Neopets to Launch a Mobile App This Fall

The term “Neopets” ring a bell? I’m sure it does, and I know you’ve played it!

However, if there is any chance that you are unfamiliar with Neopets, it was an incredibly popular online game in which you could create digital pets and explore a virtual world. It included puzzle games and other mini games as well as some limited features that allowed you to connect with other players. You could collect neopoints or buy neocash in order to customize and care for your neopet. In short: it was awesome!

Upon hearing the news of Neopets launching a mobile app, nostalgia hit me like a brick and I went to log into my 10 year old account, and guess what? IT’S STILL THERE! While I have yet to explore the differences after nearly 7 years of absence, the fact that it is still relevant says wonders.

But one must question; is the launching of this app an attempt at making Neopets relevant again, or is it the product of it’s popularity?
Either way, it is happening! But not quite in the way you would imagine.

You will not be able to link up your existing account with this game. Instead you will have a separate life with new pets (such betrayal!) that you can -of course- customize with in app purchases and likely grind for the free options as most games go. The game is said to include Neopets lore through a story line that unlocks as you progress in the game.

While many reports are claiming that this is Neopets’ first venture into the mobile gaming world, it is not. They had an app launched back in 2006 in partnership with T-Mobile that lasted until 2009. Why did it come to an end? Well, the renaissance of cell phone technology emerged and the game became obsolete as it could no longer perform on newer cellular devices.
So here we have another go at Neopets mobile in a new era of gaming apps. Given how vastly different their previous app was from the one they are launching this fall, I have a feeling that this won’t be the only Neopets mobile game they are going to release.

Sounds like heavy nostalgia just might make this app popular. Or will it flop? What do you think?