Why You Should Step Up To The Shy

Coconut Shy would definitely have not been something I played every day when I first joined Neopets back in middle school. Like other games in the Deserted Fairground, like Test Your Strength, the Cork Gun Gallery, and Bagatelle, it seems like a rip-off. You basically just pay Neopoints to watch yourself lose poorly at rigged carnival games. And while I have gotten very lucky on my first game of Bagatelle and won the Bagatelle Joke Book (really, it’s possible to win big from any of them!), generally I lose Neopoints every time I play those games. But unlike those games which I’ve almost all but given up on, Coconut Shy has become something I’ve been playing every day for over a year now.

So what makes Coconut Shy worth it to be a daily you might ask?

1. It Won’t Break Your Bank!

While most of the Deserted Fairground games can leave you in the hole for Neopoints overall (*cough Bagatelle *cough*), I generally break even with Coconut Shy. Because you only spend 100 NP per shot, even if you hit a coconut and it barely moves, you get 50 NP. And if it moves a lot you get 300 NP. So even if only 5 you hit move a lot, that’s 1500 Neopoints. And if you manage to get 10 of the other 15, you haven’t lost anything. Also some days I get pretty lucky and I hit 8 or 9 that move a lot and make Neopoints.

2. There’s an Avatar!

In case you didn’t know, you can actually hit down one of those darn coconuts! It’s random, but if you manage to hit one of the coconuts off, you get the illustrious Coconut Shy avatar! You may look confused when you hit down your first coconut because nothing amazing happens on the screen. The space where the coconut was is now empty and you can no longer throw any more coconuts, but there’s no “Something Has Happened” to make you privy to this news. But if you go check out your Neoboard preferences and look at the bottom of your avatar list, lo and behold you’ll have a shiny new avatar! And since it’s random when a coconut will be hit down, all you need is a bit of luck a little bit of skill to be able to hit one down (and you can check out JellyNeo for a nice guide on other strategies!).

3. You Can Get Stamps!

Yes-siree you read that right! The coconut knock down also puts a random evil coconut in your inventory, which is also a stamp! So make sure you go check it out before the Pant Devil gets to it first! ;) So for stamp-collectors who are just starting out, or even ones who have a lot but are trying to save Neopoints for bigger purchases, playing every day can earn you stamps for your collection! This is also the *only* way to get these stamps apart from buying them from the trading post as their rarity is too high to restock in any shops! There’s even a second Evil Coconuts page in your stamp album because TNT has released additional evil coconuts since the first ones released in 2004, so there’s also hope for more in the future!

4. You Can Get Rich!

Say, you’re not a stamp collector or an avatar aficionado? That’s fine. Do you like making Neopoints? I’m pretty sure you do! For every coconut you hit down you also make 10k Neopoints, *and* if you don’t collect stamps… you can sell them! With going rates for Evil Coconuts on the lower end being 150k and on the higher end around 700k, even if you hit down one every 2 months, you’re going to make a nice profit! I personally save every coconut I don’t have and put it into my album, and sell any doubles I get. I’ve made a nice amount of Neopoints this way because coconuts sell very fast. And between breaking even from playing every day, and the 10k Neopoints plus a stamp you can get for every time you hit one down, there’s no way you can lose Neopoints long-term with this game!

5. It’s Fun!

Now with all those other points you probably don’t think it needs to be fun if it can give you riches, an avatar, and stamps, but hear me out, I actually like playing Coconut shy! Unlike Bagetelle which is literally just clicking the screen and praying you get more than 5 NP from the 5000 you just spent (sad but true), with the skill level involved to hit centered enough, and the random array of coconuts you have before you after every throw, there is some fun to be had. I always play with the sound off, though as the sound of the Quiggle makes me cringe. So if that increases your fun, you can just take that as one of my tips. ;) Also the joy of hitting down a coconut for the third, fifth, or tenth time is just as great for all the reasons I mentioned above (except perhaps the avatar since that’s a one-time thing).

I wanted to write this article to inspire other Neopians to try and play the game I think as an under-rated carnival game that needs more attention. I’ve played Bagetelle many times since I first one that Bagatelle Joke Book, but even on good days for that game I usually lose half the Neopoints I spent, and usually more than that! Test Your Strength is a good game that I sometimes win a little over double the Neopoints I’ve spent, but usually I get a small amount of Neopoints or a random worthless spooky food. I’ve personally won 13 coconuts over the last 13 months playing Coconut Shy, which is why I wanted to write this article, so everyone can have a chance to win like I have.

What, you’re still here? Go on and step up to the Shy! :)