RetroGameCon 2023
Neopets first announced they were attending RetroGameCon (RGC) on September 20th through a press release, which was also cross-posted to the New Features page and all their social media accounts.
RetroGameCon 2023 took place in Syracuse, New York, on October 7 & 8, 2023.
Neopets Presence
Neopets was one of just two gold sponsors at RetroGameCon. As such they had some special treatment around the convention!
The lanyard used for all admission badges was Neopets-themed. It was very similar to the eras lanyard from SDCC 2023. Badges had to be displayed by all attendees at all times while present at the convention, so the lanyards got a lot of exposure!
Neopets had a large step-and-repeat style banner right at the entrance to the convention, as well as a second larger one outside the panel rooms.
Outside the convention entrance.
Outside the panel rooms.
They also had a sign with a QR code that leads to the unified homepage.
A blue Kacheek was featured on the panel schedule.
They also appeared atop the list of sponsors.
Neopets: The Official Cookbook was also included among other RGC-specific merch at the RGC merch booth.
Jellyneo had the chance to chat briefly with the Director of RGC about the Neopets sponsorship at the end of the con:
Working with Neopets was wonderful! Not only did they provide us with those beautiful lanyards for each attendee to grab, they also supported us with social media posts and interactive elements that added great value to the convention. Plus, we had a large number of members of the Neopets community who made the trek out for the convention, and meeting them and seeing them meet each other at the con was amazing.
Neopets Booth
The Neopets booth was located on the edge of the room near the midpoint of the convention floor. The booth served as a place for attendees to learn more about Neopets, as well as turn in Scavenger Hunt answers.
They also had some colouring pages available for the taking!
Scavenger Hunt
The back cover of the RGC 2023 program included instructions about a Neopets-themed scavenger hunt!
As described on the page, QR codes with names of different lands were placed throughout the convention space. These QR codes pointed to Neopets social media posts that featured specific species. Once you solved them all, you could show your answers at the Neopets booth to receive an RGC-exclusive rare item code redeemable at the Grundo Warehouse for a Faerie Winged Headphones. You could also show the solutions to the RGC merch booth to receive an RGC-exclusive Plushie Shoyru Sticker.
RetroGameCon 2023 Exclusive RIC Prize
Here is a summary of the solutions:
| Land |
Species
(and link to post)
| Floor Location |
| Terror Mountain |
Ruki |
Star Fox 30th Anniversary Booth |
| Tyrannia |
Draik |
Promotional booth featuring a retro-style game room |
| Kreludor |
Grundo |
Neopets Booth |
| Neopia Central |
Skeith |
Next to the charity raffle booth |
| Meridell |
Poogle |
Near the tabletop gaming area |
| Maraqua |
Meerca |
Next to the stairs down to the panel rooms |
| Lost Desert |
Kyrii |
Attached to an arts & crafts table |
| Krawk Island |
Techo |
Attached to a playable retro PC |
Meridell
Tyrannia
Kreludor
Maraqua
Terror Mountain
Neopia Central
Lost Desert
Krawk Island
Charity Raffle
RGC hosted a charity raffle where attendees could pay for tickets to be entered into a drawing for different packages of merch, with winners announced at the end of the day on Saturday. One of these packages was made up entirely of Neopets merch! The package included:
Saturday Panel
The panel on Saturday was hosted by Jennard, a.k.a. the "Beeg Aisha" as seen at SDCC 2023 and on the September 2023 episode of Nosy Neopians. She was also assisted by Keith, the leader of her guild since 2001!
Jennard opened the panel with introductions, where she mentioned that RGC was the first time she ever hosted a fan panel, back in 2018. She then provided this overview:
If you've ever visited the Money Tree, taken a slice of the Giant Omelette, or watched the Wheel of Monotony spin for 23 hours; if you have, then you already know Neopets. If that was all gibberish to you, then kindly let us explain. Neopets is an immersive, online virtual pet game where players can adopt, customise, and interact with Neopets in the vast world of Neopia. Known for its multigeneral passionate community--that's you guys!--Neopets offers players an expansive realm of storytelling, collecting, pet care, and exciting social gaming experiences. Since its launch in 1999, Neopets has galvanized unique adventures, games, stories, and challenges for over 150 million players worldwide. At its core, Neopets invites you to adopt your very own virtual pets and embark on a wild journey of fun and discovery. From exploring the mystical lands of Neopia to customising your normal pets and collecting rare items, the possibilities are endless. Welcome to Neopets!
Message from Dom
Jennard then played a short, prerecorded video from Neopets CEO Dominic Law. Here is a transcript:
Hey everyone! Welcome to the Neopets panel at RetroGameCon. We're really excited to be part of this con, where we can all be part of the magic and the nostalgia of all the games that we love. And even though we might be separated by distance, but just like in the world of Neopets, we're always connected to share the joy together.
And I'm so honored that we can have the opportunity, to combine the 24 years of Neopian history and nostalgia, and combine it with all the new plans we have for the future. And so many great things are already happening in our underground secret Neopian labs.
First of all, we have already announced that there will be a new plot in early next year, The Void Within, which our narrative team has been working really hard on. And the rest of the TNT team is also working on fixing all kinds of bugs. And most notably is that we've been recently bringing back more than 100 minigames that's currently playable on Neopets.com. Personally, I love playing Meerca Chase. I remember that I always played this game to procrastinate when I need to study for my exams.
So right now, we also have a Faerie Festival event that's currently happening. Are you planning to be Team Jhudora, or Team Illusen? I know it's going to be a tough choice.
And lastly, by the end of this year, we'll be releasing the first series of our UC pets. So definitely stay tuned.
And there's so much more on the horizon for Neopets, and we're really, really grateful that we have the best community and the best fans in the world to support us in this journey. So sit back, relax, and enjoy. We've got Neopets history, trivia, and minigames for you. And we really hope that you can enjoy the Neopets scavenger hunt that's currently taking place at the con. Have a wonderful weekend, and without further ado, take it away, Jen!
The Omelette Faerie Summary
Keith then read out a summary of the upcoming The Omelette Faerie graphic novel announced earlier this year.
Something has happened! Based on the popular online game Neopets comes the first in a series of graphic novels. Join Sabre-X, his Petpet Fang, a disgraced Fire Faerie with a checkered past, and all your favourite Neopets characters in this original graphic novel that's about forgiveness, magic, and love, with some classic Neopian humor laced throughout.
Legend has it that hundreds of years ago, a dinosaur of gigantic proportions laid a massive egg. That egg split open, and began to bake in the sun. Ever since then, a giant omelette has been cooking on the Tyrannian Plateau. It may seem silly, but it is true.
The Giant Omelette is a staple of Neopets. Every day, hungry Neopets approach the massive egg monolith and manage to take a slice. But this isn't a story about how the Giant Omelette came to be. This is a story of how we almost lost it...forever.
In this beautifully illustrated, original graphic novel, readers will follow Sabre-X, a disgraced Fire Faerie named Sarafina, and their Petpets Fang and a Faellie on an epic, fantastical journey through Neopia to restore one of the most popular parts of the site. The graphic novel also includes a universal code for a one-time-use item in the back, which can be redeemed on the Neopets website and used in the Battledome. This is officially licensed merchandise from Neopets. Coming in summer 2024, there will be a preorder live on the 15th of this month [October 2023].
Neopets Trivia
These announcements were followed by a series of Neopets trivia written by Jennard. The prize for getting an answer correct was a G FUEL Neopets Slushie Cup (or a couple sample packs of regular, non-Neopets G FUEL, if you already won a cup). A couple of the tougher questions also got a bonus rare item code from the WYP Shoyru Eras Pin.
Handing out trivia prizes!
Here were the questions asked (and their answers):
Q: Which studious Xweetok was turned to stone using her own magic?
A: Xandra
Q: In Meerca Chase II, what colour negg should you avoid at all costs?
A: Red
Q: What is the name of the Usul who is captain of the Black Pawkeet?
A: Garin
Q: What is the title of the Neopets game for the PSP?
A: Neopets Petpet Adventures: The Wand of Wishing
Q: How old was Tomos the Lupe when he joined the Desert Scarabs?
A: 3
Q: Which Neopian character uses his magical powers to hunt down the lowest prices in the shops?
A: The Shop Wizard
Q: What is the Space Faerie's name?
A: Mira
Q: Where in Neopia might you find the Tiki Tack Man?
A: Mystery Island
Q: What does the Brain Tree thirst for?
A: Knowledge
Q: Who is the shopkeep in the Magic Shop in Neopia Central?
A: Kauvara
Q: If you are hungry at the Tyrannian Plateau, what might you eat once per day?
A: Omelette
Q: Name a faerie that does not live in Faerieland.
A: There are many answers! These are ones that were given during the panel: Taelia, Soup Faerie, Jhuidah, Negg Faerie.
Q: In Cheat!, what species is Little Timmy?
A: Tuskaninny
Q: What year was the NC Mall introduced?
A: 2007
Q: What is the only species that can be Pineapple?
A: Chia
Q: How do you get the Queen Fyora avatar?
A: Play with the Faerie Queen Doll.
Q: There used to be a shop in the Haunted Woods called the Apothecary. What did they sell?
A: Mushrooms
Q: What land are Rukis from?
A: Lost Desert
Q: What year did the Story Telling Competition begin awarding trophies?
A: 2001
Q: Where is the Rubbish Dump?
A: Meridell
Q: What system is Neopets: The Darkest Faerie for?
A: PS2
Q: What species is the Neopet that runs the scratchcard kiosk?
A: Wocky
Q: What Neopet can you adopt at the Virtupets Space Station
A: Grundo
Q: What currency do you spend at the Alien Aisha Vending Machine?
A: Nerkmids
Kiss the Mortog
Next, Jennard and Keith led a live-action game of Kiss The Mortog. Volunteers would come up to choose between two pictures of Mortogs, one of which had a princess on the back and other had an explosion! If you guessed correctly three times in a row, you won! The prizes were the same as with trivia.
A player guesses between the two Mortogs
Story Sharing
To wrap up the panel, attendees were invited to come up to the front of the room to share stories or memories about their Neopets experience. Here are some brief summaries of stories people told:
- One newer player asked for advice on what colour to paint a Gelert recently adopted from the Pound.
- One player told a sob story of trading their 4L pet for a Baby Kacheek custom, only to see the person they traded it to go on to trade it for a UC Royal Boy Cybunny.
- One player spoke about how Neopets taught them the basics of the real world stock market.
- One player told a story of being so excited to get published in the Neopian Times that they fell down while rushing to tell their parents and had to get stitches!
- One player told a story of getting into Neopets after getting a Pink Poogle Happy Meal toy, and just two weeks earlier created a Pink Poogle on the site in homage.
- One player told a very dramatic retelling of receiving the Random Event where a shadow glides by and made their Grundo sad.
Sunday Meetup
On Sunday, Jennard and Keith hosted a Neopets fan meetup in the lobby of the convention. This was an opportunity for Neopets fans to casually interact, share usernames, and discuss Neopets! At the end, the group took a picture in front of one of the large Neopets banners.
Charity Auction
All exhibitors at RetroGameCon were encouraged to provide donations for a live charity auction that took place on Sunday afternoon. Proceeds benefitted the Golisano Children's Hospital.
Neopets donated several WYP Happy Negg Enamel Pins. These were sold as "mystery prizes" for $5 each to several different buyers.
Neopets also donated a collection of merch similar to the charity raffle package. This merch was auctioned off as a single bundle. The final bid on the prize was $500, nearly $200 more than the next highest item! The following items were included in the bundle:
The full bundle.
Finally, two sealed Return of Dr. Sloth booster packs from the original TCG were auctioned off. One of the packs featured the Space Faerie on the foil pack wrapping, while the other featured Ylana. They ultimately sold for $50.
One of the auctioneers showing off the packs
This page was written by Kenny and last updated on August 4, 2024.
