortable with customization and navigating the NC Mall, give Dyeworks and Noda's Fortune Cookies (Upcycling) a try.

     A large part of customization is the hunt for the items you seek. Not every wearable is available in the Mall at all times. At some point, you’ll need to hit the NC Trading board to find that one missing wig, dress, background, or other wearable that will pull your desired look together. The quest for those elusive items will keep you coming back for more, and the feeling once you do complete the perfect customization is exhilarating.

     Get to Coding: Reawaken your Inner HTML Wiz

     Once you have your pet spiffed up, why not give your profile and pet lookup some attention. Try your hand at HTML. You can challenge yourself to create layouts from scratch or use, always with credit, a premade layout from someone else. Many generous Neopians host petpages offering up their incredible code creations. Tailoring your profile allows you to showcase your lovely, unique personality and helps others get to know you better.

     As for your pet’s lookup, this is a perfect area to develop a character. Give your pet personality traits. Tell us about her favorite hobbies, interests, and activities around Neopia. As we established above, you can have over 100 pets, which means creating all those personas and customizing all those pet lookups will give you plenty to do!

     Earn Some Trophies: Winner, Winner, Symol Dinner

     Now that your profile has a spiffy new coding, why not further jazz it up with some bronze, silver, and gold trophies? There are hundreds of games to tackle in the Games Room. Spend some time trying your hand at various games to see which ones are your best. The ideal time to go for gold is on the first day of every month when the high score table resets. The table officially resets at 12:25 AM NST, and then the trophy script (which awards trophies based on placement on the high score table) runs between approximately 7:30-8:30 AM NST. That gives you about seven to eight hours to play your heart out and try to take home some wins.

     Reset day is also a great time to go for avatars tied to high scores: splat two Sloths with one copy of the Neopian Times, if you will. Games like Escape From Meridell Castle, Maths Nightmare, and Korbat’s Lab all offer avatars to those who are within the Top 50 of the high score table. If you’re hoping to add Draik - Escape from Meridell Castle, Babaa - Maths Nightmare, and Freaked Korbat to your avatar count, go for them on reset day!

     To connect with other Neopians and chat about all things trophies, check out the Site Games Neoboards where there is often a topic on trophy collecting. Your fellow Neopians can cheer you on as you work toward the impressive goal of acquiring the coveted Game Trophy Enthusiast avatar, available to those elite Neopians whose trophy cases boast an impressive 100+ additions.

     Enter Creative Contests: Unleash Your Inner Artist

     Neopets offers a variety of contests for artists and writers of all talents. For artists, the Art Gallery is the perfect place to showcase your talent. There are many themed days each month including special Handmade Days. Check the Art Neoboard for monthly posting schedules (highlighted in blue) made by TNT. There is also the weekly Beauty Contest where you can submit art of your beloved Neopet. Place first through third in either the overall or individual species categories, and you’ll find a shiny new trophy on your pet’s lookup. There are unique avatars awarded for acceptance into the Art Gallery (regular and Handmade days) and for winning the Beauty Contest.

     For those who prefer a pen to a paintbrush, fear not, Neopets has plenty to offer its wordsmiths. Most notably, the Neopian Times, of course. The Times accepts Articles, Short Stories, Series, Comics, and will soon add Poetry to its offerings. Like the Art Gallery, a Neopian Times issue schedule is posted in the writers’ counterpart, the Neopian Writers Neoboard, by an admin. Again, the topic will be highlighted in blue. If you’re interested in a bite-sized writing competition, check out the Story Telling Contest. Neopian writers work together to craft a new story during this collaborative competition that runs for two weeks (Monday-Friday) each month. A “starter” entry is selected and published on the first day, Monday, and then each subsequent day users submit a short few paragraphs to continue the tale.

     Like with the Battledome and other hobby areas highlighted in this article, Neopets has a wonderful community of creative souls who forge friendship on the Neoboards and in themed guilds. Connect with them today!

     Curate a Gallery: Put Your Hyperfixation on Display

     One area of Neopets where you can truly let your individuality shine is in your gallery! I have seen so many creative and unique gallery collections: notable shoutouts to a hot dog themed gallery and one organized by spaceship deck! You can create a gallery dedicated to your favourite Neopet species or perhaps your favorite collectables: Neggs, Plushies, and Petpets are popular choices. You can customize the layout and organization to fit your taste. Gallery curating is incredibly enjoyable and will keep you active as you scour Neopia for the perfect additions to your unique collection. Do you have what it takes to be featured in the Gallery Spotlight?

     Feed the Kads: Come for the Avatar, Stay for the Love of the Game

     When I returned to Neopets, I held preconceived notions surrounding Kadoatie feeding. This seemed like a mysterious, elusive activity that only rich Neopians could afford, and every time I stumbled into the Kadoatery, the Kads were already fed. Imagine my dismay when I started collecting avatars and saw that the Kadoatery - Mew! required not only feeding one Kad but seventy-five of them. I thought surely this would be unattainable. I’m happy to report that is far from the truth. First, thanks to the generosity of a staunch group of Kad lovers, there is almost always a topic on the Site Games Neoboard dedicated to timing the Kad feedings. This is easy to follow and updated daily. I also found the food required to be quite affordable. Sure, there is the occasional Kad with high-end taste who asks for a Hungry Fungus, but most of the time, the foods I had to buy were less than 10,000 Neopoints. Depending on how much time you have to invest, you’d be surprised at how quickly you can reach that seventy-five goal and walk away with a gold trophy on your profile, adorable avatar for your collection, and for many, an absolute love for Kad feeding. Many a Neopian come for the avatar and keep feeding Kads well beyond the seventy-five threshold.

     Collect Stamps: Gotta Have ‘Em All

     Make no mistake: stamp collecting is not just for Elderly pets playing Kou-Jong in their basements. All the cool Kougras are doing it these days. There are hundreds of stamps available, all waiting to be nicely displayed in your Stamp Album by theme. Working toward filling up page by page of your album can be a rewarding pursuit, one which will undoubtedly keep you engaged on Neopets for a long, long while. Many Neopians focus on pages that award an avatar for completion such as Snowy Valley.

     If you’re looking to connect with fellow stamp collectors, find the topic(s) dedicated to stamp collection on the Trading / Auctions Neoboards. These Neopians can offer you suggestions and cheer you on as you check off your goals. Finding the stamps themselves isn’t always your biggest battle, though there are plenty of rare ones, it’s paying for them that can get tricky. That’s where our next pastime comes into play.

     Try Restocking & Reselling: HT - Rich Elite Isn’t Going to Earn Itself

     A confession: restocking and reselling are areas of the site that I have yet to fully explore myself. The information provided here is cursory, but I hope it will spark your interest in this popular Neopian pastime and encourage you to seek more in-depth guides. As you’ll notice, there’s a running thread to the majority of the suggestions in this article…they all require some Neopoints to fund, and what better way than through restocking and reselling. While vast amounts of Neopoints aren’t necessarily required to spruce up your pets, collect stamps, and create a stunning gallery, they do help. You can add many beautiful stamps to your album for a reasonable price, but if you want to complete a page, you’re likely going to need a few that will cost a pretty Neopoint. You can train your Battledome pet for the spare dubloons and codestones you find at first, but eventually, the higher levels and stats are going to come with higher price tags. The Battledome and Games Room are great places to earn spare change, but if you want to make big investments and see large gains over time, restocking and reselling are a worthwhile venture.

     Restocking involves frequenting shops across Neopia and purchasing rare items when they restock. Then, selling those finds at a higher price. This involves a great deal of patience as you’re often stalking and refreshing shop fronts. You also need to do your research to ensure that in your rush to beat out competing restockers, you don’t buy an item from a Neopian shop that will sell for less on the Shop Wizard. I often see the Chocolate Factory and Book Shop recommended for beginners looking to dip their toes into restocking. Tip: the third day of the month is Half Price Day where you can get discounts on stores across Neopia.

          Reselling involves searching for deals directly from other players on more expensive items such as stamps, paint brushes, morphing potions, etc. oftentimes purchase from a user with a hard-to-sell item looking to make a quick Neopoint. Then, you’re on the hook for going out and finding a buyer at a higher amount. This can be a gamble, so again, it involves extensive research to fully understand the value of the item you’re buying.

     The Neopets economy is a science of its own, and Restocking and Reselling are nuanced investments that require dedication and can offer high return. I encourage you to do your own research and check out the Trading/Auctions Neoboard to connect with experienced players with a knack for the hobby.

     Hunt for Avatars: Can I Get a Lend Over Here?

     Our last activity is dedicated to, perhaps, the most quintessential Neopian endeavor of them all: avatar hunting. Avatar hunting will introduce you to almost every other area of the site. There are hundreds of avatars available that have a variety of requirements. Some are unlocked by visiting certain pages around the site and others require owning a specific pet or Petpet. There are avatars awarded for completing pages in your Stamp Album. There are avatars granted for certain score requirements on various games. Many Neopian holidays offer avatars available only on that one day. During your pursuit of the coveted Avatar Collector, you’ll find yourself engaging with almost every other aspect of Neopets. Aside from the Neopets themselves, Avatars are about as Neopets as it gets!

     Well, there you have it folks. May this overview of Neopets’ most engaging pastimes give you inspiration for setting long-term goals and help you find your place in the vast Neopets community. I do hope you’ll pull up a Chokato Chair and stay awhile. Your fun is only just beginning.