Author: LJ

Howdy, Poptropicanos, my name is LJ! I’ve been playing Poptropica for as long as I can remember, and I’ve been blabbing about it here on the PHB for over 8 years. Wowie, the time sure goes by fast when you’re having fun. Beyond the realm of Poptropica, some of my hobbies include drawing, taking long strolls, collecting way too many cool things I don’t have room for, creating unique characters, and letting my imagination run wild in my daydreams. In real life, I tend to be pretty extremely shy, but online, I’m usually bursting with cheerful energy. Don’t be afraid to chat me up in the comments or on the PHC. Also, follow my IG and DeviantArt if you wanna! -Gravatar icon by me! -Background by napstachill
Contests

PHB Special: Guess That Poptropican, Round 3

LJ

Hola amigos! Quite a few of you thought it would be fun if I held a third round of Guess That Poptropican, and that’s exactly what I’m here to do! If you don’t know what the game is about, check out the first round for instructions. For those of you that do know the drill, the same rules apply. Can you guess a random Poptropica character from a small number of clues? Let’s see. Good luck!

Easy

Poptropican 1

  • My favorite color is green
  • I have my very own in-game action figure
  • I appear on many islands as a cameo
  • I’ve even been featured on a couple of Poptropica’s YouTube videos
  • My exact whereabouts today remain unknown

Poptropican 2

  • I have an occupation
  • My shifts are usually very quiet
  • I wear an apron
  • I have big hair
  • I appear in both original Poptropica and Poptropica Worlds

Medium

Poptropican 3

  • I come from a ranch
  • I act as your transportation
  • I must be tamed
  • I have a tail

Poptropican 4

  • I come off as very odd and mysterious
  • I have a secret identity
  • I keep my illusion skills hidden
  • I have curly hair

Hard

Poptropican 5

  • I like to sign autographs
  • I care very much about my fans
  • I am very violent and aggressive

Poptropican 6

  • I wear goggles
  • I want to steal items from all over Poptropica to create my own evil island
  • I use a school supply as a weapon

In order for your answers to be considered correct you’ll need to list the exact name of the character in its entirety (some characters may have multiple names so either is acceptable). The first person to get all 6 correct will win a drawing of their Poptropican by me. (You can check out my gallery on DeviantArt or Instagram for a reference of my art.)

So send in your guesses to [email protected] for your chance to win. The results will be posted as soon as we have a winner. We’ll talk soon, pop on!

– LJ 🍀

Popular Poptropicans

Popular Poptropican: Gentle Dolphin

LJ

Howdy, Poptropicans! It’s LJ here with Gentle Dolphin in the third installment of our Popular Poptropicans – Poptropica Help Blog staff lineup. Gentle Dolphin joined the PHB a couple of years ago and has since stayed on top of reporting Poptropica news. In addition to that, you may recall her massive artistic involvement in our Flash Experience and “Smash! Crackle! Pop!” pranks. Let’s get to know her even further, shall we?

1. What do you enjoy about blogging with the PHB? 

I like being able to work with other people who have similar interests, even if those interests are as niche as a 2007 computer game. Some of my favorite PHB memories involve partying in the PHC Discord server and creating wonderfully dumb April Fool’s pranks (the 2020 prank being my favorite).

2. What advice would you give to aspiring bloggers or writers in general that you wish you had starting out?

Don’t be afraid to ask for help or critique; it’s nice to have feedback before you publish your work. On the flip side, trust your instincts if you think something will enhance your writing.

3. What is your favorite island and villain?

Big Nate is my favorite island nostalgia-wise, Ghost Story is my favorite island story-wise, and Super Villain is my favorite island design-and-concept-wise. As for my favorite villains, it would be the Super Power Island crew. Although they aren’t the most complex villains, they are a fun collection of villains to take on. Also, BlazingAngel123‘s take on them made me love them more.

4. What challenge in the game has been the hardest to complete in your opinion?

For me, that challenge was the Thunder Volt arcade game from Wimpy Boardwalk‘s bonus quest. It’s the only bonus quest I haven’t completed. Sorry I couldn’t help you, Greg. 😢

Thunder Volt

5. What is your favorite feature (still here or gone) from the many years of Poptropica?

I agree with many fans that the biggest lost feature is the multitude of islands. As Lone Axe said it best, the game feels gutted ever since the death of Flash. The Creators are hard at work converting everything to Haxe, but it’s going to be a while until we see everything come back.

6. What is your favorite Poptropica item?

That’s a hard question to answer since there are hundreds of items in the game! If I have to pick one, it would be the Forest Amulet from Twisted Thicket Island. It’s a lot of fun to transform and harness the powers of nature, even if you can only use the amulet on one island. 😅

7. What is your favorite Poptropica Easter egg/secret/reference?

I’m not sure if anyone else knows about this one. When you visit Mother Leeds’s house on Cryptids Island, the dishes on the table will shake when you get close to them. It certainly spooked me when I first noticed it. 😱

(LJ: You can friend her on Poptropica with the username magicalyre!)

🌟 Would you like to be the next Popular Poptropican? 🌟

To nominate yourself or someone you know, send me an email at [email protected] or a private message on Discord with the following:

  • the name of your nominee (a Poptropica name or other screen name)
  • a reason why your nomination should be the next Popular Poptropican

Thank you so much for reading as always and I’ll see you all in the next one. Pop on!

– LJ 🍀

Pop Fan Artist Spotlights

🎨 Pop Fan Artist Spotlight: Gear

LJ

Howdy doodly Poptropicans, it’s LJ with the latest Pop Fan Artist Spotlight! Today’s artist I want to showcase is Gear. Gear often shares her illustrations (and more recently, mood boards) on the PHC and even illustrates for Maryann’s The Villain Saga series. How cool is that?

According to her, she thinks it’s thrilling that her art reaches a wide audience; in fact, she wants to become a Poptropica creator one day! Storyboarding and character design are two of her most favorite things and you can really see that passion manifest itself into her work. I find that each piece tells its own story (figuratively and literally) and that’s something I really appreciate when it comes to art. Check out this very diverse gallery (you can click the images to see them in their full glory):

Seriously, I think the various styles Gear’s able to produce really speaks to the talent she has as an artist. You have a more professional style that almost looks identical to the game, a chibi kind of style that reminds me of an old arcade game, and some semi realism thrown in there as well. I love it! What do you think? You can follow her on Instagram to see more @capax_infini.

And with that concludes this showcase! I hope you enjoyed this look into a Poptropica fan’s artwork. If you’ve made any Poptropica fan art of your own, we’d love for you to share it on our We-Love-Poptropica DeviantArt gallery. Also, don’t forget to check out all the other artists we’ve featured on the PHB. It’s a sight for sore eyes, for sure.

Thanks for reading as always and I’ll talk to you soon. Pop on!

– LJ 🍀

Popular Poptropicans

Popular Poptropican: Spotted Dragon

LJ

Howdy Poptropicans, it’s LJ with the second installment of our Popular Poptropican staff writer lineup! Last time I was interviewed, but today we’ll be getting to know a bit more about Spotted Dragon — longtime Poptropica blogger and host of the greatly admired Community Creations series.

1. What do you enjoy about blogging with the PHB?

Poptropica has been such a big part of my childhood, and so blogging with the PHB has really been a childhood dream come true. I remember being ecstatic when I got asked to join the team many years ago! It was a fantastic outlet for my passion for writing growing up, and I’m glad that my posts can still reach a wonderful audience. And through all the ups and downs of Poptropica, it has been a blast being a part of such a fun, creative community.

2. What advice would you give to aspiring bloggers or writers in general that you wish you had starting out?

Writing for a blog is definitely much different than writing a novel. In blogging, you really get the chance to connect more with your readers and have fun with your posts. So don’t be afraid to really let your personality shine through! And for improving your writing in general, reading is a big helper. Read lots of different things and you’ll naturally start to pick up on different writing styles and techniques.

3. What is your favorite island and villain?

Oh boy, I’ve never been great at answering this question. I have so many favorites! For top favorite… I think I’m between Cryptids Island and Counterfeit Island. Gosh, there are so many fun villains too. I do love Gretchen Grimlock and Black Widow from those aforementioned islands, but I’m also a sucker for Daphne Dreadnaught’s character design. 

4. What challenge in the game has been the hardest to complete in your opinion?

Growing up, I had a REALLY hard time with building up my boat in Skullduggery. I didn’t fully trust the loaning system, so it took me a really long time to get a strong enough ship to beat Captain Crawfish.

5. What is your favorite feature (still here or gone) from the many years of Poptropica?

Hmm, I really do love the art that goes into Poptropica, including the character design, so I might have to say that the Costumizer is my favorite feature. I have always loved making different costumes, and I especially loved when I got to save those costumes.

6. What is your favorite Poptropica item?

Back to my love for costumes, I gotta say that I love the Colorizer as well as the OG Costume Collector. I just love the versatility of customization in games! And some of my favorite costume items growing up were definitely the Vampire Girl outfits.

7. What is your favorite Poptropica Easter egg/secret/reference?

This is another tough question! I think the first easter eggs that really got me excited as a kid were the Hypnotic Costume and the Viking Suit. I felt really clever when I found those! But these days, one of my favorite easter eggs might be the PHB License Plate, because it really feels like a personal shoutout in some ways.

(LJ: You can friend her on Poptropica with the username ooolala13!)

🌟 Would you like to be the next Popular Poptropican? 🌟

To nominate yourself or someone you know, send me an email at [email protected] or a private message on Discord with the following:

  • the name of your nominee (a Poptropica name or other screen name)
  • a reason why your nomination should be the next Popular Poptropican

Thanks for reading, and see you in the next one! Pop on!

– LJ 🍀

Clubhouse, Store

Trend Report: Rumplestiltskin cosplay and empty promises 😼

LJ

Howdy Poptropicans! It’s LJ here reporting on the final weekly store update of April.

A good selection of outfits were added in Adventure Outfitters, including the look of Rumplestiltskin from Fairytale Island (check out our guide and review!). We even got a couple of knights appropriately for sale too. Neato! The total number of stock is 24 (which is more than the usual 18) and only 8 are for members. Prices range from 75 to 350 credits.

We got a few new fairytale themed items in the side sections as well. You’ll notice an adorable cat-i-corn topper when you first walk in (I’m totally picking this up!), and if you go to the right you’ll see a legendary sword and a big (or should I say little?) bad wolf follower. So cool!

The clubhouse furniture store items have also been rotated. As far as I’m aware, the “new” items include a lantern (first pic), a wooden vanity (second pic), and a turquoise soda machine (last pic). I put “new” in quotations because although the items weren’t featured in the store last time, they’ve been available in Adventure Outfitters for weeks now. So yeah, nothing technically new, just thought it was worth pointing out. 😛

Also, a belated happy Earth Day to all! Although April 22 was a big day on Poptropica for the release of Fairytale Island, the creators also took the opportunity to celebrate our planet with an Instagram post. The caption includes encouragements for greener living and a Wendell Berry quote: “The Earth is what we all have in common.”

That’s all the updates for now, but before I close off this post, you know what update is lacking? Hmm… where are the results of the recent fanart contest? We were told the winners would be announced on the 23rd yet here we are three days later, and nothing — with no word on what the holdup is. Come on, creators.

Empty promises from Poptropica? Yuck.

On the topic of art, be sure to participate in this month’s Community Creations; the theme is bugs. Who knows? Maybe an idea will crawl its way into your head. Anyway, it’s time to sign off now. Pop on!

– LJ 🍀