Hello! I'm Slanted Fish, the editor-in-chief and creator of the Poptropica Help Blog (PHB). I'm a writer, Hong Kong native, and Christ follower. My Poptropica username is slantedfish 🐠 Don't forget to be awesome!
Heeey Poptropicans! So you remember all that talk we posted yesterday about a grand PHB Flash Experience? Our little Flash game of homage to the pending doom of Flash and old school islands? Well, check your calendars…
Yup. So, April Fools! How long were you clicking to “allow Flash” and refreshing the page so you could play the game? Were you convinced that your computer just couldn’t handle Flash anymore? Did we fool you?
Whether our shenanigans had you flashing with anger at game that was never meant to load, or flushing with embarrassment for refreshing way too many times, we hope that, in the end, we can still make you flash a smile. So here, enjoy the behind-the-scenes of this year’s PHB prank.
Gentle Dolphin put a ton of work into making the preview scene of a glitching bridge in our prank post. Check out the stills behind the gif, from a peaceful Red Dragon Island scene to the world falling apart with game-breaking code.
In addition to the scenery, she also made plenty of outfit prototypes before settling on the final look of our invented villain, Addo B. Flash. (And yes, he even has the Flash logo in his design!) Addo also came with views from different angles when we introduced him, which was Gentle Dolphin’s idea to add to his legitimacy as a game character.
Which of these outfits do you like most? Were you bamboozled by the PHB Flash Experience, or cautiously suspicious through it all? We’d love to hear from you in the comments! Keep on popping, Poptropicans.
—the PHB—
p.s. Play the old school islands before Flash is truly gone, here.
p.p.s. Quarantined? We’ve come up with ideas for making the best of Poptropica in these bizarre times here.
Of course, here at the PHB, we couldn’t just let that happen without a proper goodbye! So, we’ve been working up a little something to pay homage to the many great classic islands that have gone before us, and now we’re ready to reveal this thing. What is it, you ask? We call it: the PHB Flash Experience.
Warning: The following experience contains bright, flashing imagery. It may cause discomfort for people with photosensitive epilepsy. Viewer discretion is advised.
Gahhh! What happened to the bridge on Red Dragon Island? That’s just a taste of the wreckage to come…
The PHB Flash Experience a sweet RPG adventure (kind of like Poptropica!) where you travel around through different dimensions—from the clouds of the purple giant in Early Poptropica to the distant planet of E. Vile’s Legendary Swords battles—all in a noble quest to save them from perhaps the most nefarious villain of them all: Mr. Addo B. Flash, vanquisher of a zillion islands.
The many sides of the devilish Addo B. Flash. He’s legit, y’all.
You can play this epic PHB Flash Experience right here, right now on this PHB post in the blue box below. Of course, as the name implies, you’re going to have to enable Flash. But you already know how to do that, don’t you? 😉
Have fun, and hey, when you’re done with the game, share your feedback with us in the comments. 😜
Hey Poptropicans. By now, you’ve probably heard of the coronavirus pandemic sweeping over the world, causing school shutdowns, closing businesses, and more. With life on lockdown, why not turn to Poptropica to pass the time?
Real talk, though: we haven’t heard from Poptropica in about a month, and with all of this going on, Poptropica Creators may have their workflow disrupted, too. That could mean a lull in activity for Poptropica, despite earlier promises about updates for this year. We’ll have to wait and see.
Anyway, whether the virus has been on your radar for months, or has just started to affect your area in the past couple weeks, at least one thing is clear: staying away from crowds helps keep you and everyone safe.
The outside world may be falling apart, but on the flip side, the online world is thriving. Here on the PHB, we’re bringing you recommendations for enjoying the best of Poptropica while under quarantine. There’s plenty to do inside!
Can you stomach the comics? 🦠
One obvious island comes to mind: Virus Hunter. In this island released in 2013, your mission is to locate the person harboring a dangerous new virus, then enter his body to remove the disease before it spreads! There couldn’t be a more relatable adventure in these trying times, and whether it’s your first time playing or you want to revisit it, the PHB has a guide for you.
Before the island came out all those years ago, Poptropica created a six-page comic called Pandemic Panic as a prelude to Virus Hunter Island. Check it out below, and read tons more official Poptropica comics on the PHB!
More island adventures, for all the benchers 🏝
Besides Virus Hunter, Poptropica is also filled with lots of other great island adventures to play. If staying at home is starting to feel like jail, try busting out of prison on Escape From Pelican Rock Island. If you miss large gatherings full of people, mingle with the cosplayers on PoptropiCon Island. Or if you prefer to strike it out on your own, embrace the solitude of Survival Island. There’s something for everyone, and we have all the guides you’ll need!
No prison can hold me.
This cave was almost too much to bear.
Here’s an open secret: the islands currently on the map aren’t the only ones you can play. With the Old Island Directory, you can play about 30 more old school islands, which Poptropica had taken down from the official game due to the older technology causing bugs. Since Flash is going down, now’s the time to play them before they’re gone for good!
Having one giant adventure!
This puzzle didn’t outfox me.
Create or compete, staying upbeat 👩🎨
Even beyond the decades of islands, Poptropica still has a fair amount of fun to offer. The Photo Booth is back, your club house could use a refreshed design, and worlds are waiting to be made on Realms. And while you’re at it, maybe you’ll enjoy giving your character a new look, too!
Decorate your club house!
Make a whole new world on Realms!
Meeting up in real life may not be a great idea these days, but you can still hang out with friends online! Drop by the arcade at the same time and you can play games like Star Link together, or head in solo and find new buds. You can also challenge yourself on solo games like Blaster Attack.
Star Link
Blaster Attack
And last but not least, join in on the PHB’s Community Creations challenge! This month’s theme is Hobbies, and all this downtime is a great opportunity to explore some (within health precautions, of course). Whatever the hobby, you have until the end of March to capture it for us Poptropica-style. Details here.
What have you been up to in this pandemic panic? Share your stories in the comments, keep washing your hands, and take care, everyone! 💪🧼
Hey Poptropicans, we’re in the beginning of a new month, which means another rotation of items at the store! And for March, the store has brought back some old favorite costumes and powers. Check ’em out:
Old-timers may recognize powers from the past like the Phantom*, Torch, and Hypno-Powder, while newer players may remember springtime outfits like the Rib Wrap, Navy Raglan, and Red Heart outfits, which were introduced last spring. Even suit-ups from the earliest days of the store are back, with classics like the Fairy Queen and four iterations of the Rock Star.
(*The Phantom is looking a little different from old times though… besides the disjointed appearance, you also can’t adjust your character’s opacity.)
However, more than half of all the current stock is for members only, including items that were originally available for everyone via credits. Still, some of the items which were rolled out last year for members are now available for all, such as the Mardi Gras Jester, Clover Kid, and Lilac Star outfits.
The Poptropica homepage has also been host to another little update, this one involving the login process. Now, clicking on the “Play for free” button in the middle will bring you straight to creating a new character.
To log in as usual, instead click the “log in” button in the corner (of the homepage or character creation)—which will pop up with this new login box.
On a more delicious, yet irrelevant-to-game-development note, the Creators also shared a pop quiz on the official blog to ask the all-important question: What’s the best Mardi Gras breakfast? Poptropicans have been casting their votes for pancakes or waffles in the blog comments—and maybe crepes, too?
That’s all for this post! What other costumes and powers do you want to see return to the store? Want to weigh in on your favorite breakfast foods or the new login thingamajig? Comment below—the Creators might be reading!
Hey Poptropicans, get your game face on! We’re about to blast you into the arcade scene and show you how it’s done…
Some distant time ago, Poptropica brought us the Blast-off Arcade, and with it, three new games. They also refined three other games (and took out seven others, rip). Anyway, here on the PHB, we’ve (finally) updated our Game Guides, complete with pages for the newer arcade gamesBlaster Attack, Crash-n-Bash, and Poptastic. (Better late than never, right?)
We’ve also updated our guides for the older gamesBalloons, Sky Dive, and Star Link, which, although they’ve retained the same gameplay and style, did receive slight graphic refinements. Have you noticed, for example, that the background on Sky Dive is colored a little deeper than before? Or that falling too fast doesn’t make a Poptropican-sized hole in the ground anymore?
Old Sky Dive
New Sky Dive
To get to our new and improved Game Guides, look for “Pop Plus” on the PHB site menu and go to “Game Guides.” From there, you’ll find all the head-to-head and single-player game pages, with tips and tricks to make you a pro.
But that’s not all! Scroll down some more on the page, and you’ll also find a section dedicated to the Bygone Days with info about classic, now-retired games like Hoops, Pathwise, and Soupwords. Plus, we’ve included memories of old multiplayer hangouts like the Multiverse, tribe rooms, and even those good old five-star battle rankings — all gone with Flash’s impending doom.
Oh well, at least we still have all these other flashy arcade games. I mean, did you know that the balloon animals on Poptastic move at different speeds depending on their color? Because if not, you might need that game guide. 😉
🚀 So what are you waiting for? 👇 Get on out there and beat your high scores with PHB Game Guides!
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