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Post by StoryMaker on Jul 22, 2021 0:12:35 GMT -5
I'm pretty sure I was 4 years old. The game was Petz II. I didn't really know how to read or write and would just name my petz random nonsense created by bopping the keyboard. I would adopt massive numbers of petz. I usually played with my sister who was 3.
One of the few times I actually named a pet with a real name, I painstakingly found a book with the word on the cover and copied it. The name was "Pink". The pet in question was a chihuahua wearing a pink sweater. This seems impossible, so maybe my memory is incorrect...but my distinct memory is that she scratched on the petz door to ask to leave, and because I loved her and wanted to give her whatever she wanted, I opened the door...and she ran away immediately. 😭😭😭 I ran crying to my mom, and she comforted me by saying that Pink went to the "Pink Chihuahua Forest". Even back then I knew it wasn't true, but it comforted me anyway, probably because I knew that petz were virtual, so it wasn't less true than anything in the game, you know?
Another time, I wanted to name a chihuahua "Pea" (can you tell what my childhood favorite breed was?), but as I was typing the name, my sister assumed I was typing another nonsense name, so she joined in and bashed the keyboard, resulting in the name "Pee-". He was very special to me too, and unlike Pink I had him for a long time.
Went on a bit of a tangent there...I guess I'm mainly making this because I feel like I started playing Petz younger than most, and would like to learn if that's actually the case.
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rhikan
Petz Groomer
Posts: 106
Petz Versions: 5, 4
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Post by rhikan on Jul 22, 2021 7:01:31 GMT -5
But your tangent was very cute lol.
I began playing the games when I was 20, mainly because I'd never heard of them until my ex told me about them, so when I knew it was about having pets on the computer, I knew immediately I had to buy whichever games I could. I managed to get Petz 4 and 5, and some of my very first petz I still have. I do wish I'd known about the games when I was a lot younger, since they began when I was a child, but I wasn't really the kind of kid to sit playing games on a console or PC, I'd be playing outside mostly. Had I known... I'd have probably not cared anyway and still played outside the most. I might have found the games a bit boring after a while, especially since I had real pets to spend time with and look after too.
Being an adult playing, well, I know no different, but I feel like I appreciate the games more than I would've likely as a child.
Although, being someone who only began playing the games 14 years ago, I feel like I'm not really part of the community. There are so many people who've been playing it far longer than I have, have far more knowledge of it and memories of playing it as a child. I feel like I got here too late.
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Post by CatCreature on Jul 22, 2021 22:33:07 GMT -5
Although, being someone who only began playing the games 14 years ago, I feel like I'm not really part of the community. There are so many people who've been playing it far longer than I have, have far more knowledge of it and memories of playing it as a child. I feel like I got here too late. Aww, I don't think you're ever 'too late' really! ^^ I have no clue how old I was when I started playing...I was a child, and played off and on for years...and even then, I didn't actually join the community myself until I was an adult, and by then people were talking about all these things I missed out on. Like the actual P.F. Magic site for Petz, how they'd interact with their audience, release sneak peeks of stuff, or talk about their favorite hexers who were long gone...for a while I didn't feel like I fit in either. I didn't even know HOW to be in a community online...this was my first ever experience and I was very lost. But those kind of things just take time, I guess. Petz was one of my biggest interests, had been for years and I knew it would be for many more, so I stuck around and eventually got more comfortable and figured things out. (There was lots of trial and error with me in the beginning too...I cringe when I find old stuff I'd written publicly on other forums xP) And, Petz itself is very simple on the surface to figure out, and get used to...with 14 years already gone by, you've probably already figured out most of the basics by now! xD And if you haven't, or are confused with anything new going on...all you have to do is ask some questions, and you'll be right on the same page as the rest of us! Don't worry too much! It's nice to have new people around! ^^ You're still new and settling in, from what I can tell, but that doesn't mean you're an outsider who won't fit in! Just hang out, chat, do whatever, and you'll be more comfortable in no time! You can also talk to me any time you need some help, or just want someone to chat to! In fact, I'll send you a quick PM right now!
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Post by StoryMaker on Jul 23, 2021 0:38:17 GMT -5
Yeah, I don't think there's any such thing as too late. We all get into Petz and its community at different times, it's just the way most hobbies are. The Petz community has been around so for over two decades and most people have at least some hiatuses, so there are probably VERY few people, if any, who haven't "missed out" on anything. But I for the most part, varied experiences and perspectives are a feature, not a bug. Personally, I just think it's cool that so many people can connect to this game and its community despite differing life stages and differing eras in the history of the community.
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Post by Sasha on Jul 23, 2021 7:07:22 GMT -5
Yeah I agree about everything CatCreature and storymaker said it's never too late! However if you are interested in learning about community history there are all sorts of interesting old forum threads to read on PCG. The forum is dead now but it's got stuff dating back to 2006. Obviously you don't have to but, it's helped me in not feeling like I missed out, I joined in 2014!
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Post by Kel on Jul 23, 2021 10:07:26 GMT -5
I can sorta relate with rhikan a little bit. When I started playing Petz I was about 15 and had just started high school. I had noticed that it seemed the majority of petz players in the community were a little younger than me and had been around in the community since pre-1999 and started playing when they were kids. For a while it made me feel “old” and a little out of place. It was 2000 for me and I had just talked my dad into buying the household’s first computer, because now that I was in high school it would likely be very useful. Shortly after this my best friend introduced me to Petz 3 when she came over to my house and said she had a couple of games for my computer that she knew I would just adore. Well yeah, she was right, I’ve been hooked ever since lol, and I still have those petz I adopted that first day and the days following, along with many of their offspring. For now I keep them separate in Petz 3, while the rest of my crew lives in Petz 4.
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Post by gyiyg on Jul 23, 2021 22:31:06 GMT -5
i was probably 9 or 10 when i first started playing, i saw petz 5 in one of those catalogs they had in school in some places that let you order books and sometimes had other things like games in them and i wanted it immediately. my first pet was an egyptian mau, and i'm still especially fond of petz with the russian blue personality since there's not much difference between that and the egyptian mau, haha. i didn't get into the community until i was around 12 (2008) and started playing the game again, i think the way i ended up finding it was noticing the back of the cd case said something about hexies and i of course had to know what that was, and i not only found that out but that there were whole communities for the game and it was exciting, haha. (luckily not only did i join the forum i joined at the time under a different username, it is now completely defunct, so nobody can see my embarrassing old posts ::P)
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Post by Arie on Jul 25, 2021 8:08:44 GMT -5
Considering the games' release dates, I must've been 7!
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rhikan
Petz Groomer
Posts: 106
Petz Versions: 5, 4
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Post by rhikan on Jul 26, 2021 12:43:13 GMT -5
Although, being someone who only began playing the games 14 years ago, I feel like I'm not really part of the community. There are so many people who've been playing it far longer than I have, have far more knowledge of it and memories of playing it as a child. I feel like I got here too late. Aww, I don't think you're ever 'too late' really! ^^ I have no clue how old I was when I started playing...I was a child, and played off and on for years...and even then, I didn't actually join the community myself until I was an adult, and by then people were talking about all these things I missed out on. Like the actual P.F. Magic site for Petz, how they'd interact with their audience, release sneak peeks of stuff, or talk about their favorite hexers who were long gone...for a while I didn't feel like I fit in either. I didn't even know HOW to be in a community online...this was my first ever experience and I was very lost. But those kind of things just take time, I guess. Petz was one of my biggest interests, had been for years and I knew it would be for many more, so I stuck around and eventually got more comfortable and figured things out. (There was lots of trial and error with me in the beginning too...I cringe when I find old stuff I'd written publicly on other forums xP) And, Petz itself is very simple on the surface to figure out, and get used to...with 14 years already gone by, you've probably already figured out most of the basics by now! xD And if you haven't, or are confused with anything new going on...all you have to do is ask some questions, and you'll be right on the same page as the rest of us! Don't worry too much! It's nice to have new people around! ^^ You're still new and settling in, from what I can tell, but that doesn't mean you're an outsider who won't fit in! Just hang out, chat, do whatever, and you'll be more comfortable in no time! You can also talk to me any time you need some help, or just want someone to chat to! In fact, I'll send you a quick PM right now! Yeah, I don't think there's any such thing as too late. We all get into Petz and its community at different times, it's just the way most hobbies are. The Petz community has been around so for over two decades and most people have at least some hiatuses, so there are probably VERY few people, if any, who haven't "missed out" on anything. But I for the most part, varied experiences and perspectives are a feature, not a bug. Personally, I just think it's cool that so many people can connect to this game and its community despite differing life stages and differing eras in the history of the community. Yeah I agree about everything CatCreature and storymaker said it's never too late! However if you are interested in learning about community history there are all sorts of interesting old forum threads to read on PCG. The forum is dead now but it's got stuff dating back to 2006. Obviously you don't have to but, it's helped me in not feeling like I missed out, I joined in 2014! I can sorta relate with rhikan a little bit. When I started playing Petz I was about 15 and had just started high school. I had noticed that it seemed the majority of petz players in the community were a little younger than me and had been around in the community since pre-1999 and started playing when they were kids. For a while it made me feel “old” and a little out of place. It was 2000 for me and I had just talked my dad into buying the household’s first computer, because now that I was in high school it would likely be very useful. Shortly after this my best friend introduced me to Petz 3 when she came over to my house and said she had a couple of games for my computer that she knew I would just adore. Well yeah, she was right, I’ve been hooked ever since lol, and I still have those petz I adopted that first day and the days following, along with many of their offspring. For now I keep them separate in Petz 3, while the rest of my crew lives in Petz 4. I didn't expect anyone to respond to what I said lol, but I appreciate it greatly. I hadn't replied as I was a bit overwhelmed (I should probably explain I have quite severe social anxiety disorder and struggle to talk to people, even online), but I thought I couldn't be rude and not respond. Petz and I have a bit of a bittersweet relationship since it was my ex who introduced me to the games, as I said, and she gave me a little pet as a gift when I began playing, who I still have. My ex and I haven't spoken since we broke up a decade ago, but this little pet is a little memory of her I can't part with. (Also, when I used this forum a few years ago, I used to speak to Cyove now and then. She's who I remember the most from back then because I got one of her hexes (a little Pug who I still have too).) Due to my anxieties with people, that probably contributes a lot of my feelings that I don't "fit in", that I'm not quite up to speed as everyone else in the community, even though Petz is something I'm familiar enough with now, the games, just not the community side of it. That's a typical feeling I've always been used to, everywhere I go lol. I will try to participate more on here though, this time round.
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jojostory
Petz Groomer
This reminds me of a puzzle!
Posts: 213
Petz Versions: 4
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Post by jojostory on Jul 29, 2021 21:55:45 GMT -5
I think I was like 9 or 10 when I started playing Petz! I remember begging my parents to buy it for me. I don't remember where I heard about it, though (I was really into cyberpets/adoptables at the time, and spent a lot of time on related forums, so I must have picked it up from people I met through that?). I remember I got my childhood best friend really into it too, when we were in middle school... she told me during class one day, "I can't stop thinking about Petz. I want to go home and play right now!" Haha.
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Post by Victorian Cyborg on Jul 30, 2021 11:52:25 GMT -5
This is a fun topic! Catz II was my first Petz game, I had to be around 7 or 8 years old. My friend had the game and we would play together at her house. Eventually she got bored of it and gave me her copy. I only had a few catz and my favourite was a B&W short hair named after my RL kitty Bandit. Another friend in my class had Dogz II, so we traded discs and her dad made us a copy of each game. I still have those discs in the little cardboard CD sleeve with the serial code hand written and taped to the front.
I didn't get into the Petz community until later. I remember stalking Carolyn's Creations and downloading everything I could get my little hands on when I first found the site. There wasn't much for II out there since most people were onto III by the time I got online.
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Post by lobb on Jul 30, 2021 16:35:52 GMT -5
I actually only started playing a few months ago! I'm almost sure I played a demo or something of one of the games and I played the GBC version, but it wasn't a big part of my childhood. I always curious about it and being sick earlier this year finally gave me the chance to plunge in and start playing. I can relate to rhikan 's feeling of being late but I don't really mind. There are definitely some upsides. I know about things like petz running away, for example, or that I should back up my petz. Like almost everyone, I was way more annoying and dramatic as a child so I'm not sure I would have caused the best impression in the PC back then (if anyone even noticed, I was really shy about online stuff).
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Post by Megan@Xoops ❄️ on Jul 30, 2021 22:25:47 GMT -5
Definitely younger than most I think! But that would also depend on how old everyone when the game was released. I couldn't have played it when I was 4 yrs old as it wasn't out then haha
I've been playing petz since 1998, I was 9 at the time, started with PII briefly. I don't think I played very consistently though and I don't think I ever got P3. My memory is a little fuzzy on all that though. A friend of mine bought P4 and myself and another friend would go to her house to play, then both of us ended up getting P4 too. Eventually over the next couple years we discovered the community and we all joined forums and opened websites together. I don't recall being that active in the PC back then though, mainly just the Petz official site and Carolyn's. I was pretty steady in the community from 2002 to 2011, but often lurked and stuck to the petz-side of things over the personal. The last 10 years though I have only done the bare minimum to maintain my sites and opened the game maybe once a month to play with some petz, I wasn't active on any forums or anything.
I had always wanted to come back and be more involved but things kept getting in the way. Life has kind of "settled" now for me haha so I took the opportunity to jump back in and even though I was around in the "old days" I feel like I'm almost new again, so much has changed in the community (and yet so similar), I've learnt so much about the game I didn't know back then as well, its been really neat and fun rediscovering everything.
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Post by commander on Jul 31, 2021 14:53:26 GMT -5
I was 11. We got a new computer in early 1998, and my dad bought a bunch of games for me and my younger brother to play on it, the original Dogz and Catz being two of them. By the end of the year I'd turned 12, gotten Petz 2 and 3, and was already starting to explore Petz websites online. also, random, but Megan@Xoops ❄️ I definitely remember you! I downloaded all of your muttlie variation files and used them very liberally around the year 2008. So a very belated thank you for those!
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Post by Bunni on Aug 1, 2021 8:20:27 GMT -5
One day, when I was 12 years old, my best friend called me over to show me a brand new game she had installed on her computer: Dogz 4!
Safe to say I completely fell in love with the game, joined the online petz community, managed to get a copy of both dogz and catz 4 myself, and ended up running a petz website (Lily Water Kennelz & Cattery/LWKC) for the next 2-3 years. It was a HUGE part of my life during that time!
For the last 20 years, I looked back on those days with very fond memories. It wasn't until last November (omg getting close to 1 year ago now?!) that I stumbled across RKC and was blown away that the community still existed. I've been so happy ever since I rejoined!!! ♡
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