Category: Home Island

Haxe Javascript, Home Island, Store

Customization in the age of Haxe (or lack thereof)

Slanted Fish

Hey Poptropicans, you need look no further for the news—and this time, it’s all about the looks. Let’s pop in.

First, new store items are here! Poptropica actually missed last week, which is the first time that’s happened since they made the store rotations weekly.

The non-costume categories haven’t changed since the last rotation, so only the store’s costumes are pictured above. This week’s items are:

  • Costumes: Lumberjerk (male and female), Boho Chic*, Furry Monster 4 (two different versions)*, Magician (male and female)*, Friendly Face Masks, Mud Pie, Rockstar, Mech Pilot*, Clown, Pig#, Bottle Cap#, Ringmaster*, Cool Boy Plush#, Shark Plush*, Milk Box#
  • Followers: Deer, Dryad, Dolphin*, Mini Astroknight*
  • Powers: Hypno-Powder, (Cinnamon Fire) PopGum, Raven Swarm*, Fireworks*
  • Pranks: Hypno-Powder, Octo Prank, Silly Streams
  • Misc: (Cinnamon Fire) PopGum, Coconut Drink#, Cool Boy Plush#, Shark Plush*, Colorizer*

As is the norm these days, about half of the store stock is for members only. Still, both non-members and members have the chance to snag some great deals with several items at 75 credits (marked with #): the Pig, Bottle Cap, and Milk Box costumes, plus the Cool Boy Plush and Coconut Drink.

Interesting detail: the handheld plushie of the Shark Tooth Island character previously known as Shark Boy before his erasure is not called “Shark Guy” as he later came to be known, but now, the item is simply “Shark Plush” despite not being a shark but rather a dude in a shark suit. 🦈

If you’re playing in Haxe, you may also notice that a couple of NPCs have gotten makeovers! The person in front of the store is now a golden-haired girl, and the lady by the New You building has gotten a glow-up.

(You can see what they used to look like in our post about summer coming to Home Island on Haxe.)

That’s not all that’s new in looks. If you head over to the home page to create a new character with one of the default picks, you’ll be taken to a screen where you can further customize your character before diving into the game.

We’ve seen this orange customization screen before, back before “pick a character” became a thing. And new players can still access it by speaking to Amelia, the girl on the Home Island bridge. But it’s interesting to now have it show up right after picking a default character design, when it seemed the whole point of that was to skip the step of customization from the beginning.

However, when the “pick a character” update first rolled out, players had commented on how it took away from the fun of carefully crafting one’s character right from the get-go. For them, this reversion may be a welcome update. But having both a simplified selection screen and a customization screen seems odd—what about the new player who carefully selects a default character only to realize it could’ve been altered all along? Will this inclusion of both features be temporary?

Speaking of customization, there’s been a startling development: the beloved Costumizer tool—the green shirt button which allows you to “steal” clothing parts from other characters—has disappeared from most areas in Haxe. Will it return, or are the Creators sabotaging the fun in yet another way? We can only hope this is temporary, but it’s hard to tell…

  • No more Costumizer in Haxe!
  • Except in common rooms like the arcade…
  • …and on PoptropiCon Island, where it’s essential.

That’s all for this post. Be sure to check out our previous posts to catch up on other Poptropica news, and see you at the Poppies this weekend! 🏆

~slantedfish 🐠

Clubhouse, Home Island, Store

Summer on Haxe and Avatar Studio hijacks

Gentle Dolphin

Hey, Poptropicans! Today, we’re going to talk about a store rearrangement, a Home Island makeover, and the Avatar Studio. Why am I getting a strange case of déjà vu? Anyway, let’s get started with this week’s store lineup!

This week, players can purchase trendy summer fashion and classic costumes. Although the Orange Julius is members-only, the other outfits are available to all players. These items are: Rainbow Storm, Rebel Beach, Spiff Boy, Soccer Player (boys and girls), Mythology Surfer (boys and girls), Pop Star, and Rock Star.

Over the past few weeks, the four items in the Powers section took turns being on sale one week at a time. First was the Bobblehead Power, then the Atom Power, and now players save big with the Binary Rain Power. Maybe the Flower Planting Power will be on sale next week? We’ll see.

Also, some of the sections rearranged the order of their cards, and the Ice Blaster Pistol disappearing from the Pranks section.

Remember Home Island getting a summer makeover on Flash? The Haxe version of Home Island followed suit and welcomed summer in its own unique way. Bushels of apples can be found in the trees and on the ground. If you need a cool refreshing treat, head over to the ice cream stand next to the Blast-Off Arcade to get a free soft serve cone. Sweet! 😋

Need a place to get away from the heat? Players can now access their clubhouses in the Haxe Javascript build of Poptropica! However, there isn’t (yet?) a physical building for it on Home Island like there is in Flash.

Instead, you’ll need to click the clubhouse icon in the menu to be transported to your virtual home away from home.

haxe clubhouse iconYou’re going to need some furniture to decorate your humble abode. Click the store button on the bottom left of the screen, and you’ll be transported to the clubhouse store. So far, 23 furniture items are available in the Haxe clubhouse store, with five being members-only.


Check out the decorator in action. Yup, just like in Flash!

Also like the Flash version, there’s a “switch room” lever you can pull to change the interiors. And in Haxe, in addition to the three interiors we know from the Flash version, there’s a fourth whimsical world: a mushroom forest!

Pretty magical, huh? It’s too bad it’s members only… just like in Flash, non-members only get the first clubhouse interior, which is the treehouse.

Another little cosmetic change in Haxe: the save screen where you create a Poptropica account has gotten a makeover! Now it features some kind of futuristic warrior in a robot suit and a girl waving from the sides.

Ah, the Avatar Studio. A simple application in which players can look up and share their avatars with others online. Former PHB author Purple Claw gave us a tip that something was amiss with the system. Players can still search for their avatars as normal. However, when you view the link to your avatar, you are suddenly greeted by this handsome fellow:

AvatarStudioVlad

Every Avatar Studio link now directs you to former Pop Creator Vlad the Viking’s avatar, regardless of the username you typed in. It’s a strange glitch, to be sure. Let’s hope this gets fixed soon.

That’s all for now. What do you think of this week’s store lineup? What items do you want to see return in the future? Thoughts on the other updates?

Thank you for reading, and have a good day!

—Gentle Dolphin 🐬

Home Island, LEGO Poptropica, Store

Batter up! Summer’s here with paper cheer

Gentle Dolphin

Hey, everyone, Gentle Dolphin here with a fresh batch of updates! Let’s take a look at what’s in store for Poptropica this week.

We have a new array of old costumes available to everyone! This week, we have: Baseball Fielder (boys and girls), Baseball Batter (boys and girls), Shady Pockets, Cool Green, Spring Fling, and Cheesy Slice.

Looks like the Bobblehead sale didn’t last long. The Bobblehead power went back to being a members-only item that costs 350 credits. On a lighter note, the Atom Power now costs an affordable 75 credits, so you can save money and show off your radiant looks (or is that just radiation?). 🤨

The Miscellaneous section still features the Cinnamon Fire PopGum and Balloons, but the Flash version of Poptropica added a printable Arabian Nights poster and the Avatar Studio. Interesting, they added the Avatar Studio though it won’t be functional after the Flash shutdown later this year. Are the Creators working on a way to port it to a new platform like Haxe Javascript? Only time will tell.

While the Haxe version of Home Island seems to be stuck in a perpetual autumn, the Flash version finally welcomed summer after a six-month long winter. The trees regrew their lush green leaves, barnacles made their homes on the rocks, and there seems to be a rise in seagull droppings. 🤢

On the platform where ads are typically present, you can see a billboard promoting the newest sponsor island— American Girl: Joss’s Island. Check out our post on Joss’s Island if you want a quick tour of this interesting little AD-venture.

HomeIsland_Summer2020_7

Looking at Home Island makes us long for the great outdoors. While we can’t leave home yet because of quarantine, the Creators have been giving us fun boredom busters to pass the time. They gave us coloring pages and word searches, and now they’re inviting us to get crafty with these Dr. Hare and Rabbot paper crafts!

These templates were originally released as rewards for the Dr. Hare’s Lair LEGO CUUSOO project, which was a pitch for a potential Poptropica LEGO set. Although the toy never came to be, we can still have fun and build with paper! All you have to do is print the templates then cut, fold, and paste as needed to build your own mini Dr. Hare and Rabbot!

That’s all for now, folks! What do you think of Home Island’s summer update? Will you take a crack at crafting a miniature mad scientist? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Thank you for reading, and have a good day!

—Gentle Dolphin 🐬

Advertisements, Photo Booth, Social Media

Going on tour with the dogs! Where’s my camera?

Gentle Dolphin

Hi, everyone! We hope you’re all staying safe during this pandemic. With many businesses being affected, Poptropica could be taking a hit as well. Still, the Creators managed to give us some minor yet meaningful updates.

There is a new ad campaign for the upcoming Dreamworks movie Trolls World Tour. Many concert stadiums have popped up on various islands, so you can rock out no matter which island you’re on.

TrollsWT_island

When you’re ready, go inside and talk to Poppy. She will ask for your help to stop the rock trolls, and you agree to lend your epic guitar skills. This mini-game is like Guitar Hero, and the objective is to click the jewels when they reach the bottom. Keep doing this to fill the gauge on the bottom left.

TrollsWT_game2

Though it would be cool if you won an electric guitar, you still get two prizes that are pretty interesting. The first prize is the Tiny Diamond Follower, which gives you the power to splash gold glitter onto the screen.

The second prize is the Rainbow Glitter Barf power (yup). Equipping this power gives you sweet troll hair*! (*Side effects include headaches, nausea, and vomitting sparkly rainbows.)

This colorful prize is so unique that Poptropica promoted it across social media. They even posted a video about it to the official Poptropica Youtube channel, making this their first Youtube video since the Greek Sea Odyssey walkthrough from February 26, 2018!

This Trolls campaign doesn’t stop with concerts and sparkles. You can express your love of music by decorating your clubhouse with four posters for Trolls World Tour! Open your furniture inventory to put up those posters.

Two weeks ago, we celebrated the long-awaited return of the Photo Booth. However, some players told us that they couldn’t see it. When I logged in to check, sure enough, the Photo Booth was nowhere to be seen on Home Island!

missingphotobooth

This is strange. Why would the Photo Booth disappear as soon as it came? Did they need to remove a nasty glitch? Maybe they wanted to add more content to the sticker menu? What do you guys think? Let us know in the comments.

On a lighter note, the Poptropica Creators made a post on Instagram on March 23 for National Puppy Day. This may not seem like much, but this is their first social media post since last February. Maybe this is a sign that things are returning to normal at Pop HQ? Or perhaps the post was scheduled ahead of time? It would nice to hear an official statement from them regarding recent events, but in the meantime, we hope they’re well.

How are you guys faring during this pandemic? If you haven’t already, check out our previous post about how you can enjoy Poptropica during the quarantine. Maybe you can watch Trolls World Tour on April 10? I hear the movie will have an early digital release for fellow social distancers.

Thank you for reading, and have a good day!

—Gentle Dolphin🐬

Advertisements, Member Gifts, Membership, Photo Booth

Big hair, big waves, and big comebacks

Gentle Dolphin

Hi, everyone! This is Gentle Dolphin here with the latest Pop news. Let’s start off with something pretty big from earlier this month: March member gifts.

This month, members will get to rock that “Big Hair, Don’t Care” attitude with three humongous hairstyles: Big Afro, Big Dreadlocks, and Big Ponytail. Speaking of big, we want to give a big thank you to Shiny Bird for these pics.

If you are an active member, these colossal coiffures will be added to your inventory upon logging in to Poptropica this month. Act fast and snatch these weaves before they disappear for good!

Moving along, we have a new ad starring 2020’s American Girl of the Year: Joss Kendrick. It’s a basic billboard ad showing Joss and her dog Murph surfing across the ocean waves, which will make many northern players long for the arrival of summer.

joss_billboard

All you need to do is watch a short video to win two prizes: Joss’s Cheer Outfit and the Murph Follower. I could make a witty American Girl joke here, but I’m pretty sure you guys know more about American Girl dolls that I do. 😜

Next time you visit Home Island, make sure to walk past the Pet Barn. You will discover that, after being gone for almost six months, the Photo Booth is back in business! If you’re feeling especially photogenic, step inside and get ready to take some amazing photographs.

photoboothreturn

Inside, you will find that nothing has changed since the Photo Booth last appeared. You still have the classic backgrounds and characters, as well as plentiful props and effects. Even though the options aren’t new, that shouldn’t stop you from getting creative! Have fun making all kinds of silly scenarios and epic battles!

When you are done with your photo, click the green check mark button to save it to the Photo Board on your player profile. Unfortunately, your picture will not be saved to your device like before. The best you can do for now is take a screenshot on your phone or computer.

That’s all for now. Feel free to comment below what your favorite hairstyle is, or what you plan on creating in the Photo Booth—or even share your creations! Or at least some American Girl facts, perhaps?

Thank you for reading, and have a good day!

—Gentle Dolphin🐬