WASD Controls to be added for Yooyuball

Today in the Editorial article the Neopets Team mentioned that the next update to the game will have WASD keys for those that are lefties.  This will help a lot of people, but it does not help me.  I am still hoping for mouse controls to come back, but at least it does open up the possibilities better for some.

Yooyuball has Changed for Altador Cup VI

I decided to get a little practice  in before Altador Cup VI officially starts on Wednesday, June 1, 2011, and was not happy to find Yooyuball is not at all the same control wise.  I loved the mouse control and while I used to be better when I played on my desktop, I still could do great on my laptop.  Now you can only use keyboard controls and it is extremely frustrating.

You use the arrow keys to move around and then space to shoot, but now there is a power bar, so you hold and release to shoot or I guess you could also use it to pass.  Selecting the player you want to control is not as intuitive as rolling over them was, so the goalie is basically useless.

I really wanted to give it a fair chance, but after three play throughs I just cannot get the hang of using the keyboard.  I like simple controls, hence why I like playing on Neopets instead of some complicated RPG or other console games with controllers with a bunch of buttons (i.e. Xbox and PlayStation).  Not saying I do not like more complex and involved games, but the ones I do play tend to have very basic controls, as I hate spending time mastering controls, especially with my small hands.

Interestingly, I noticed on the Neopets boards some very legitimate concerns that this not only counts out people like me that want simple controls, but people with disabilities that truly must have easy controls.  My brother has CP and rocks at console games and can handle the complex controls, but on the computer he can barely type and mostly only watches anime, Netflix, and surfs the web because it means it mostly just has to use the mouse.  Not to mention he is left hand dominant and while his right hand can do things it is not as easy, so using the arrow keys to play a game is definitely not likely to work out unless that is all you need to do.  If they at least added the rather standard option to use WASD for arrows that would at least help people that can use their left hand normal.  Those that can only do whole hand and do not really have finger dexterity are screwed unless they bring back the mouse controls, though.

There are a lot of complaints about the change and one can hope Neopets comes to their senses and makes it so both mouse and keyboard (it does work better for some, so definitely keep it) controls are options, but I am not going to expect it to happen.  I will also not let it stop me from enjoying the Altador Cup.  I will just be pretty much exclusively playing side games instead of mainly playing Yooyuball like previous years.  I guess that means not likely to get as high a rank, though.

What do you think about the control changes?

Which Team Are You Supporting for Altador Cup VI?

Less than a week until Altador Cup VI starts up and about a day into signing up for the team you want to support. I am again going to support Terror Mountain. I know the team tends to stink, but Terror Mountain is my favorite area of Neopets. I am hoping that we can stay out of the last bracket this year and maybe even make it into the top half.

Of course, winning it would be awesome, but I think that is kind of reaching too far. I know I will at least do my best to support my team and be as active as I have time for.  However, now that you can only use the keyboard and not the mouse for Yooyuball, I doubt I will play it much, as it is not worth the frustration of the crappy keyboard controls.

What team are you supporting this year? Same as last year or different? How do you think your team will do? Who Will Win this year?

Better Than You: Cave Glider

This week's Better Than You features Imperius Flare. Below is his challenge statement.

"You were foolish to venture down here. Many dangers lurk in the fiery depths below the surface of Neopia. I do not expect you to be able to escape safely to Moltara without help, but I will let you try."

To beat him you must get 4,350 points in Cave Glider.

Prize is Mag Codestone for the 500 winners. Additionally, you get a Gold Trophy and 20,000 Neopoints if you are one of the first 10, Silver Trophy and 10,000 Neopoints if you are between the 11th and 50th, and a Bronze Trophy and 3,000 Neopoints if you are between 51st and 500th.

Good Luck to all and remember to comment and share your tips on this game to help other readers out.

Better Than You: Meepit vs. Feepit

This week's Better Than You features Meepit Overlord. Below is his challenge statement.

"Ha! You Feepits are too puny to withstand my armies. Let's see how long you last against the Meepit Overlord! ...Assistant, make sure the Feepits all have sleeping powder in their kibbles. Wait, was I still broadcasting? Noooooooo!!"

To beat him you must get 3,250 points in Meepit vs. Feepit.

Prize is Armoured Negg for the 500 winners. Additionally, you get a Gold Trophy and 20,000 Neopoints if you are one of the first 10, Silver Trophy and 10,000 Neopoints if you are between the 11th and 50th, and a Bronze Trophy and 3,000 Neopoints if you are between 51st and 500th.

Good Luck to all and remember to comment and share your tips on this game to help other readers out.

Better Than You: Tyrannian Mini Golf

This week's Better Than You features Gog. Below is his challenge statement.

"Gog likes golf. Gog knows golf is knocking ball around Tyrannia. Gog practises golf a lot. Gog breaks things a lot."

To beat him you must get 900 points in Tyrannian Mini Golf.

Prize is Clay Petpet Paint Brush for the 500 winners. Additionally, you get a Gold Trophy and 20,000 Neopoints if you are one of the first 10, Silver Trophy and 10,000 Neopoints if you are between the 11th and 50th, and a Bronze Trophy and 3,000 Neopoints if you are between 51st and 500th.

Good Luck to all and remember to comment and share your tips on this game to help other readers out.

New Game and Challenge: S.M.E.L.T.

The newest Neopets game has come out along with the new game challenge. The new game is called S.M.E.L.T.

Finally a new game out and of course I miss noticing it since it has been 3 months since last new game and I have not been paying much attention to Neopets lately. After playing, though, I do not feel like I have missed out on much.

Basically you just place the different pieces to be cut from the sheet of metal. It is pretty easy at first, but it gets complicated because of the stupid small time limit pretty fast. This might be fun if there were levels of difficulty or even a zen mode, but as is the time limits make this game too annoying too fast.

I did manage to beat AAA, but it was extremely frustrating. It would be nice if smelting did not cost time and instead cost points. Or even if there was just a key to tap for activating smelt and no time wasted trying to get to the smelt with the mouse. Also, turning seems useless because it takes so long for the things to rotate.

To get AAA's prize you must score 3,000. To get Abigail's prize you must score 500. As always by default you get Abigail's prize if you have not gotten it yet and first beat AAA's score. The prize for beating Abigail is Toasted Gear Cookies. The prize for beating AAA is Handy Dandy Magnifying Glass (wearable).

Bored of Neopets? Playing Loreaon Might be Fun Break from Neopets

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Pezus Web Development Inc.. All opinions are 100% mine.

I love Neopets, but I get tired of it sometimes, as the release of new games and features that are interactive can be few and far between.  Thus, I like to try out other video games and online games, especially if they are free to join like Loreaon.  It is not a quick flash game like most of what is on Neopets, but it is similar to Neopets as a whole in that it is a MMORPG, so a community, too, but more totally game focused.

Loreaon is a free online game that you play in your browser, which I like because I use a Mac and non-browser MMORPG and mostly not an easy option.  It is a weapon/fighting RPG, so probably not suited for many younger Neopets fans, but good for Neopets fans growing up and looking for something more complex and entertaining.  The more complex aspect is a good thing if you are into that kind of gaming (and I am at times).

Games like Loreaon certainly lets you have more long term goals for a specific game than the flash games of Neopets, although it is not quite as varied so it might not keep my interest in the long run.  In at least the short term, though it makes a fun break from Neopets when I am waiting for some new game or site event to happen (Altador Cup coming soon!!!).

Better Than You: Sorcerer's Skirmish

This week's Better Than You features Eyrie Sorcerer. Below is his challenge statement.

"The agony of defeat would be unbearable, to say nothing of the shame. We must persevere, fellow sorcerers. Though we enter battle armed only with our mystical powers, we are warriors nonetheless. Fight now, and let our enemies cower before our might!"

To beat him you must get 6,850 points in Sorcerer's Skirmish.

Prize is Guardian of Spectral Magic for the 500 winners. Additionally, you get a Gold Trophy and 20,000 Neopoints if you are one of the first 10, Silver Trophy and 10,000 Neopoints if you are between the 11th and 50th, and a Bronze Trophy and 3,000 Neopoints if you are between 51st and 500th.

Good Luck to all and remember to comment and share your tips on this game to help other readers out.

Game Guide and Review: Wrath of the Snowager

Wrath of the Snowager is a pretty simple game.  You basically just use the right and left arrow keys to move the Snowager around to collect the items dropped until you have them all for the level.  The tricky part is you cannot touch the walls or your tail.  During the levels random power ups (and downs) appear.

You can eventually get all the items without hitting the Chia, but you get him to drop more if you run into him.  You can also use space to send an icy blast and freeze the Chia to more easily end up ramming him, although I personally find that more hassle than its worth and I can easily end up getting him to drop items without using icy blasts.

Bad Pick Ups

• Lose Loot (red and -5 on it) - This pick up makes you drop 5 loot items.
• Slow Down (red and down arrow) - This makes you go slower.

Good Pick Ups

• Speed Boost (green and up arrow) - This makes you faster.  To some extent it is good, but I kind of do not like it because then you also have less time to avoid walls and such.  However, it does make hitting the Chia easier.
• Icy Blast (green and snowflake symbol) - This gives you an extra icy blast ammo.
• Attract Loot (green and whirlpool symbol) - This makes all dropped loot come towards you.  I love this for picking up whatever is lying around without having to go around search for it.
• Freeze Thief (green and ice cube) - Basically does like icy blast, except you do not have to aim and get the Chia with the icy blast.
• More Loot (green and sack symbol) - Makes the thief drop more loot for you to try and pick up.
• Score Multiplier (green and x2 or other # symbol) -   Multiples your score by number on bubble.
• Extra Lives (green and heart) - Gives you an extra life.

Overall I like this game, but it can also get boring with you going in circles to get all the dropped items.  It certainly is not a complex game and that can be a downside, but it is also an upside in it being something easy to play and not too frustrating.  At the same time, though, the levels can take a while, so it is not exactly a game to play because it is easy and you want to waste only a little bit of time playing.  However, you can easily just play the first level on Hard, quit, and get the max 1,000 Neopoints per play.

Angry Interns: the pursuit of cake Review

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Duilen. All opinions are 100% mine.

Looking for a different strategy game to try out, then you might enjoy playing Angry Interns: the pursuit of cake.  In this game is for Google Chrome, so you have to download the browser to play it if you do not already have it.  The concept of the game is interesting with you moving the interns to different departments to maximize your company's earnings.

The game is slightly entertaining, although the graphics are very blah.  The gameplay is not too much better, but partly because what you do is not entirely clear at the start.  It gets a little more fun once you figure it out, but it can also be annoying that the interns go back into the office when you want to move interns out of the office because you have to cross you mouse through the office to get to the other rooms or take a long way around the screen.

The game does have some potential of being entertaining.  The graphics could be more interesting or at least colorful, but really the main downside is the controls.  Of course, you also have to be into these types of games to like it even if improved.

Check out the video below to get more of a feel for what this game is all about.