Neopian

plural Neopians

1. A player of the virtual pet browser game Neopets.

   The site has lost money and users steadily since the mid-aughts, which — as any hardcore Neopian will tell you — has really hurt the virtual economy in the game.

   2015 February 12, Caitlin Dewey, “8 throwback sites you thought died in 2005 (… but are actually still around)”, in The Washington Post, Washington, D.C.: The Washington Post Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 13 Feb 2015

   2 more examples

   Where MSN’s and Yahoo’s game zones seem to cater for the obsessive and competitive, Neopians (as they call themselves) believe that the ultimate object of their endeavours is the health and wellbeing of their virtual pet.

   2002 October 31, Martin Headon, “Pet hates”, in Alan Rusbridger, editor, The Guardian (Online section), London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 27 Sep 2013, page 7, columns 2–3

   Returning Neopians – the community name for users – cite a number of reasons for their returns. […] Many of the Neopians interviewed for this story asked to be quoted by username, preferring to keep their online personas separate from their real lives. […] With longtime Neopians sitting on stockpiles of appreciated resources, new players are at a major disadvantage. […] Such efforts to connect with Neopians have given many users hope that their experiences will be considered, particularly after the parent company experienced major backlash over a 2021 attempt to dive into NFTs and cryptocurrency.

   2024 April 14, Kari Paul, “How Neopets’ nostalgic revival tripled users in six months”, in Katharine Viner, editor, The Guardian, London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 14 Apr 2024

   Synonyms: Neopetter