Lucky Joker here, sharing straight from the Creators’ Blog, some behind-the-scenes animations from Wimpy Wonderland Island, one of December’s Islands of the Month! Poptropica has released a few awesome designs and animations from when the island was in development – pretty cool, right?
Check out these notes on Manny’s design! (click here to view the notes up-close!)
Pretty interesting I must say, but definitely not as cool as these gems! Check out these animations for Manny, Rowley, Greg and Rodrick! (For best quality, see the post on the Creators’ Blog.)
It’s very eye-opening and intriguing to see all that is taken into consideration while making a Poptropica Island! What do you think about these behind the scenes animations?
Remember, Wimpy Wonderland is an Island of the Month, so first-time finishers will receive 500 credits upon completion and repeat-finishers will receive 300!
The usual members-only island is also available to everyone until January 2, 2017 (the same day the #MyPoptropicaCostume contest ends), so build up those credits before it’s too late!
Thanks for reading and have a Happy New Year, Poptropicans! If you haven’t already, be sure to check out our 2016 Rewind post below! May 2017 be popping! 🎉
Hi, everyone! Slip here, and it’s time for the PHB’s 2016 Rewind!
The year is coming to an end, and it’s our tradition to reflect and recap the year’s big Poptropica events! Time flies really fast, and a lot has happened. As we walk down memory lane, let’s see how much of these things you still remember!
We’ll be going month by month, and at the end, there are tributes for all the PHB authors who have left us this year. Let’s flip the yearbook, shall we?
2016 marked new things and new projects for the PHB. It began with HPuterpop announcing a new project called Orb Legend, a fan-game inspired by Poptropica. While its production is currently halted, you can browse the OL blog for any updates to come.
A new PHB series called Popspiracy took root, in which we would explore Poptropica conspiracy theories. We also added the Custom Name Genie (currently on our Glitching page), a new way to make awesome customized names on Poptropica!
Slanted Fish wrote an open letter to Poptropica, and much to our surprise, a Creator responded! We also conducted a Readers’ Survey which received tons of responses from you guys, and which UiPE analyzed quite thoroughly (see results part 1 and part 2).
We decided to change the schedule of our magazine, The POPCORN, to be published four times a year. And at the end of the month, we received a sneak peek for a new island, which soon came…
February came with a brand new page on this blog: An Overview of Poptropica Glitching, which discusses how the glitching community came about and how not all glitches are bad.
We also celebrated Valentine’s Day with a PHB special that included community members! You can read it here: Part 1 and Part 2. Our Poptropica crossover series, now known as Pop-overs, also made a comeback this year with the Gravity Falls-inspired Poptropica costumes.
Then came Poptropica’s only island for this year, the new tutorial for new players: Monkey Wrench Island! Towards the end of the month, the PHB’s chat server, the PHC, moved away from Xat over to Discord, where we currently chat. (It’s always open, so pop on by!)
March began with the release of the first Poptropica graphic novel, Mystery of the Map! In celebration of the book, as well as the new tutorial island, Poptropica hosted the Monkey Madness event (in which we got some monkey followers) along with sweepstakes (membership giveaways)!
Poptropica also hosted a Periscope livestream for the first time with Poptropica’s original creator, Jeff Kinney, as well as the graphic novel’s illustrator, Kory Merritt. Check out the book launch recap here.
In addition to Monkey Madness, we also had March Madness — not the NCAA, but a month-long poll in response to 7 islands becoming members only in 2015: the winning members-only island would be made available to all players again!
Rumors started to fly regarding Skydock Island coming to Poptropica, based on some sneak peeks. And two authors bade their farewells on the PHB – Blake and Sam. 😦
April kicked off with our April Fools prank: the PHV, or Poptropica Help Vlogs! It all started with Fishy “leaving” the blog and turning the blog over to the rest of the team, who decided to turn the blog into a vlog! We even fooled Skinny Moon for a moment! 😛
There was also the re-opening of Red Dragon Island to everyone, as the winner of the March Madness event. Some of us thought it was this year’s prank by the Creators, but they didn’t pull any pranks this year. Also not a prank: Giant Hawk decided to step down from being a PHB author.
Poptropica glitchers also made their way inside the development testing rooms and showcased never-before-seen items, features, and unused files! We also found some rumored Zomberry minigames, though we don’t know whether they’re ever being released.
This was also “Wimpy Kid Month”, which unfortunately was poorly done. We even had a rant about it on the blog, and to our surprise, Skinny Moon apologized for the mishap and hinted towards a bigger news later that month.
Also in this month, the Feats of Speed event began, though it continued onto the following month. We were given the first-ever wearable sneakers (of various colors) on Poptropica!
Though there were no upcoming islands being announced by this time, we got the biggest announcements of 2016: New Poptropica and StoryArc Media! A brand new game experience teased by a short gif, plus Poptropica became part of a new parent company.
In May, following the news of New Poptropica, StoryArc Media announced a mobile game called Adventure Pig: not related to Poptropica except for the similar graphics.
The biggest update of the month was the in-game Map, which was updated to look like its mobile counterpart and is now SUI format. It’s got handy features showing island plot, progress, and others.
Later, it was discovered that Poptropica is going to be built on an engine called Unity, and HPuterpop speculated the future of Poptropica on said game engine. We’ll have to see what happens!
June wasn’t all that eventful, which was a bit disappointing for all the kids just out of school. Well, Poptropica made their membership pagemore mobile-friendly, so that’s something, eh?
Also, we threw our very first party on Discord to celebrate the coming of summer (well, winter for the southern hemisphere) as well as the PHB reaching 25M hits!
July was quite a busy month for both the PHB and Poptropica. Poptropica announced their first everofficial Poptropica art contest, which went until September, wherein many familiar community members and PHB authors were finalists!
Poptropica also created a new trailer video for the game, showcasing many different islands in one video! (I guess they’re not making an animated show, for now?)
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We also had our annual Poppies awards event, and you can view all the winners here – plus we had a party to announce all the awards! In the midst of the celebration, Mighty Gamer left the blog, and Koi (formerly Cobalt) returned for an encore.
August was filled with awesome activities, thanks to the Tribal Tournament, a month-long event that puts all the tribes of Poptropica to test! From the Medal Marathon to Artistic Athletes to Tribal Thinkers, you all have proven that you are more than amazing! The Seraphim took the lead, followed by the Wildfire and Yellowjackets! Check out the full recap here!
The second Poptropica graphic novel, The Lost Expedition, released this month, along with an interview with author/Creator Mitch Krpata. Right before its release, we found details on Book 3, which will be called (SPOILER ALERT!) The Secret Society, and it’s set for spring 2017.
This month also gave us our first sneak peek on the New Poptropica: houses! Soon, we’ll have our own houses on Poptropica, but for the time being, we had five choices on which house would make it into the real game in the future. The Tudor house (the one in the lower left) won the poll!
As the month concluded, Koi (Spencer) left community once more, and the spot for the next PHB author was given to Lucky Joker, who was the MVP of the Tribal Tournament.
September came in with the breeze blowing, leaves falling, and seasons changing. We began with Search Party September, which was part of the Stolen Snapshots series, wherein for 14 days, a snapshot was posted on the PHC for guesses. I’m quite happy to say it was a success!
This month also gave rise to the Islands of the Month (IotM), which promotes certain islands by offering extra credits for their completions. We also had a particularly big PHB Special: World Geography with Poptropica Islands!
This month would never be complete without celebrating the 9th birthday of Poptropica! Although there were no balloon hunts this year, we still got birthday balloons, and more importantly, CAT HATS 😽!
October began with Kory Merritt signing his Poptropica graphic novels at the NYCC (New York Comic-Con). Plus, Skinny Moon had her birthday, and some of us even made her memes when she dropped by the PHC.
And of course, it has been a PHB tradition to host an annual Halloween costume contest, and this year was no exception. Well, except for the part where we added a Fall Fashion segment, plus Poptropica offered to sponsor the contest with memberships for the winners! Plus, Poptropica poured down tons of new items in the spirit of fall/Halloween, from creepy doll costumes to new Halloween accessories and even new pet followers!
Aside from all that, we had a noteworthy PHB Special that caught the Creators’ attention: Pop the Difference! But the biggest thing that happened this month was what everyone was waiting for: a sneak peek of the New Poptropica! Along with some commentary from Poptropica artist Jon Pitcher, an ominous monster worm inched its way to the Creators’ Blog.
November was slow in the beginning, but things picked up. They say good things come in small packages – especially when you win third place in the Poptropica art contest, as Slanted Fish did! Along with sharing the contents of her prize package, she also gave away a toy code from her new Dr. Hare plush to a lucky winner.
In the middle of the winter season, the movie Moana came along, bringing with it an unexpected transformation of the advertisement extending to the Home Island itself! That wasn’t all: also out of the blue, the store received some new beach party outfits! At least it’s a fit for the people living in the southern hemisphere.
Aside from those weird summer shenanigans, Poptropica Meme Face Mondays (PMFM) celebrated its 1-year anniversary. May the dank memes live on!
We also had a Thanksgiving party in celebration of the occasion! Anyone want a turkey leg?
Last but not the least, Poptropica popped their next big competition for all players: the #MyPoptropicaCostume Contest! Similar to the Create Your Dream Island contest, winning this will make your own creation come to reality! The contest ends on December 31, so hurry!January 2!
December brought some cold times to the PHB with the departure of two authors: Ylimegirl and HPuterpop (the latter has decided not to write a farewell). However, we were soon warmed up by two new additions: Perfect Sky and Happy Lobster!
Over on Poptropica, it started snowing on Home Island. Plus, we threw a Holiday Party, and it was tons of fun! Thank you all for coming and we hope you enjoyed it as much as we did!
🌟 Noteworthy Highlights of 2016 🌟
Two Poptropica official contests: #PoptropicaArt and #MyPoptropicaCostume!
Both Mystery of the Map and The Lost Expeditiongraphic novels released!
The announcement of New Poptropica, which kept us all waiting for the better part of the year (at times impatiently!). Since Monkey Wrench was the only new island we got this year – and a short tutorial one at that – we have all been hoping for something more.
“My Place in Poptropica” series: Just about every weekend, we had a new MPIP post from someone in the community writing about their Poptropica story, which many enjoyed! The series began with the PHB staff at the end of last year, and in 2016 we began to publish stories sent in by you guys – and it’s lasted the whole year! As of now, we have no new MPIPs scheduled, but if you send in your story, we’ll continue the series!
“Poptropican Meme Face Mondays” series: Another regular series we had this year was PMFM, which came out just about every Monday and never failed to amuse with the many meme faces put on you guys’ Poptropicans. It’s gone on this long thanks to your support, and the dankness will continue in 2017!
Parties: In total this year, we hosted 6 parties – the Summer Kickoff, Poppies Awards, Tribal Tournament Opening and Closing Ceremonies, Thanksgiving, and the Holiday Party – all on our new Discord server! In particular, the Tribal Tournament contained three competitions in one!
What were the best moments for you? Let us know in the comments!
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Tributes
On this blog, it is typical to see authors come and go. However, this year we saw a lot of authors saying goodbye from blogging (seven, to be exact). For this year, we’ll be having a tribute to them!
Samwow5 (Tough Icicle) — 2013-2016
Sam is known as one of the PHB’s walkthrough writers, as well as the zealous party thrower! He is also the founder and the creator of Tough Icicle’s Blog, has been a top-ten finisher on a number of islands, and is overall an awesome person! He sadly left the blogging community in order to focus more on his personal responsibilities and to move on to future endeavors. However, he can sometimes be found on Discord, so feel free to talk to him! XDDDD
Blake (Lone Ring) — 2013-2016
You may say that Blake is one of the most random PHB authors there ever were, but to be honest, he’s the most hilarious I’ve ever met. Blake was once was a huge fan of the PHB Author Nights, where he met MT (his favorite author at the time), and joined every PHB party since then. Like Sam, he has left the blogging community but not the gaming community. You may still catch him logging in on Discord – and probably not talking about Mixels anymore. 😛
Giant Hawk (Joshua) — 2015-2016
Although his stay on this blog was quite short, Giant Hawk has left his mark on the Poptropica community. He is best known for launching the discontinued project of Giant Hawk Adventures along with its prequel story, An Afternoon at Queequeg’s, and he’s also the older twin of current PHB author Ultimate iPad Expert. He sometimes stops by the PHC as well.
Mighty Gamer (Emily) — 2016
Mighty Gamer’s stay as a PHB author was also short-lived: we were shocked by her sudden departure after only two months. What makes it really sad is that Mighty Gamer decided to leave the gaming community as well. As a testament to her blogging skills, she nabbed the Best Former Author Award in this year’s Poppies. We hope to see her and her future undertakings as a success someday.
Cobalt Spinner/Koi (Spencer) — 2016
A community member for a long time and later a blogger, Cobalt/Koi/Spencer became a PHB author this year – twice! He is known for having started many series on the PHB, including Pop 5, Popspiracies, Cobalt’s Corner, and Pop-trope-ica. Although he has since moved on from Poptropica blogging, we wish him all the best in his future artistic endeavors. May his talent be placed in something useful.
Ylimegirl (Emily) — 2016
There are only two words to describe Ylime as an author overall: simple & cool. Her nickname may be tricky to pronounce (ee-lime; ye-lime?), but that doesn’t matter. Ylimegirl has made a decent legacy for herself, and besides blogging, she is known for standing up for what she believes in and even making it humorous at times. She is always on the PHC ready to chat, and is now blogging on her own site.
HPuterpop (Andrew) — 2013-2016
HPuterpop joined the blog three years ago along with authors Sam and Blake, and dreamt of being the next “Codien” of his time. I believe he has succeeded in this, considering the countless contributions he has made for the community, such as the Poptropica Wiki, Orb Legend, and rekindling the PHN — just to name a few! I hope that wherever and whatever he’s doing next will bring him happiness.
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…And that’s a wrap for 2016! Maybe it wasn’t as bad as we thought it was. Things may have been rough at times, but I’m sure it’s all paving the way for a better 2017 for us all. Another chapter in the PHB’s life has closed, and we thank you all for that! This year wouldn’t be the same without you all.
As 2017 comes, we have a few aspirations we want to see next year:
A stronger and united gaming community, bracing for the New Poptropica!
Better connection with the Poptropica Creators to bring you more news about the New Poptropica!
More PHB readers, commenters, and more viewers! You guys are what powers us to continue.
More community events and contests for you all next year!
We, the staff at the PHB, are always doing our best to bring you the best as we can, whether it’s Poptropica news or fun posts. Hope you enjoyed our recap this year! You are all so awesome!
Lucky Joker here presenting December’s Islands of the Month!
This month’s featured islands are Wimpy Wonderland and PoptropiCon! I have to say Wimpy Wonderland is definitely fitting for the current season in the Northern Hemisphere. PoptropiCon on the other hand… eh, not so much. But hey! It’s a great island nonetheless.
As usual, first-time finishers of these islands will receive 500 credits and those who are replaying them will earn 300 credits.
But for PoptropiCon it’s a little different. You see, PoptropiCon is an episodic adventure so it would only make sense to offer more credits upon completing it, and that’s exactly what the Poptropica Creators have generously done! Each episode is worth the usual 500 or 300 credits depending on if you’ve played it or not. So that means you can obtain up to 1,500 credits after completing all three episodes for the first time, which I think is pretty cool! Also, the creators have gifted us by making Wimpy Wonderland available for all players to enjoy! It’s not specified whether this will be permanent or temporary, so complete it while you can!
I think making these islands with a very high credit prize definitely creates more interest for people who otherwise might not be really interested. It sure would work for me if I hadn’t already completed every island. 😛
Of course, there has to be a walkthrough for every Island of the Month. Captain Crawfish has already made a video walkthrough for each PoptropiCon episode and is currently working on one for Wimpy Wonderland now has one as well.
You can either watch his walkthrough for PoptropiCon or read the one here on the PHB! I definitely suggest reading the PHB’s written walkthrough for Wimpy Wonderland, so you can hurry and earn those credits! (Update: Captain Crawfish has a video now too!)
PoptropiCon:
Wimpy Wonderland:
Well, I think it’s pretty cool that they finally featured both an episodic adventure and a non-SUI island for the IoTM. What do you guys think? Share your opinions in the comment section. Anyway, see you guys soon and POP on!
Welcome to another round of IoTM: Special Feature! Although there are two days left for November, Poptropica made a last-minute post about this month’s IoTMs (Islands of the Month)! Last time, we’ve had the spotlight on Shrink Ray Island’s concepts and sketches and now let’s move on to the other IoTM, Poptropolis Games!
As usual, being the Island of the Month gives out these special privileges:
First-time finishers get 500 credits, while replays get 300.
Exclusive members-only items, Plant-A-Statue and Discus, are back for a limited time!
Now, let’s look at the different concepts and never-before-seen exclusives!
Let’s look at the character sketches, they look really cool! I must say that #4 and #5 with the soda hats look really fun, as well as the lady selling Poptropolis Games merchandise! The squid hat looks really funny, hehe. The second image contains more sketches of the major characters of the island: the master of ceremonies, the scorekeeper, and the ancient warrior. Their designs look pretty awesome if you ask me.
The next set of sketches and concepts are the statues and battle arenas found in the island itself. One is the volleyball arena that debuted in 2013 and the one is for weightlifting. As you can also see below, they also had sketches of some ruins on the island!
That’s not the only treat we have from Poptropica! Skinny Moon added that in every island they make, the Creators follow a style guide—a way to make all designs in uniform and consistent. You may find a certain “Jeff” in the style guide and yes, that is Jeff Kinney! Jeff has an input on every Poptropica island as the Chief Creative Officer. 🙂
Don’t they look so cool? We’ll hopefully see some more next month!
What islands do you think will be featured next month? Maybe they’ll be holiday-themed? Leave a comment about it below! I hope you enjoyed another round of IoTM: Special Feature! Until next time, stay awesome people!
Hello, mortals! It is I, Lucky Joker, reviewing and sharing my opinions regarding one of my favorite islands (if not my absolute favorite): Mythology Island. (Check out the PHB’s guide here!)
Playing this island is what really drew me to further look into Greek mythology, and I’ve gained quite an interest! When I saw the trailer for this island back in 2010, I was very thrilled. So much so, I begged my mother to buy me a membership so that I could have early access. Alright, enough about me…
The Basics
Mythology Island is Poptropica’s 12th island and was released to Poptropicans April 1, 2010, but only playable to those who were members. Four weeks later on April 29, 2010, all players could enjoy the mythological quest the newly released island had to offer.
Disclaimer: This review contains spoilers! If you have yet to complete this island, I suggest you turn away now. With that said, let’s pop right into the review- Olympus awaits!
Storyline & Characters
Mighty Zeus, king of the gods, needs a hero – and he wants you! To satisfy Zeus, you’ll need to battle monsters, swim the depths of the ocean, and descend into the mysterious underworld. Will you emerge a hero like Hercules, or face the fiery wrath of Zeus and his thunderbolts?
Prior to playing Mythology Island, I only knew of some of the more widely-known gods/goddesses like Zeus, Hades, and Aphrodite. By the time I earned my medallion, I was a greek Mythology pro… well, for a nine-year-old at least. (Another backstory Lucky Joker?)
Throughout the island, we meet a wide variation of characters: mortals, demigods, gods/goddesses and other mythological creatures (like Satyrs and the Minotaur).
A great spot on the island to learn more about the Greek gods/goddesses is the Museum of Olympus. Inside, you can learn some facts about each god/goddess exhibited, by clicking on his or her sculpture. I think this is an excellent feature and a great learning opportunity for kids. It’s also a great pastime if you haven’t got anything to do in Poptropica!
In the quest, you are asked, by Zeus, to collect five sacred items to gain immortality. Obviously, Zeus doesn’t keep his promise and vows to rule all of Poptropica, but let’s move on. 😛 These items include:
Ring from the Minotaur
Rare Flower
Whisker from Cerberus
Giant Pearl
Hydra’s Scale
Along the way, we meet the Minotaur, who possesses the ring in his nose. To get it, we must navigate through his Labyrinth – which was absolutely awesome! Secondly (depending on the order you complete the island), we meet the Sphinx and obtain the Rare Flower by rerouting the aqueducts to rejuvenate the garden.
Next, you obtain the whisker from Cerberus by putting him to sleep with a pleasant melody. In Poseidon’s temple, both the Giant Pearl and Hydra’sScale are found.
In addition to all of those creatures, we meet many gods and goddesses, as said before. They all play a significant role in the island’s game-play, and I really love all of the personalities they possess.
Athena: goddess of Wisdom, aids your player throughout the entire quest. From the olive trees that give helpful hints to the string given to you to ease the way out of the Labyrinth, she’s there by your side!
Aphrodite: goddess of love and beauty, willingly gives you her mirror which greatly eases travel around the island– and even a bit fun!
Hercules: son of Zeus, provides access to the realms of Hades and Poseidon, as well as Mt. Olympus by using his super strength to eliminate the obstacles that block the entrances.
Hades: brother of Zeus and ruler of the Underworld, offers you his crown which allows you to grow large.
Poseidon: brother of Zeus and ruler of the sea, gives you his trident in hopes of defeating Zeus. With the crown and the trident together at hand, you are able to defeat the mighty Zeus.
As for a story, I’m not sure Mythology told a direct story like some of Poptropica’s other islands. As for situational archetypes, we can see many examples like The Quest – the journey your character goes through to become immortal, The Initiation – when you’re crowned and given the trident thus becoming god-like and Good vs. Evil – the epic battle scene between your character and Zeus.
Visuals/Animation
The backgrounds for the island are absolutely stunning! Mythology Island has great visual depth compared to most classic islands like Shark Tooth and Early Poptropica. There’s so much detail in every scene, it’s overwhelming! …in the best way possible of course. 😉
Some of the best-detailed parts, in my opinion, are Hades’ temple, the Temple of Apollo and the Tree of immortality area. I think the overall design of the island really gives a feel of what Ancient Greece might’ve looked like.
For the most part, the animation was simply fantastic! I thoroughly enjoyed all of the cut-scenes throughout the island as well as some of the other animations like Zeus’ lightning strikes.
One of my favorite cut-scenes is where Zeus, Hades, and Poseidon defeat the Titans and claim their realms. I find it pretty neat how the pictures on the wall are able to speak. Also, who can forget about when Cerberus fell fast asleep? Simply adorable.
On the other side of the bridge, however, there is one glitchy animation I’d like to point out. For years now, The Hydra’s heads do not fully connect with the necks and the rest of the body. Not sure what happened there, but the creators’ deserve some slack. Compared to other SUIs, Mythology isn’t bad at all.
Soundtrack
Mythology’s main theme is one of the most soothing tunes I’ve ever heard, and It’s probably my favorite! It sets a relaxing vibe to the beautiful scenery. Very well composed, Jeff Heim!
There are also other sound effects to admire like the chirping of the birds, the fierce growls of Cerberus, the raddling chains holding the Hydra, the sound of the lovely fish fountains, and even the sound some of the pottery makes when you jump on it.
Conclusion
All in all, Mythology is one of Poptropica’s best islands in my opinion. The characters, the plot, the design, and the soundtrack are all attributes that make this island enjoyableandmemorable. Whether you consider it to be a classic or just another SUI, Mythology is still one of the greats. Rating it from 1 to 5, I rate Mythology Island 5 out of 5 seastars!
Again, if you still haven’t completed Mythology Island and would like some help; go ahead and check out the PHB’s written guide!
Thanks for taking the time to read my review! If you have any other opinions or information you’d like to add, feel free to share them in the comment section! I’ll see you next time, pop on!
Samwow5 (Tough Icicle) — 2013-2016
Giant Hawk (Joshua) — 2015-2016
HPuterpop (Andrew) — 2013-2016
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