NOTE: If this is posted in the wrong place, I sincerely apologize.
Since I'm the resident Neopets junkie here, it's not a surprise that I'd make a thread about the pioneer of virtual pet sites itself. Neopets has been around since Novemeber of 1999 and has over 196 million users over a 2 decade time span.
Info about Neopets (courtesy of Mobygames):
Got any fave Neopets species? Any games on the site you enjoy? Any tips and advice you'd like to give to other players? Do you own any Neopets memorabilia? Feel free to discuss and talk about all things Neopets here.Neopets is a pet simulation set in the fantasy world of Neopia. The game's core revolves around adopting and caring for up to six of the eponymous creatures. Pets can be fed, played with, given medicine when ill, and trained for battle, just to name a few basic activities. In order to customize a pet and make it truly unique, its owner may use special items to change its species and color, give it a Petpet, and equip it with various clothing items. None of these activities are mandatory, though some site features may be closed off until the player has done them. If a user decides they no longer want one of their pets, they can either leave it in a special adoption area for others to claim, or send it to a specific user.
Items are purchased through one of two currencies. Neopoints are the standard currency, and can be earned through random events, daily freebies, quests, and playing the other games hosted on the site. Neocash is the site's premium currency; chances to earn it in-game are slim, so the most convenient way to get some is to buy it with real money. Items can be bought, sold, and traded between users through a variety of methods. Many items have little to no practical purpose outside of being collectibles, and can be displayed to other users by adding them to a personal album or item gallery.
Neopia hosts a wide variety of towns and biomes, all of which can be explored from the world map. Each area has its own theme (medieval, tropical, prehistoric, etc.) and is home to its own shops and special activities. Occasionally, limited-time sitewide events take place, usually to either reveal a new world or feature, or enact permanent, large-scale changes to an existing one. These events typically have adventure game elements such as puzzle solving and point-and-click sequences. Other activities in a similar style exist as permanent site features that award items to participants.
My current Neopets roster (I am still working on the customizations or re-customizations of some of these pets, Bearog with me):
My primary Neopets username is neoking2002_neo if you want to find me there. Mind the tacky username, I've had that account since I was 10. My side accounts (namely Neomysterion, DariganUltimatum, TheBlokeWithNoName, and DPadDoc) are better named since I made them when I was much older. I've been playing on/off for 18 years since an old friend of mine from elementary school got me into it.
These days, I find myself playing some of their games and rack up Neopoints for customizations and Battledome equipment as well as partaking in the occasional plot or site event. I used to be active in various Neopets fan communities myself, and was even a staffer at one of them too for a good chunk of the early 2010s.