Meepit Juice Break: The Zen Experience

No doubt you are already familiar with the concept of Zen mode: feed Meepits with no time limit, but each feed is only worth one point. Feeding multiple Meepits at a time won’t get you more points, either. You may think it’s crazy to feed 3,500 Meepits for an avatar, and it absolutely is, but it’s a doable endeavor. If you hate playing Meepit Juice Break as much as I do but still want to add that avatar to your collection, then prepare for Zen mode and take these tips with you.

Get comfortable. Very comfortable.

You’re going to be here for... a while. It’s probably going to be at least 12 hours of clicking and clicking, so you’ll want to be as comfortable as possible for this monumental undertaking. If you’re on a desktop computer, find the comfiest chair in the house and grab some pillows to sit on, since you’ll be in front of that desk for a long time. If you’re on a laptop, then you have a little more flexibility, as you can switch positions as needed. Sore from sitting in a chair? Then head to your bed! Tired of lying flat in bed? Then head back to the chair! It’s all about making sure you don’t get stiff and miserable mixing Juppie Juice.

Check your internet connection

Do you have a lot of trouble sending scores because your internet tends to go out a lot? If so, Zen mode may not be the method for you. You’ll need a connection that stays sturdy. Any downtime will hurt your chances of success, so watch your internet’s behavior for a few days if you’re unsure of its quality. If you know how to do so (or if you can get your parents to do so), check your connection uptime. If it’s something like 15 days, then your internet is about as stable as stable can get and you should be fine. You’ll also want to make sure there isn’t any scheduled power maintenance in your area or any large storms approaching, because if the power goes out, so will your internet! This isn’t really too big of an issue, as connections are a lot more dependable now than they were five years ago, but you’ll still want to make sure yours can handle it before you put in 12 hours of work.

Remember the time limit

You might be saying to yourself, “Hey, wait a minute! I thought there was no time limit in Zen mode!” There isn’t, but Neopets itself has its own time limit for games. You must begin the game after 12:00 AM NST and end the game before 12:00 AM NST the next day, or else your score will not send. This means that you cannot begin zen-ing on Monday and finish on Friday; if you start on Monday, you have to be done by 12:00 AM NST on Tuesday. Think of it this way: would you really want to draw this out and be a slave to thirsty Meepits for an entire week? Having the site’s limit in place allows you to power through and then return to the rest of your life!

Turn on some music – and lots of it

You know the old saying: “A watched pot never boils,” and it just so happens that watched Meepits don’t drink their juice any faster. You’ve got to keep yourself distracted from the monotony of watching that score only go up by one point for hours and hours. Having music on (or whatever else might help you) will keep your mind off your slow progress. Instead of growing discouraged because one minute of work has only fed about five Meepits, you’ll be pleasantly surprised to see a substantial increase in your score by the time your favorite song has finished playing. Your morale will be a little higher and the time will go by much faster if you constantly have music going in the background. Arrange some lengthy playlists for yourself and kick back for your marathon jam session!

Open a separate window

The last thing you want is to get 2000 points into your quest only to accidentally click on “Explore”. Anything within your mouse pointer’s reach that can take you away from the current page is bad, bad, bad, so do yourself a favor and eliminate this horror story from the equation entirely. Playing the game on the large resolution option should open up a separate game window for you, and now you won’t have to worry about erasing hours of hard work by mistakenly clicking a link to a new page. You will need to remember to stay away from the window’s X button, along with the Send Score and Restart Game buttons, but that shouldn’t be too hard if you stay vigilant.

Don’t forget to eat!

If you’re like me, you can get a little hypnotized by computer games and forget the simple pleasures in life, like eating meals, for instance. Of course, eating meals isn’t so much a simple pleasure as it is sort of required for you to stay conscious, so don’t become so enraptured by connecting pipes that you skip out on food. Even if you decide to keep playing while you eat a sandwich, just make sure to eat that sandwich. Otherwise, you’ll have a miserable and shaky time ahead of you.

Take breaks

This is very important! It doesn’t matter if your breaks are an hour long or a minute long, but you need to set aside some time to flex your finger muscles and rest your eyes. Don’t make yourself sick just to get an avatar. Know what your body and mind can take and work within those limits. You’ll need to at least stand up and walk around every so often to keep from going totally cuckoo, and your body will thank you for it, too.

Don’t stop

Zen mode will test your endurance in ways you never thought possible. The first time I tried it, I quit after about 600 points because it felt impractical and ridiculous. I’ve already established that it is impractical and ridiculous, but it’s not impossible. There might be a little voice inside your head telling you not to try this, that your score won’t send, that you just plain can’t get this finished, and I want you to grab this voice by the collar and shove it out the door. You’ll never know if it can’t be done if you don’t give it a shot, and I and the many other Zen moders who have come before me can assure you that it can be done. If you’re reading this, you’re most likely desperate enough to try this method, so why not see it through until the end? It could be the deciding factor in you never having to touch this game again with a ten foot Altador Cup flagpole.

If you feed about 300 Meepits every hour, you should be done well before the wee hours of the morning. Just remember to be patient and keep your spirits up. If you can’t seem to get better at this game and you’re tired of trying, this is a viable road to conquering the avatar. It will eat up a whole day, but you can definitely last through all those mind-numbing hours and emerge victorious on the other side. Good luck!