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!
Advertisements, Galactic Hot Dogs Island, Merchandise, PHB Sneak Peeks, Shark Boy Mystery

Home, Cosmoe, Shark Boy, Thinknoodles, & more of Nate’s pics!

Slanted Fish

Hey Poptropicans! Survival Ep. 5 released to members this past Thursday (and to the disappointment and outrage of non-members everywhere, PoptropiCon Ep. 1 has not come out for all) — but epic as MVB’s defeat may be, interesting developments in Poptropica don’t stop there! Read on for more! 😀

Home: medallion & sneak peeks

Some Poptropicans have noticed that, in their medallion collections, a new blank medallion has been inserted between those of Survival: Episode 1 and Mythology. If you hover over it, it says “Home not yet completed.” But what exactly is ‘Home‘?

home blank medallion

Well, a few recent Daily Pop sneak peeks might give us a hint — and from the looks of it, it’s a “hub” area that involves character customization!

Over on Poptrickia, Nice Hawk has uncovered that this “Home” world will be for Poptropica’s mobile app (currently available on iOS), and you can see the design still follows the “sky island” theme of the app’s “tutorial” island. Here are some sneak peeks, courtesy of Poptrickia:

In the first scene with the blimp, the blue box is for the logo of the island you last traveled to, and from here, you can enter the two customization buildings: the Bundles Shop and New You.

The Bundles Shop sells gold card costumes and items from the Store, but whether this will cost real money on the app remains to be seen. New You contains a barbershop with a Colorizer, where presumably you can change your hairstyle and colors. There are also three pedestals — perhaps a costume closet of sorts? We’ll have to wait and see!

Cosmoe on Main Street

Remember Cosmoe from the Funbrain graphic novel Galactic Hot Dogs? (By the way, GHD is publishing its first book in May 2015!) Anyway, Cosmoe has appeared a few times on Poptropica before, but now he’s here on Main Streets of islands like Mythology! If you click on him, you can chat with, Costumize (works for boys only), or friend him. (The Princess Dagger prize pack has also returned in places like 24 Carrot!)

If you chat, you can ask him a few pre-scripted questions: who are you? (Cosmoe) what’s in your hand? (my Goober Sword) and why are you standing here? (I’m waiting for Princess Dagger)

cosmoe on main street

Earlier, we found that Cosmoe’s username was npc:cosmoe, but this doesn’t seem to be the case anymore. If you add npc:cosmoe now, you’ll find a random character wearing a birthday cake (was the account hijacked? however, it still shows as Cosmoe on the Avatar Studio).

New PHB page: Mystery of Shark Boy

Remember the PHB posts about the disappearance of Shark Boy? Well, now all the data we’ve collected regarding this strange case has been compiled into a new page, so you can get the whole story all in one place! Click here to check out our new article, also found under the “Cool Stuff” tab!

shark boy mystery

Poptropica vs. Thinknoodles

Recently, Poptropica has decided to create their own video walkthroughs narrated by Captain Crawfish — but what’s interesting is that, despite advertising on the Creators’ Blog and even the Poptropica homepage itself, the “official” walkthroughs are still not as popular as those of Poptropica player Thinknoodles, who also narrates his guides, but has videos for every island on his YouTube channel. Check out the view counts of both their PoptropiCon Ep. 1 walkthroughs — the numbers don’t lie!

think vs crawfish

The Creators only have video guides for PoptropiCon Ep. 1 and Survival Ep. 5 so far, and for both, it looks like Think is still in the lead, despite both being released on the same day! Noodle on, I say! 😛 (Also, doesn’t anyone else wonder why Crawfishy doesn’t use his own peg-legged avatar in his videos?)

By the way, we here at the PHB have some video walkthroughs too, which you can check out on our Poptropica Help Videos channel or HPuterpop’s channel. 🙂

More Poptropica pics from Nate Greenwall

You may remember when the PHB posted some highlights from Nate Greenwall’s Poptropica portfolio earlier, but over on his Facebook profile (that is his personal account, so be respectful if you choose to contact him!) are a few interesting glimpses into life at Poptropica HQ! (Click to enlarge pics.)

The white board we have at work hasn’t been erased for about 7 years.
Practicing my Hadoken skills.
Lunch with some of my fellow Poptropica co-workers.
Some of our Poptropica merchandise hanging around our office. Now we just need to build a ball pit and fill it with plush toys.

Isn’t that little doodle of Binary Bard cute? And that’s a lot of Poptropica toys – I don’t think some of it has even been released before, like those badges in the corner or the big print of the pink rocker girl! 😮

On a similar note, some other Poptropica Creators are on Facebook too: to name a few, Justin Lacy has Hazmat Hermit as his profile picture (and complains of having his corner of Poptropica’s office replaced with plush toys), and Jon Pitcher‘s icon is, of course, the “Jon” pitcher from Survival Ep. 4. Clever. 😉

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That’s all for now — hope you enjoyed this post! Keep on poppin’ on, Poptropicans. :mrgreen:

Arabian Nights Island, PHB Sneak Peeks

BTS Overview & Theory: Arabian Nights, Ep. 1

Slanted Fish

Arab1 BTS

I can show you the world… — “I DON’T WANT TO SEE IT!” Oh, but you’ll want to see this!

Hey Poptropicans! So last week’s buzz was about the release of PoptropiCon Ep. 1 for members, and Mission Atlantis Ep. 3 for everyone — but looking ahead, let’s see what we can find out about the upcoming Arabian Nights Island — in particular, the first episode: “How Bazaar”!

WARNING: SPOILERS BELOW (but that’s what you want, isn’t it?)

:: overview ::

About a month ago, the PHB posted sneak peeks of some backgrounds of places we’d be visiting on the island, which had some rough notes on them. These have since been updated with backdrops, foregrounds, and the like. (Special thanks to Poptrickia for putting these together into corresponding images and allowing them to be used in this post!) First, here’s a look at the Cliff area (click to enlarge):

To the right of the cliff image with the notes, it says “to cave” — that’s because we’ll be venturing into one! Here you can see the updated Cave scene (where the bag of salt lies in a lower corner):

(The corner with the crystals also looks like a Daily Pop sneak peek that we originally thought might mean the return of Legendary Swords. Looks like that theory’s out, sadly! 😛 )

Anyway, at some point (perhaps the beginning), you’ll speak to the Sultan, who resides in a beautiful palace (with its lovely exterior illustrated by Nate Greenwall):

arabian nights palace

It’s not so pretty on the inside though — that’s because, as per the episode’s plot, it’s been ransacked by the Forty Thieves! The palace is in disarray, but more importantly, the sultan’s precious lamp has gone missing… and as those who are familiar with Arabian legend know, that lamp is supposed to contain a genie that has now disappeared!

palace interior

Among Poptrickia’s uncoverings was this snippet of conversation you have with the Sultan:

sultan
image of the Sultan from Nate Greenwall’s portfolio site

You: What happened here?
Sultan: The forty thieves happened! They ransacked my palace and left me with nothing.

You: You mean, you’re broke?
Sultan: Money can be replaced, but the thieves took one precious thing from me: a lamp that is like no other. Find it, and I will grant you a fabulous reward.

You: How can I find the lamp?
Sultan: I don’t know. But perhaps you can start your quest with this. It is my last jewel. Trade it wisely.

So, remember Blake’s post showing the items you’d obtain in Arabian Nights? You’ll be trading some of these in the Bazaar (a Middle Eastern market), and based on the above, it looks like you’ll be starting off with the Sultan’s crown jewel.

bazaar

Inside these pretty patterned stalls, you’ll get to trade/barter with the store owners, which may or may not involve the items pictured below, placed in the various stall scenes:

And we can’t forget the Daily Pop sneak peeks! These can give some insights to the island as well, like the fact that the oasis may just be a mirage, that the palace is heavily guarded, and that the telescope item can be found atop a palace minaret. The Creators even referenced CliffsNotes! Oh my.

By the way, for more Poptropica behind-the-scenes, particularly files and music, check out the PHB’s Behind the Scenes page, which includes part of the soundtrack for Arabian Nights Island and more!

:: theory ::

Looking back to the original island pitch from Sarah S., the winner of Poptropica’s Create Your Dream Island Contest and brainchild of Arabian Nights Island, here’s what we know:

On Arabian Nights Island, Poptropicans go on a quest across the desert to rescue a sultan’s genie from the Forty Thieves.

Now, onto the theories! From what’s been gathered here, it looks like the Sultan’s palace has been ransacked by the infamous Forty Thieves, and his most precious belonging — a lamp containing a (wish-granting?) genie — is now missing. Once you get past all the palace guards and manage to talk to the Sultan, he asks you to help him retrieve it. He gives you his last jewel to trade in the bazaar, in the hopes that you’ll eventually win his lamp back. Along the adventure, you’ll venture into a cliff, cave, and desert to look for various items requested by the barterers at the bazaar.

How bizarre, indeed.

Magazines

POPCORN, the PHB magazine: issue #19 out now!

Slanted Fish

issue19 out

Hey Poptropicans! Issue #19 of the PHB magazine, known as The POPCORN, has just been released, with all sorts of Poptropica fan creations, including a gripping tale about baker Jane from Ghost Story Island, a collection of Dr. Who costumes designed by Cool Smarticle, several Poptropicans doing the ice bucket challenge, and more!

check out issue #19 of our Poptropica magazine now!

…clicked it yet? If not, you’re missing out on a piece of the PHB legend. 😀

For more information about The POPCORN, check out our Magazines page to find out what kind of entries we’re looking for and how you can submit something in for publication!

The deadline for emailing entries to phbpopcorn(at)gmail(dot)com is October 5th if you’d like to be a part of our next (and potentially last) magazine!

Hope you enjoy our pop-pop-Poptropica Help Blog fan magazine!

PHB Sneak Peeks, Poptropica Portfolio

Poptropica Portfolio: Nate Greenwall

Slanted Fish

Shark Boy may have been alienated from Poptropica, but his alter ego (otherwise known as Nate Greenwall, Poptropica’s lead graphic artist) is still out and about, churning out some really cool (and even unreleased) Poptropica imagery. They’re available for viewing on his portfolio website (scroll down for more info!). Here’s a look at some graphics of interest (as usual, click to enlarge):

Wow, did you catch all that?! Anyway, Nate has several pages on his portfolio site dedicated to various works he’s created for Poptropica (not all of which are posted above, but some may be familiar). If you’re interested, you can browse through them by clicking the links below:

  • Advertisements – designs for Poptropica ad buildings & characters
  • Dr. Hare’s Lair – LEGO Cuusoo – includes unreleased designs for a Dr. Hare minifigure
  • Papercrafts – from the LEGO Cuusoo campaign
  • Character design & animation – various Poptropica character designs (if you look closely, you’ll see the Sultan to be encountered on Arabian Nights Island!)
  • Posters & wallpapers – a selection of Poptropica wallpapers/posters
  • In-game illustrations – some full views of areas in the game, including the area by the sea in Ghost Story and even a palace for the upcoming Arabian Nights Island
  • Merchandise – among various things, the most noteworthy of all are the iTunes music CD covers and kids’ tattoos/face paint designs, both of which it looks like Poptropica is planning on releasing one day! (you can listen to Poptropica’s music at the PHB’s Behind the Scenes page too)
  • Logos, web, mobile design – graphics relating to Poptropica’s user interface (UI), including an array of buttons and icons, some of which have never been released

There’s a lot of creative work that goes into making Poptropica what it is and what it will be, and the artistic geniuses at Poptropica give us beautiful results. Enjoy the Nate Greenwall collection! 🙂

Daily Pop Sneak Peeks, Labs (Land), PoptropiCon Island, Shark Boy Mystery, Social Media, Super Villain Island

More Land creations & PoptropiCon peeks

Slanted Fish

Hey Poptropicans — friendly reminder that the PHB’s Land Construction Contest ends this Friday, Sept 5th, so if you haven’t sent in your greatest Land creation to us yet, get building and click here for the post with instructions on how to enter! Or, if you’ve made something that caught the Creators’ eyes like Magic Fire‘s self sculpture (she’s a PHB reader too – hi MF!) and Young Fish‘s panoramic port city have, you might even be featured on the Creators’ Blog! (click to view full images)

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Have you ever wondered why Poptropica tends to release islands on Thursdays? While this doesn’t explain why Thursday exactly (Friday in some time zones), they did recently address the question (brought up by Poptrickia) via their official Twitter:

weekends off

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PoptropiCon (guide here) had its first episode debut just last week for members, but if you’re wondering what’s up next, a good place to look are the Daily Pop sneak peeks. Let’s take a look at what we’ll be seeing inside the convention center (click to enlarge images):

Collect Em All: Keep them in the original packaging and they may be worth dozens someday.
Victory: It’s in the cards.
Hall Pass: Low-pill carpet for a high-traffic area.
The Help: With an attitude like that, you’ll go far.
Look Closer: It’s what’s under the cap that matters.
Silver Age: This archer gets right to the point.
Marvelous: A real stand-up comic booth.
History Lesson: Golden age, silver age, outrage… we’ve got it all.
Brony: Don’t say no, here we go, off across the plain.
You Hall: The swag bag is loaded, but where’s the exit?
Off-Screen: But we’re monitoring the situation.

Among all the random tidbits, it looks like there’ll be a booth for a comic hero called Elf Archer — created by some guy called “Stan Ditko”: a reference to Marvel Comics co-creators Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. Plus, there’s even a Balloon Boy collectible that can be seen on a table!

And not far from the My Little Pony mimicry (“Pony Bros”… even the Daily Pop’s caption is “Brony”), there’s a poster for “Lava Twins” — it may be a long shot, but could this be a reference to a film called The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl? Yes, you read that right, “Shark Boy”: like the beloved Poptropica character who no longer is. (You can read all about the Shark Boy Mystery here!)

sharkmuseum

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Although it’s been about two years and ten islands since Super Villain Island, Brave Tomato recently uncovered this little snippet of Poptropica Creator Jeff Kinney working on it on a computer. It may not look like much, but it’s a pretty neat find nonetheless:

jeff working on svi

This came from a “making of” bonus feature on the Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days DVD, where they talked briefly about Jeff and Poptropica. (Jeff is also the author of the Wimpy Kid series.) Speaking of Jeff Kinney, I wonder if/when we’ll get to see his ice bucket challenge? 😉

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In other news, issue 19 of the PHB magazine, The POPCORN, releases this Sunday, Sept 7th, so be sure to have your creative entries sent in to phbpopcorn(at)gmail(dot)com before then! That’s all for now (or TAFN, as HP the hip one likes to say)! Keep on poppin’ on, Poptropicans. 🙂