PHB Quickie: Mission Atlantis (Episode 2) Overview

Hello, everyone!

Lucky Joker here with a shortened review of Mission Atlantis Ep. 2: Fortress of the Deep. For a full review of the entire island, check out our earlier Mission Atlantis Review!

Although this island came out a few years ago, it’s nice to remember that Poptropica has built up a big collection of islands we can re-play to our heart’s content, and this is just one of many. So let’s dive in!

As the second installment of the Mission Atlantis series, this episode has a lot to accomplish — primarily to top the previous episode as well as getting players hooked. While this alien-based story develops, players need to embrace this new atmosphere to appreciate the rest of the game. That said, did it achieve its goal, or did it sink far beyond return?

The episode starts off where the last one ended – you’ve discovered an other-worldly sunken ship, and your job is to investigate. One of the many things they nailed in this episode is the atmosphere. It differs drastically from the previous episode, implementing an eerie edge. This edge keeps you on guard, especially when you find the shark area. The scenery is truly captivating and works well with the mysterious tone.

Compared to many of Poptropica’s best islands, the story is fairly substandard. The feeling of loneliness didn’t quite work as well here as it did in Steamworks Island. Encountering some underwater civilians, or having a goal other than opening the circular door would have made the story a lot more interesting.

However, compared to Into the Deep (Episode 1), Episode 2 does leave you asking more questions like “What’s up with those glyphs?”, and “What’s inside the ship?” Unanswered questions are a good thing, in my opinion, especially in an episodic adventure. Near the end, Fortress of the Deep leaves quite the cliffhanger: your player is somehow sucked into the ship! Is that a good thing or a bad thing? Maybe a little bit of both…

Overall, I’d give this episode 3.5/5 stars. The soundtrack was nice, the story was okay, and most importantly, it did its job — making us curious about what is going to happen next.

That about wraps up this quick review! What did you think of Fortress of the Deep? Let me know! Thanks for reading, I’ll talk to you soon.

-Lucky Joker