Heyo Poptropicas, it’s Magic Kid. 😀
Recently, the developer of the Poptropica.love website released a new Poptropica island that they created as a fan! And, as I am also a Poptropica fan, I excitedly decided to play through. Turn on your radio and tune in as I experience the mysteries of…
💀 DEAD AIR ISLAND 📻
It starts off with a chilling synopsis: “A shuttered mountain station is broadcasting a dead man’s warning. Follow the signal and find out who is really on the air.” We LOVE the spooky vibes here, and honestly the concept is very intriguing. Honestly, if I didn’t know beforehand, I probably would have just assumed it was an actual Poptropica island that I just was previously unaware about, but let’s get into it!
We land our blimp!! First impressions: It feels like an extra edition to the episodes of Survival Island, like perhaps it could be a mini-quest/aftermath of that adventure. Some of the assets definitively look taken from the Survival Island series and the energy is strikingly parallel. Could be a new episode of “Poptropica: Into the Poptropica-verse”! 😝
I go over and talk to Ranger Bell and she gives me the purpose of my quest and so I head into the lodge where I chat up Dot to try to find out more about all this radio business. The lodge interior definitely has that nostalgic Poptropica feel to it, with some nice details like the picture stain on the wall. ✨
Dot sends me outside to go straighten the signal wire things, which was quite enjoyable.
After I figure out all that, I go back inside to Dot where she gives me a field receiver! Which was another fun callback to Survival Island haha
AND THEN WE GO OUT INTO THE RAGING STORM!! ⛈️
So my little Poptropican runs to the right and discovers that the signal is highest at this lovely little box, I then follow the wire and find another cabin-building where I go inside to this “Hoist Rigging” system.
This part actually took me an embarrassing amount of time to figure out 😳. EVEN THOUGH there’s literally a diagram of what you need to do RIGHT THERE I was like… “nah imma do my own thing”.
Which didddddd end up taking me longer (and it didn’t help that my computer died halfway through HELP). So note for future self: I need to actually follow the instructions I get lol
I’ve only been vaguely aware of how this kind of rope system works for lifting things and it was really fun to have this in game-form because I got to understand better about how it works, so The More You Know!
Eventually, I figured it out!! YIPPEE!!
Then I go outside to this crossing bridge and I have to connect all the circuits which was a really fun puzzle to figure it out and very adjacent to the kind of things you have to do in other Poptropica islands! 😁
Next up: WE CLIMB UP THE RADIO TOWER! The radio tower had these zapping things all up it, which did boot me to the bottom a few times, but eventually I made the climb. ⚡
(I’m having déjà vu to Survival Ep. 3 HELP)
So we get inside this structure up at the top of the tower and GASP!! IT’S THE GUY WE’VE BEEN HEARING ABOUT!!
So, with a little bit of rewiring we get him to confess what he’s ACTUALLY been up to and broadcast it to the entire town! Ranger Bell spawns in the hide-out and promptly scolds him and takes the guy away so that’s that, mystery solved!!
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the tale of me playing this lovely unofficial island! 🤩
Now, before we head off for the night, I’d like to sum up my overall thoughts of “Dead Air”. ✨
🎬 My experience: I had a lot of fun playing this island. The only things I actually struggled with were things I inflicted upon myself haha. There were a lot of enjoyable mini-puzzles and the concept and story was intriguing for sure! I’m very happy I got to play this.
📻 Thoughts on the story/plot: This island felt short and sweet! Not short enough to be a mini-quest, but not quite in depth enough to be considered equal to most of the other islands, which is to be expected and certainly not a bad thing. If you’re much into music, I think of it like: if islands are albums and mini-quests are singles, then Dead Air would be an E.P. The plot was fairly clear and very easy to follow.
🏔️ The overall vibe: In case I haven’t mentioned, it felt a lot like Survival Island XD. With so many callbacks to that island with the backgrounds, props, and general vibe, it might have been fun to throw in something like a dialogue reference to tie it all in, or else tweak it to a slightly different aesthetic entirely. You could tell which assets were re-used or new and the classic Poptropica font got used just slightly too frequently (in my personal opinion, but remember that I’m just some random person online and actually have no game design credibility lol). Despite those random details, this fan-made island was impressive and nostalgic, especially considering this is the first attempt.
🎤 Would I recommend to play this island?: ABSOLUTELY! This was a new experience, but also it was very much like normal Poptropica and so, it wasn’t too different at all! I feel like us at the Poptropica Fandom are very much in a drought of content right now, so this is very exciting. 😁
I’m actually very excited to see how the developer continues to work on this island, and hopefully more Poptropica projects! 🤩
👉 If you’re looking for a more guided walkthrough, check out the PHB’s Dead Air Island Guide here!
Also, the developer of Poptropica.love is opening art commissions for Dead Air Island! 🎨 They’ve just recently joined our PHC Discord server with the name 42-AH, and shared the following message in our #pop-art channel. If you’re an artist with a portfolio of work similar to the original Poptropica style and are interested in the project, send a DM!
Play Dead Air here!! 🌟 And please share YOUR thoughts about this island in the comments! 🧐
Over n’ Out!
~Magic Kid ✨
