Islands – Page 29 – 🏝 Poptropica Help Blog 🗺

Welcome to a new PHB series called Ramble Reviews! This will be a collection of thoughts and opinions from rambling Poptropicans from our PHC Discord community taking a look back at past islands. We hope these posts (and more are coming!) can be a space for fellow fans to read and discuss.

Please welcome the first writer for the series, Purple Paw.

I’ll start by saying, Twisted Thicket is one of the most important islands Poptropica has ever made. It’s not often you see environmentalism portrayed in a kid’s’ game, especially not in this setting, where the message is clear, and yet it is incredibly fun and enjoyable all the same, without being too harsh. I knew right from the start I had to talk about it!

Twisted Thicket is one of the shorter islands, although most times, it’ll take one longer to complete, due to all of the slightly more challenging puzzles hidden within. Your task appears simple at first: rid the forest of the horrible creatures that are terrorizing the town, and help Burt Diamond and his Lumberjerks destroy the magical terrain and build his casino. But the story of the forest goes deeper than that!

The first time I played this, I hoped very much that the island would not end with the forest being bulldozed and the magic destroyed. And as soon as I reached the Sacred Tree Hollow, I saw how kind and innocent these animals actually were, and that they had only acted hostile in defense of their home. What a twist, right?

Twisted Thicket is simply enchanting in every way possible, from the glowing blue mushrooms to the lit-up flowers to the tangled clusters of dark green leaves. And yes, the Tree Hollow is one of my absolute favorite places in all of Poptropica. The Creators aced the setting, characters, and plot, and I will never tire of replaying this island.

The story highlights the misunderstanding between nature and human settlements, and shines an entirely new light on how to fix it. But that certainly doesn’t mean it’s a solemn island; there’s the perfect amount of tension, action, beauty, and storytelling to keep you engaged and having fun the entire time.

This island is a perfect example of the Creators’ old heart and caring, an island that showed they cared about making a true story, and sending a real message (unlike the nonsensical fetch quests we’ve been seeing more recently…).

Because of this, Twisted Thicket has got true potential, a meaningful plot line, and is a real gem on the map. I don’t believe the Creators would let something like this go so easily, and if they’ve got half the heart they used to, they’d be working as hard to preserve the Twisted Thicket like we did all those years ago when we first played.

Hope you enjoyed this guest post by Purple Paw. If you did, be sure to check out the PHB’s own quickie review of Twisted Thicket by Lucky Joker! Stay tuned for more Ramble Reviews from Purple Paw, Incredible Fire, Magic Flipper, MaryannTheConqueror… and maybe more! And of course, join in on the rambling fun on the PHC Discord.

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, and share blog posts on the PHC.

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

Astro-Knights Island, Bonus Items, Fan Art Features, Social Media

Launch thyself by birthday rocket 🚀

September 16, 2020June 6, 2021 Slanted Fish

Hey Poptropicans! Poptropica’s birthday month festivities continue to make a bang with the new 13th Birthday Flying Rocket, which gets added to your items when you log in to the Flash version of the game. (Update: It’s now on Haxe, too!)

The rocket works much like the magic carpet, gliding you through the air with pops of “13” fireworks trailing behind (in fact, you may also notice the magic carpet’s glittery gold dust accompanying your rocket). We’re not sure if the Creators will add this flying vessel to Haxe, but pro tip: you can use idk’s Format Loader to switch between Flash and Haxe.

And that’s not all that’s new in the soon-to-be-obsolete Flash version of Poptropica! In case you missed it, we’ve been visited by none other than the great Dr. Beev himself, and he’s still hanging around! Catch up on the Beev Day festivities in our recap post.

Update: As of Thursday, Dr. Beev has left the ~~chat~~ game. 😢 We’ll miss you, Beev!

Joining the chorus of rockets is Poptropica music composer Jeff Heim, who recently dropped a new unreleased game track on Soundcloud called “Astro-Knights.” (Thanks for the tip, MaryannTheConqueror!) Does this mean the return of the fan favorite Astro-Knights Island?! At once majestic and soothing, this track is a definite mood. Hear it here!

Mr. Heim’s “Poptropica” playlist on Soundcloud includes over 50 soundtracks composed for Poptropica, so it’s a real treat to listen to! Other hits on the playlist include “Super Power” (which is heard on Poptropolis Games, although who knows if it’ll show up in a remake of Super Power Island?), and more recently for the times we’re in, “Virus Hunter Main Theme” and “Deadly Virus.” Which jam’s your fave?

Last but not least, check out this cool 3D rendered model of Survival Island icon Myron Van Buren created by @kidwhom on Instagram, which the Poptropica Creators featured in their story!

Not to be confused with another one of her creations, the Myron Van…

For more strangely delightful Poptropica memes, fan art, and more, join our PHC Discord community! Tally HONK!!

~🐠

24 Carrot Island, Bonus Items, PHB Parties

Our guest of honor: Dr. Beev! 🐿

September 15, 2020 Slanted Fish

Happy Beev Day, Poptropicans! Look who showed up as our guest of honor on 24 Carrot Island (Flash only, not Haxe)…

Standing right in front of the cinema common room, where a PHC party celebrating the minor Mocktropica icon was planned for today, it’s Dr. Beev himself! Click on him and he’ll tell you a beaver pun.

You’ll also get a free Beaver Follower! This chonky boi (who goes up to your shoulders!) can go with you most places, but not common rooms.

Another thing: You can Costumize every part of Dr. Beev’s costume, from the cute pink goggles down to the big swishy tail. Enjoy!

All this Beev fan service from the Poptropica Creators sure is a pleasant surprise! Now that’s a Mocktropica-flavored update we don’t mind. 🙂

If you’re reading this on Tuesday, September 15, it’s still Beev Day! Come join the party on the PHC with hanging out in common rooms, racing through Mocktropica Island, and going wild on the voice chat (possibly with derailed conversations about the Myron Van and El Pistachio—sorry Beev). Or watch it on TheOrangeHe’s Twitch livestream!

Let’s take another moment to appreciate how the Creators actually put the Great Dr. Beev into the game. Pretty surreal, especially for the Beev’s small but growing cult following! Happy Beev Day, Poptropicans! 🐿

Bonus Items, Member Gifts, Membership, Paradise Island, Time Tangled Island

The fashionably late Quippy ♘

September 5, 2020January 9, 2021 Slanted Fish

Hey Poptropicans! Some follow-up updates have occurred since our earlier post this week on member gifts, Time Tangled on Haxe, and more. And we’re back with another little scavenger hunt on Paradise Island! Let’s pop in.

Members have an extra member gift waiting for them in their inventory: a Denim Jacket. Here’s me modelling it in the Party Time Tower on the Haxe version of Time Tangled Island, where lo and behold, Quippy has arrived in an Aztec mask!

Check out the wares in this common room store to represent the ages: you can dress like Pharaoh (King of Egypt), the Queen of Egypt, a Templar Knight*, and Joan of Arc*. By the way, that Templar Knight costume is currently available to all in the latest store update, despite being for members only here.

Coming up from where we last left off on Paradise Island, the next part isn’t too exciting. It’s a sunny day for “free time on the beach,” but you do get one task: collect 5 sand dollars. They’re gray circles on the shore so small it’s easy to miss them, but don’t forget to jump into the water to reach the one near the kayak.

A message on your smartphone does hint at a talent show on the horizon, with a new mini-game on the way. Stay tuned (and in tune) for that!

That’s it for this post, but don’t miss out on all the fun things happening lately in the Poptropica community! From Poptropica Month to a revisit to Mystery Train Island, there’s plenty to read and see in the posts below.

And of course, you can always join the PHC Discord to connect with more Poptropicans. The place has gotten more active lately, so why not join the fun? 😄

~Slanted Fish 🐠

Mystery Train Island, Pop Places IRL

Pop Places IRL: Mystery Train 🚂

September 3, 2020August 27, 2020 Spotted Dragon

Welcome back to “Pop Places IRL,” Poptropicans, and all aboard! For this post, let’s chug on over to Mystery Train Island, shall we? And if you’re liking the series, be sure to check out other Pop Places IRL posts.

Though we spend most of this island on—can you guess?—a train, we do still visit some very important stops along our adventure. And, truth be told, Mystery Train is certainly one of the more historically founded islands! From the train, to the cities, and even to the passengers, Mystery Train features very real people, places, and things (however we’ll focus more on locations today, not figures). So… full steam ahead!

On Main Street, before we even board the train and begin the mystery, we find ourselves in none other than Washington, DC. We can see the US Capitol Building in the background, but we aren’t staying for long!

But beyond the very real cities, even the train itself is historically accurate! The John Bull locomotive, which is named on our ticket, is the main location of our adventure but is also an IRL train that journeyed to the IRL Columbian Exposition in 1893. Yes sir, all the way from DC to Chicago!

Our next stop is Chicago, but before we pull into the station, let’s take a very quick look at our train’s interior first. The train in Poptropica had large individual rooms for its passengers, which is quite fancy if you ask me. But hey, traveling back in the day seemed to be quite the luxurious feat! Can you believe those big cushy seats?

Alright, now let’s pull into the great city of Chicago, Illinois. The station has obviously grown and changed a lot since 1893, hasn’t it? Well, we can’t stay long anyhow! Mademoiselle Moreau is getting away!

All Is Fair: Let’s skip all the exposition, shall we?

It’s time to chase Moreau into the Chicago World’s Fair. Though one can’t help but stop and stare at that huge Ferris Wheel!

Stealers Wheel: One thing this wheel needs is an effective “spokes”-person.

And with that, it looks like we’ve finally reached the end of the line. It was quite an adventure! Considering Mystery Train is one of Poptropica’s more historically founded islands, just how well do you think it holds up to its IRL counterparts? Did it seem on track, or was it a full on train wreck? What other islands do you want us to compare in this series? Comment your thoughts below!

Until next time, Poptropicans! Safe travels!

~SD