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!
Pop 5

5 reasons Poptropica is the best virtual world for kids

Slanted Fish

While surfing through the waves of the web, I came across an article called “Five things learned from five years of Poptropica“, which you can click to read if you’re interested. It’s written by Director D – I mean James Lema, the director of product development at Poptropica.

DubitHeader

Anyway, onto the good part! Here were 5 reasons James cited as what makes Poptropica a better kids’ virtual world than any other game:

  1. We are not building a game. Let’s create a collection of narrative driven quests.

  2. Ask for age and gender. If they want to register, ask them after they have played around for a while.

  3. 2D is faster, cheaper… and none of us know 3D.

  4. We will use pre-scripted / random chat.

  5. We are NOT Facebook for kids.

Interestingly, Poptropica started out with a staff of just two artists, one of them being Lema, and Poptropicans spend an average of 30 minutes per session on the site! If you’d like to read more, check out Lema’s Poptropica article on Dubit, which explains the 5 things more in-depth.

Want to know what we at the PHB think about Poptropica? Check out our Poptropica: Game Review article in the Cool Stuff section!

Now the question is, why do YOU think Poptropica is awesome? Let us know in the comments! 😀

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To Max Steel and moms everywhere: it could get ‘harey’

Slanted Fish

Earlier this week, PHB author Angry Wing found “Max Steel” mysteriously listed in green at the top of his item inventory. This has now disappeared, though the new “Closet” (leading to one’s costume closet) above the [also new] dashed line is still here. Subtle indeed!

max steel

Last week on Poptropica, there was a video ad on Main Streets for Max Steel, a new Disney XD TV series. Watching the video awarded viewers with a costume and super power of Max McGrath’s tech alien, Steel. Sadly, I don’t have pictures, and all I could find of this ad was a blurry YouTube video.

What could this mean? Will there be more Max Steel in Poptropica’s future, or was this just a glitch? What if we get to keep all advertisement items in the future?! That would be awesome, especially considering the Creators disabled the Poptropica Ad Transporters a while back.

UPDATE: PHB commenter Abigail informs us that “Scholastic Summer” (a book-reading challenge) now takes the top spot in the items dropdown menu. Once again, clicking on it will tell you “You don’t have any items for this campaign yet. Explore Poptropica to see what you can find!”

This could mean that we’ll only get to keep our ad items until a new ad replaces the previous one, as commenter Fruitbat7777 speculates. Perhaps they’ll release this ad soon!

Scholastic Summer

On a different note, the Creators blogged about this Dr. Hare fan art they received from Poptropican Cool Crown, complete with a Dr. Hare plush toy. Watch out… it could get “harey”!

Lastly, this Sunday (as are all other second Sundays of May) is Mother’s Day! The Creators have posted a lovely Tribute to the Moms of Poptropica on their blog (featuring the likes of CJ’s mom on Shrink Ray, Katya’s mom on Vampire’s Curse, and more).

But there’s another definition to “Poptropica moms,” and that’s all the mothers whose son or daughter is a Poptropica player! If that’s you reading this, happy Mother’s Day!

LEGO Poptropica, Wallpapers

Little Evil Genius – Dr Hare Wallpaper

Slanted Fish

Dr. Hare’s LEGO CUUSOO project has reached 6,000+ supporters, and as promised, the Creators have released a brand-new Dr. Hare drone-head, carrot-laden wallpaper for you to deck out your desktop!

The little evil genius in the pink rabbit suit welcomes you in green or blue backgrounds for multiple devices and screen sizes. If you want this green-goggled face greeting you when you look at your screen, download it for the device you want it on:

Now we’re only ~4,000 supporters away from the goal of the big ten thousand! So if you haven’t already, and you’re over 13 (or know someone old enough to represent your vote) – you know what I’m going to say next – vote for Dr. Hare’s Lair on LEGO CUUSOO to make it a reality!

PHB Specials, Pop-over

PHB Pop-over Special: Bazinga!

Slanted Fish

The Big Bang Theory in Poptropica

Welcome to another PHB Sunday Special! Here we are at the comic book store with an engineer, theoretical physicist, blonde waitress, experimental physicist, and astrophysicist – ie. the main cast of the TV sitcom The Big Bang Theory! Here’s how you can dress like one of the nerds (left to right):

  • Howard: Shirt from guy in the Queequeg’s on the left (Back Lot, Main Street), hair & pants from goth guy on Reality TV (Main Street), belt from Masks & Capes Store (Super Power)
  • Sheldon: Lightning shirt from signup, belt & pants from Masks & Capes Store (Super Power), hair from lodger guy in front of Ghost Story Island graveyard, lightsaber from Sky Hawk Warrior (Store)
  • Penny: hair, lips, & skirt from girl on Cryptids Island (Main Street, right side), bangs from girl outside Mike’s Market (Reality TV, Main Street), apron from waitress in 24 Carrot diner, shirt from girl outside Astro-Knights planetarium (idea from here)
  • Leonard: Earth Day shirt from Don’t be an Energy Hog game, hair & glasses from people in the line outside the mall (Night Watch), jacket from superstitious salt guy on Ghost Story
  • Raj: Argyle sweater from innkeeper at Hemlock Inn, jacket from tent guy (Ghost Story), hair from signup (dye it black at 24 Carrot)

Whether you’re a fan of the show or not, we’ll leave you with one final word…

Back Lot Island

Logo-motive: Back Lot Island

Slanted Fish

We’ve probably all seen the iconic clapboard for Back Lot Island (and if not, it’s in the current header and sidebar, which also lists our Back Lot Island Guide if you need it). Here’s a behind-the-scenes look at the creative process of making the island logo from the artists at Poptropica:

Pretty cool! The finished product is a mix of the first few, but personally I like the film reel design – maybe #6, but perhaps with an outline on the circles like #7, though the font on #5 is also interesting. Which ones do you guys like (or dislike)? 🙂

In other news: the LEGO CUUSOO project is getting close to 6,000 supporters (for which we’re promised a new Dr. Hare wallpaper), and the Island Creator Kit is coming on August 1, as the PHB previously reported. May the 4th be with you! ;D