When I mentioned to someone that I was getting the opportunity to review Neopets – Mega Mini Games Collection – The Neopian Arcade Odyssey they were really jealous. I’ll be honest, I know of Neopets, but I was outside their targeted age demographic when they were at the prime, so I don’t have the nostalgia associated with them. That’s not to say I wasn’t excited about the game, everything I saw looked like a good time. Developed by No Gravity Games and Published by Sidewalk Games, this title launched on March 26th.
In Neopets – Mega Mini Games Collection – The Neopian Arcade Odyssey (which is a mouthful and I will be shortening it going forward in this review), we journey back to Neopia with 25 classic fan favourite games for new and returning fans of the beloved golden age of Neopets. The cult-classics are there, including Hasee Bounce, Kass Basher and Meerca Chase, so don’t worry.
You’ll also experience a brand-new adventure, a musical quest called Starlight Symphony, starring Nyx.
I did a little research since I hadn’t played Neopets games and found that all 26 games have been remastered and optimized for controllers. You will experience 60 fps gameplay, and 4 of the games also feature local multiplayer. You can choose from Arcade, Challenge and Endless modes, and you’ll have no problem picking this up for sessions that might be just for a quick game or 2, or an even longer session. You can earn trophies on the PS5 console, and you can unlock stickers and Petpet-themed rewards. If you choose to do so, you can opt in and connect your Neopass so you can share your scores with other Neopets fans.
Before you get to any of those 3 modes, though, you must complete the story mode, consisting of Nyx (a new character to the universe) needing you to earn tokens by playing minigames across the universe. You need to defeat the AAA on the high score board. Other than that, there isn’t much to the story. That is my biggest gripe with the game. Any game that is a collection of mini games made for fans should really allow you to jump directly into any of the games you want to play, in my opinion. This story mode should only take you between 1 and 2 hours, depending on the difficulty you choose, but it is fairly easy to progress through. Also, there is no online co-op; you can only play solo or local co-op. This sort of takes away from the sense of community that everyone talks about when it comes to what was loved so much about Neopets.
Neopets biggest celebrities like Grarrg, King Roo and Samrin the Kacheek are all present, although just in minor roles.
Everything looks to be restored and handled with care to please returning fans, but easy enough for new fans to find something they enjoy in the whimsical world of Neopia. The animation is nostalgic of my youth, regardless of my experience with Neopets.
For under $30, is it worth it? I’d have to say… maybe. As someone not familiar with the IP, I wasn’t entirely captivated, but the minigames were fun enough. If you are a fan of the franchise, a kid of the 90s, you’ll probably love it. I have no major faults with it and didn’t encounter any bugs. I think I would have preferred to have this as a game I could take on the go versus playing on the PS5. The Steam Deck would be a great option for that.
Of note, the collection released on March 26th ,contains 26 games, all to celebrate the 26th anniversary of Neopets. I love that fact.
Until next time…be good to yourself and be good to each other.
** Thank you to U&I Entertainment and Press Engine for the PS5 review code**
Ophelia Payne 
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