Gaming vs. Restocking

So now it's time to decide what you want specifically. Yes, there is always the option to be both a Gamer and a Restocker, but both take a lot of dedication; splitting that dedication in half really spreads out the time between your goals and achieving them. It's best to stick with one thing for a while and when you get bored you have something new to move on to.

Let us carefully study these two hobbies examining their pros and cons to help you decide what route you want to take.

The Gamers - Being a gamer takes a lot of time and a lot of dedication. If you've ever tried going for high scores and trophies then you know well how long it can take and how frustrating it can be. Common sense would be to try going for the high scores and trophies on games you're great at, but always keep an open mind to try other games. Sometimes that one game you never go to might be an easy trophy winner for you; at least it was for me. Each game takes tactics and strategies; eventually, when you have this down, the game will be easier to play. Most games you'll find on Neopets won't be something that you're just really good at and don't have to put forth much effort, oh no, like I said. Tactics. Strategy. And oh yes, practice. You don't become a gold medalist over night, do you?

The not so good thing about being a Gamer? Like I said, it takes up a lot of time. You could be stuck in a game for up to an hour trying and trying again for a high score. You can only submit your score three times as well during the day, so whatever score you submit make sure it's your absolute best. This is another reason why it takes so long to play just one game, sometimes; you have to keep restarting without submitting your score because you know you can do better. Just know that if your score is off the charts good, you'll still only be rewarded 1,000 neopoints per that game. On the upside, you do get your trophy and your name at the top and you're rewarded with an additional 750 neopoints for the top score, 500 for the second, and 250 for the third. On the downside, you really don't make that many neopoints being a gamer.

The Restockers - Like being a Gamer, being a restocker also takes a lot of time and dedication. Especially if you're on dial up, then restocking can be quite the pain. Been there, done that; I understand your frustration, fellow dial-up user! The key to restocking is knowing what's in demand. Ever hear the term supply and demand? Basically, that's what restockers do for all of us Neopians. You see, a restocker has to keep in mind what item sells and especially keep in mind what item is going to sell for thousands of neopoints. A good restocker really does their homework to make the maximum profit.

Make no mistake, restocking is just as competitive as gaming. They aren't playing for scores or trophies, though, they're playing for that morphing potion that just popped up. HURRY, GET IT!! Sorry. Excitement got to me. Anyway, there are a lot of other people prowling around in the same shop as you waiting to try to take what you set your eyes on. This is why restockers should be keyboard and mouse fit. It requires fast action, fast haggling, and fast clicking. So not only must they do their homework, but they have to be fit as a fiddle on their keyboard and mouse.

Oh yes, and before I forget, I'll mention that restocking is just as time consuming. Sometimes you have to wait around in a shop, hitting your F5 button every 30 seconds for the next 30 minutes and nothing will pop up. Restocks can be far and few between. It honestly can make for one boring night.

Gaming and Restocking Combined - Okay, so as you can see both hobbies are very similar and share certain connections like twins. This is probably why you should only focus on one, depending on what your goal is. You can become easily overwhelmed or bored by both of them pretty fast. But if you can multitask pretty good, then you definitely have an advantage. I'm not saying it can't be done; it's just more complicated. I normally play games during the day; I may work on a high score for a few depending on how much time I have and then restock later at night. I find that restocking late at night gets rid of some competition and I can get a lot more items out of a shop than in the middle of the afternoon.

And for a bit more fun you can play a game while restocking. I recommend playing Snowball Fight. There isn't any time involved so you can keep clicking between windows. Any game really that doesn't require your full attention at all times would be good to play while restocking. Pyramids is another recommendation.

The Beefs - Remember earlier when I said that Gamers don't really make too many neopoints? A lot of Gamers feel that there should be an increase of neopoints per game; this way they aren't just getting pennies by the end of the day. Many agree and disagree with this. A small increase won't hurt anything while some feel that a slightly larger increase would cause inflation, making the prices all over Neopia go up. This would mean the restockers would have to pay more and in turn mark the item more in their shops making us Neopians pay more. I can't see a slight increase throwing everything out of whack; this is just my opinion, though. A lot of people may disagree and start bringing facts into play.

Handy Hints - Ever hear the term reset? This means that the scores on the games will all reset at 12:00 am (NST) at the first of every month. If you're looking to be a major trophy collector and have a lot of soda to get you by during the night I recommend you shoot for getting your trophies on reset night. There isn't much competition or a whole lot of people up and about at that hour. Your time is precious, though. To get ahead on reset you must get your high score on a game by 4:45 am. This is when all the scores during the four hour period are processed.

The third of each month is also great for Restockers. Why? It's Half Price Day! Every shop marks items down to half price. It's still competitive as ever, maybe even more so because a lot of Restockers want to get in on the action of HPD, but if you can get a least a few items at half price from a shop then you're already making a great profit by reselling them in your own shop. Not to mention it helps a lot for us who collect for galleries!

So there you have it. The life of a Restocker and a Gamer, now it's up to you to decide which road you'll take. The road to be a Gamer? A Restocker? Or maybe you'll want to try and do both. It's up to you really.