Author: Slanted Fish

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!
App, Photo Booth

Poptropica Original syncs across devices, usurping Pop Worlds

Slanted Fish

It looks like the Creators have been hard at work on something, at least, because they’ve just announced a major app update: You can now log into your Poptropica.com account on the Poptropica Original app!

To update (or download, if you don’t have it yet) your Poptropica app on your mobile device, simply head over to the App Store (for Apple) or Play Store (for Android) and install the latest update. Then, you’ll be able to access pets, new shop items, and your Island save data!

Actually, it’s now much the same as the online version of Poptropica, but with this major difference: there are less islands on the app than on the computer. But hopefully, over time, more will be added…

Another difference on the app is that we don’t have clubhouses yet (or friends, for that matter). But again, maybe those things will come with time. There is a coming soon sign on the clubhouse door, so we’ll see.

It’s still a pretty impressive update from the Poptropica dev team, but it raises a question: with Poptropica Original now able to sync across devices, what will happen to Poptropica Worlds, which was the first Poptropica app to do just that? (And, in fact, was created in order to keep up with the latest tech…)

Play across multi-devices!

With the recent change to the home page last month, Poptropica Worlds was quietly removed from view, although you can still find a link to play it if you search the internet. Having gone a year without being updated, perhaps it’s safe to say there are no plans to continue with Worlds?

In other news, Poptropica’s Milk It campaign is still going strong! It turns out the Photo Booth was updated as well, with one new background and four new props related to the act of drinking milk.

Anyway, that’s what’s popping in Poptropica! Will you be playing on the Poptropica app more? What islands should they bring to the app? What do you think should happen to Pop Worlds? Let us know what you think of these updates in the comments below.

~/🐠

Guest Posts, Pop Petitions

Pop Petition: Unlock all islands

Slanted Fish

This is a guest post by Incredible Hamburger (username: popguy6) petitioning for all islands, especially member-locked islands, to be made available to all. Enjoy!

Hey there, I’m Incredible Hamburger! (But not the kind of hamburger you would have for dinner…)

The reason I’m writing this Pop Petition is to convince the Poptropica team to make all membership-locked islands playable for non-members too. You know, the ones that say on the map when you roll over them, “demo for non-members.” I think a demo’s not enough, and here’s why:

First, there are kids like me who for one reason or another can’t get a membership. For me, it’s because my parents won’t let me pay for anything, because the cost is not in our budget. If I tried to buy a membership, they’d probably ban me from playing the game altogether! (Yes, Poptropica membership costs less than other games, but still.)

Besides, I really want to play the Wimpy Kid islands, Wimpy Wonderland and Wimpy Boardwalk. They’re the best! The graphics are very fun — they’re in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid style, so it feels like you are actually there. And the gameplay is even more fun. Your character (Poptropican) can talk to Greg, Manny, Rowley, Grandpa, Gramma, and more Wimpy Kid characters! Jeff Kinney really created something magical with Wimpy Kid.

On that note, I could say the rest of the member-locked islands have a similar effect, too. The members-only islands are all sponsored islands, meaning they’re based on other franchises, such as the Magic Tree House books for Red Dragon Island. Again, Poptropica makes it feel like you’re actually there in those worlds and with those characters (like Big Nate, Greg Heffley, Charlie Brown, and more). That’s why I love Poptropica so much, and I’d even say I feel like life is Poptropica.

It’s true that there are a couple of sponsored islands that are accessible to all (Timmy Failure and Galactic Hot Dogs), and I sure hope it stays that way. I’d also love to see a Captain Underpants Island in the future. But the point is, everyone should get to play every island.

So, Poptropica Creators, please: make the islands open to all! There are lots of people like me who just don’t have the means to get a membership, but would love to play every island, especially the ones that are currently locked for non-members. Give us a chance at them, too!

Until next time! Buh-bye! Incredible Hamburger out… for dinner. 🍔

—IH

Hope you enjoyed this Pop Petition guest post by Incredible Hamburger! If you did, be sure to check out our other Pop Petitions!

The Poptropica Help Blog welcomes interesting Poptropica insights from anyone in the Poptropica community with thoughts to share. You can find some tips and guidelines on our page on how to Write for the PHB. We also encourage sharing blog posts on the PHC.

📰 If you have an idea for a PHB post, send it in! ✨

Pets

Suspicious bunny alert: pink, male, wears goggles

Slanted Fish

Blue Tooth over on the Creators’ Blog thinks we should be wary of some rabbit situation, but it’s not totally clear what’s going on. Somehow, though, a picture has surfaced of a bunny that doesn’t quite look like all the rest, and the caption—“infiltration day 4”—garners some suspicion.

In response to an accusation from Instagram user @chloe.muncy saying, “Dr. Hare is a furry confirmed,” the Creators responded:

why would you say this on our very nice photo of what is quite clearly 3 bunnies 🐇🐇🐇

The bunnies at the Pet Barn still had plenty of carrots, and nothing seemed out of the ordinary—although I did notice a pair of Round Glasses for sale that we hadn’t reported on before. And they’re for everyone! 👓

So, what’s up with these furry animals? Are the Creators hinting at more adventures with Dr. Hare? We’ll keep you posted if we hear more.

In the meantime, you can supposedly watch some video to earn credits over on the Home Island billboard, but all I got was a “try again later.”

Catch you later, Poptropicans!

~/🐠

Advertisements

Milk it! It’s delicious AND nutritious 🥛

Slanted Fish

Hey Poptropicans! Did you know that drinking milk, which contains calcium, helps give you stronger bones? It’s true!

Or, put it another way: Tastes good. Good for you. That’s it… and that’s the premise of Poptropica’s latest ad campaign, “Milk it!”

Head on over to the “Milk it!” ad building on Home Island and you can click into a YouTube channel promoting good old healthy milk.

And this being an ad on Poptropica, there’s bound to be some fun involved! Talk to the first kid you see inside to begin a game. It’s a simple run-and-jump deal, where you click up to jump over people and other obstacles. You get to pick one of two characters to play as, and you have 60 seconds.

If you reach the finish line in time, you’ll win two prizes: a Sports Outfit (press space bar to shoot the yellow basketball) and Milk Bottle handheld item (comes in three colors: regular milk, chocolate milk, and strawberry milk).

That’s all for now. Stay hydrated, Poptropicans!

—Slanted Fish 🐠

Guest Posts, PHB Specials

PHB Special: Unsatisfying Island Endings

Slanted Fish

This is a guest post by Comical Carrot about island quests with unsatisfying endings. Note: Spoilers abound. Enjoy!

Hi, I’m Comical Carrot!

To me, the best part about completing an island in Poptropica is the satisfying feeling of saving people or solving a mystery. Most of the islands have intense and fun endings, like the Mystery Train chase scene, or the defeat of El Mustachio in Wild West. However, there are certain islands with unsettling and unsatisfying endings, where the player is confused, frustrated, and overall sad… and that’s the topic of this post.

Bonus Quest Endings

Sometimes, an island doesn’t just end at the end—there are bonus quests! People who aren’t members might relate to the frustration, since these bonus bits are for members only.

Twisted Thicket

In this island, you spend a ton of time trying to figure out the secret and mystery in the heart of the magical forest. The climax and most intense part is when the player has to destroy and slow down all the construction vehicles in order to prevent them from killing the forest and its creatures. After the player stops the construction, you feel happy to have saved the forest.

But wait! The special orb of the forest is cracked and is missing pieces. In order to collect the pieces, you have to do the BONUS QUEST!

I remember seeing this (as a nonmember) and feeling super frustrated and guilty as I saw the poor forest creatures fading away and desperate for help. The island isn’t truly finished and you can’t say that you have saved them at all. It’s not conclusive, and you pretty much can’t progress any further without membership.

Poptropolis Games

In this island, you compete in an Olympic-like competition and need to win first place overall in order to beat the island. After you’ve won as many games as you can and come out on top, you are awarded the medallion. Yay! You’re a winner and the best Poptropican athlete of all time.

But wait! There’s some grumpy old guy who wants to battle you for the title! And… it’s a bonus quest. Seeing this, the nonmember players know that they haven’t really finished the island and they can’t really claim their recognition properly.

There are other islands that could fit this inaccessible bonus ending category, too, like in Vampire’s Curse when you’re hunted, or saving the oil spill in SOS Island. But Poptropolis Games and Twisted Thicket are the more frustrating ones, in my opinion.

Cheated Endings

These are the endings where you feel cheated out of your hard work and victory by another character swooping in to be the “hero.”

Vampire’s Curse

Here you’ve risked your life and entered the lair of the vampire, found a cure, and rescued Katya. Who gets the praise in the end? Katya’s sleazy boyfriend, Christopher!

Yes, you do get the medallion, but Katya barely even thanks you! Not only did he want to get away from his girlfriend, but he also took all the credit for your hard work? What do you get in return? A medallion that the vampire dropped and a weird hunter coming for your life. Great.

(Big Nate Island also ends like this, where you don’t get the credit for discovering the treasure, but you still at least get the medallion in the end…)

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

After surprisingly getting a golden ticket, the player ventures into the Willy Wonka chocolate factory, where they pass multiple tests and save the lives of the other kid contestants. You even save Charlie in the end! So who gets the key to the factory? Not you — Charlie!

Now I know this is kind of a stretch as the player doesn’t need the factory since they are an adventurer who just wants to help others out while Charlie and his family needs the money. (Also in the original story, your character obviously isn’t in it, let alone wins the factory.) This one wasn’t as bad as the other endings in this category, I think.

Super Power

I’m not even going to talk too much about this island. You do the hard work of defeating every villain in a unique and clever way, and do MOST of the work in defeating Betty Jetty. But who gets the credit and the medallion? Ned Noodlehead!

In the end, you still get the medallion, but not because the citizens of the island think you deserve it, but because you traded it for a simple hotdog. All your hard work was just as special as a plain old hotdog.

Weird Endings

And these are the endings where you have no idea what just happened…

Lunar Colony

In Lunar Colony, after finally meeting up with Salerno and almost saving her, she vanishes into another dimension. Once you come back to Earth, you see Salerno in some other planet or world, with unsettling things in the background. Sure, she made it to her dream destination, but the player is left with the concern of whether or not she will survive.

I remember seeing this, wondering what just happened, and how she even can communicate back to Earth. But at least people are now interested in space again…?

Nabooti

The ending of this island wasn’t so much concerning and unsettling, but it definitely was weird. The entire statue that you worked hard to place the sacred gems back into is… an alien? Yeah, I was super shocked by this but it was kind of cool and gave the island a unique vibe.

Other islands that could fit this section would be the subpar Back Lot Island movie at the end, and the fascinating but strange ending to the Mission Atlantis trilogy.

So that’s it for this post! Let me know what other bad endings to Poptropica islands you’d add to this list. To be fair, these bad endings aren’t actually so bad, since the islands themselves were fun and exhilarating to do.

Also, I’m considering buying a membership! Will doing the bonus quests help fill the frustration from the bonus quest ending islands? Let me know!

—Comical Carrot

Hope you enjoyed this PHB Special guest post by Comical Carrot! If you did, be sure to check out our other PHB specials!

The Poptropica Help Blog welcomes interesting Poptropica insights from anyone in the Poptropica community with thoughts to share. You can find some tips and guidelines on our page on how to Write for the PHB. We also encourage sharing blog posts on the PHC.

📰 If you have an idea for a PHB post, send it in! ✨