A Basic Guide To Capsules

In the quick and handy little guide, I’ll be discussing the beloved capsule. Namely, why it’s so great, what to look for when deciding what to buy, capsules of special interest, and, you know, all that good stuff.

So what’s so special about these capsules?

You may be wondering exactly: why do people love capsules so much? Of course, there are many possible reasons why, but for the purposes of time I won’t go into the outlandish and fanatical reasons involving meepits and their plans for world domination.

1. Capsules are a deal- if you don’t have a particular favorite item in the mall, and wish to get the most bang for your buck, capsules can provide you with a rather nice discount. You will receive items either equal to, or often greater than the cost of the capsule: perfect for making your NC stretch!

2. Capsules are good trading material- admittedly, capsules aren’t for everyone. In fact, sometimes it’s a downright waste to spend your NC away on capsules. But one thing that many NC mallers would agree on is that retired capsules are good trading material. Because so many people enjoy opening capsules, those seeking to add capsules they missed to their collection will often offer nicely for them.

3. Capsules are fun- while not the most logical of reasons, this is certainly the cause for some of the craze over capsules. Just the adrenaline rush can be enough to convince some into buying. Rather than buying what you like and getting exactly what you see, capsules are a mystery. Like reading a good book or getting the fast-paced climax of a movie, suspense is bound to leave you on the edge of your seat, waiting to see what you will get!

4. Capsules are pretty- let’s face it, some of those capsules are just plain fun to look at! Although some capsules are just your basic, average coloured ones, they can also have swirling confetti, sparkling neggs, or cute little ships sailing within them. So even if you don’t care much for actually opening it, and aren’t fond of trading, you may still wish to buy capsules for your album, gallery, or for simply hoarding and viewing later in your SBD.

5. Capsules have LEs- this is probably one of the primary reasons why capsules are so popular. Many of the capsules have Limited Edition, or LE, items. These are items that can only be attained from opening the specific type of capsule, and can often be quite impressive. Often times, these LE items are quite rare and sought after, as they can take many attempts to receive. Much like just unopened capsules, this makes them valued in the game of trading, though even more so.

So many Capsules! Which one should I get?

In this section, I could easily list out all the marvelous capsules currently in the mall, suggest a few especially exciting ones, and do all that jazz. However, as it should be a simple matter of going to the boards and asking for a capsule guide, I don’t really think that is necessary. Instead, I’m going to give you the tools you need to make your own decision; namely, what you should be looking for when purchasing a capsule.

Price- hopefully, this is the most obvious and logical thing to look for. One capsule could cost 100 NC while the other could cost 1,000 NC! It’s important to weigh the cost against how much you really want a particular capsule, or you may soon find yourself out of NC and no more capsules to have fun with.

Prize- different capsules will give different bonuses. Some will contain an LE, and some will contain VPCs (Virtual Prize Codes). You may want to consider whether a VPC capsule is really right for you; it won’t give you the traditional clothing/neohome items that make up the mall. However, you can receive some pretty nice codes, including the Space Faerie ones, which let you challenge her for the avatar. If it is an LE, see if you can find out from a guide or the boards what the item is first. There might even be multiple possible LE items you could receive. However, again, check first, as you wouldn’t want to waste money on something that you don’t even care for.

Retirement- although capsules will never expire, or disappear from your account, many will retire. This just means that from a certain point forward, they will be “sold out” from the mall, and no longer purchasable. To avoid having to trade away other NC items, its generally a good idea to get capsules before this happens. To find out if an item will expire, look for a yellow star next to the item in the mall. When you click on the item for its description, it should tell you in the pop up box when it retires. If you find yourself debating between two capsules, and don’t particularly want one more than the other, it might be wise to go for the retiring one first.

Items- now something people always tend to skip is reading the nice fine print. Admittedly, the small grey text is not very helpful. However, you may want to take a look near the middle of the text. All capsules will give you random items, but some will give you items from a certain category/section of the NC Mall. Check out the possible items you might get, and see if you would like them. Alternatively, there are also capsules that don’t specify a category. These might give you multiple items that you really don’t care for, but they can also be quite nice for a real surprise!

Any Special Capsules?

Ok, so I said that I wasn’t going to go into detail about specific capsules. However, there are some not quite the same as your basic LE or VPC capsule, so I thought it would be interesting to give a general overview of them.

1. Gift Mystery Capsule- this shiny golden capsule gave out an LE just like other capsules, but this LE was slightly different. The “Shining Star Gift Box” was, as the name suggests, a gift box. In addition, you had a chance of receiving normal gift boxes as well. For those who used Paypal and were without access to neocash cards, this was the sole way they could obtain gift boxes for the purposes of trading. Unfortunately, this capsule did retire, and no similar capsules or alternative methods have come out since then.

2. Golden Mystery Capsule- this other, spiffy, shiny and golden capsule was released for the NC Mall’s first birthday and was soon after retired. When opened, you received capsules, instead of actual items, from them. You could even receive retired capsules through opening! Another thing to keep in mind about this capsule is that it had a nice bright 1 in its design.

3. NC Mall 2nd Birthday Mystery Capsule- this capsule was a sequel to the golden mystery capsule, coming out for the NC Mall’s second birthday. It contained retired items, and even retired capsule LEs! Although the capsule was retired on the 1st of August, who knows? We could be seeing a 3rd edition of this capsule coming out next year!

4. Inside a Mystery Capsule Background- ok, so it’s not a real capsule. However, it IS a very nice background that you can put it on your pet to show off your love of capsules!

Uh oh... I’m addicted. Help!

So you started buying your capsules... and now you can’t stop? Ok, take a deep breath, and relax. Now, close your eyes. You are getting sleepy... you are getting very sleepy... when I count to 10, you shall open your eyes and be cured. Ready? 10! Well, if that didn’t work, here’s a quick list of things you can do help a little =P

1. Set a Limit- if you find yourself buying one, then another, then another capsules- don’t. Many users set a limit for themselves, such as a max of 20 tries at an LE for example. After you have an excuse to put your foot down and stop.

2. Trade- really can’t stop opening? I don’t blame you. However, to satisfy your capsule thirst, you may want to trade instead of spending away all that NC. If you search the NC boards, you can often find people who would love to trade buyable capsules for some kind of retired. This can be an excellent way to get yourself a nice supply of capsules.

3. Submit-ok, option 3 is that you could just give in and go crazy and buy capsules. While not the most logical option... well, at least you are keeping TNT paid and well fed, right? =P

Well, anyways, that’s my quick guide to capsules. Have fun capsule buying!