DIRECTOR D. and MADEMOISELLE MOREAU are in their office, waiting during another break between patients.
MOREAU
So, what’s taking so long? We have them, let’s go.
DIRECTOR D.
They’ve been tightening security even more than usual, and it doesn’t help that any of the helicopters have to be permitted by the computers in that “off-limits” upper floor.
MOREAU
Ah yes, Jupiter’s lab. Hasn’t Black Widow entered many highly-guarded museums before? She ought to be able to do something.
DIRECTOR D.
I asked her, and…
CUT TO BLACK WIDOW laughing for a solid few seconds, before answering dead-faced.
The COVID-19 pandemic may have cancelled many events, but better late than never on the recent 2020 Tokyo Olympics! Its return makes this next Island Flash-back quite appropriate for the sportful season…
Poptropolis Games!!
An official poster made for the island’s re-release
From a fandom standpoint, this island doesn’t seem to be as well-known or well-loved on the surface. There’s little fanart of characters or scenes compared to others such as Counterfeit or Monster Carnival. But look a little deeper and you will see how much this island has incorporated itself into fandom culture and events!
Concept sketches for the island’s scenery
Power Lifting, Poptropolis Games
Even after disappearing from the official game, fans continue to identify themselves by the Poptropolis Tribes. A year ago, the PHB hosted the 2020 Tribal Tournament, in which community members could win points for their respective tribes!
Concept art
Octopus Volleyball, Poptropolis Games
Another noteworthy thing is the music: the Poptropolis theme is easily one of my favorites from the game. Hear it below, and more on the PHB’s Behind the Scenes page! (You can also hear it on composer Jeff Heim’s “Poptropica Demo Reel 1” starting at about 43 seconds.)
A bit of trivia for those who were not playing during or before 2012: This island was originally released as a “classic” island with no sound, and came out in June of that year, timed near the London Olympics. To many a player’s surprise, the island “sank” and was removed in early 2013, but eventually was “risen” after an event that encouraged players to help “dig up the games.”
“PHB Poptropolis Games Banner” by Gentle Dolphin on DeviantArt
So let’s dig up the games again! Poptropolis Games and other classic islands were rendered unplayable in the Flash-Haxe transition, but it should not go to waste! Let the Creators know what you appreciate about the island to encourage them to preserve it!
Hey Poptropicans, this is a guest post by Giant Dragon. Enjoy!
Hi y’all, Giant Dragon here with a Pop Petition: bringing back credit rewards for island completions!
So, before a recent update, a key way of earning credits in Poptropica was to fly around in your blimp and complete the islands. But now you only get this:
You see, now the only thing you get for completing an island is a medallion and a congrats note. So now the only major way left to get credits is the daily login rewards. (You could also play arcade games and the Baron’s mini-game when it’s around, but they only offer a little.)
And I honestly think it’s not enough. First, the Pop store (Adventure Outfitters) gets updated every week with new costumes. I still think the prices are a bit too high.
But for those Poptropicans who received the 5000 credit bonus, I guess they don’t have to worry about credits for a while. Still, for those Poptropicans who didn’t, I think it’s a really hard time for them because they will want to buy new outfits from the store, and if you buy all the outfits, you will have a bill of around 2000 credits and that’s toooooo high. Not only that, but the Baron’s ship is offering great (but pricy) costumes and decor!
So if you don’t buy them, you are gonna regret it because they are so cool, and even if you do buy them, you will regret too because they cost so much. But if we had credit rewards from islands, we wouldn’t have to think about it at all. If only we could just replay islands for more credits like before. I really think the island credits gotta come back, don’t you?
That’s all from me today. Bye, and keep your eyes popped for my future posts!
~Giant Dragon 🐲
Hope you enjoyed this guest post by Giant Dragon. If you did, you might also enjoy his other recent guest post, a clubhouse tour!
The Poptropica Help Blog welcomes interesting Poptropica insights from anyone in the Poptropica community with thoughts to share. Interested in writing for the PHB? We’d love to hear from you! 📰✨
Ask Poptropica Siri is a Q&A segment here on the PHB where you, dear readers, are invited to send in your Poptropica questions to have them answered with all the wisdom you can expect from a Smart Icicle.
Hey everyone, I’m really enjoying this series! So many questions to answer, which reminds me… let’s answer some more!
What’s the best purchase you’ve made from any of the Poptropica stores? Or the worst?~Slanted Fish
Best purchase would definitely be the Master Huggles Piggyback. It looks so cute and adorable. Flying around on the jetpack is fun too.
The only store item that I don’t like is the cat-i-corn topper. I like the cat (it’s adorable) but I don’t like how it changes the hair.
What’s your favorite challenge from Reality TV Island?~Friendly Shell
Can you guess where I like to hang? I like how you shoot up in the air in Geyser Guess, as well as gliding above volcanos in Hang Gliding!
What is something useful to know while you are playing Poptropica?~Slanted Fish
My advice while playing is when you have a hard time and get stuck, it’s not a bad thing to use the PHB’s walkthroughs. Also, don’t give up on the harder islands! Don’t get stressed, take deep breaths, and continue to try. Have hope, you can do this!
How can you send in your questions to Ask Poptropica Siri?
That’s a great question! You can use the following methods:
📧 Send an email to askpoptropicasiri (at) gmail (dot) com. This way, you’ll get to keep your questions a surprise when they get answered on the blog.
💬 Comment on the latest Ask Poptropica Siri post. Your questions will be publicly visible before they appear in a Q&A post, but this allows others to interact with your question if they so choose. If you don’t have an email address, you can enter a fake one in the email field when you post your comment.
No matter what happens, it’s good to be part of our one big happy Poptropica community. See you in the next one!
Hello once again everyone! Spotted Dragon here bringing you the July recap for Community Creations! July’s theme was Fancy (and the featured work is not in any particular order). Be sure to check out all the featured artists!
Now, this elegant couple is in perfect attire for the Poppies, wouldn’t you agree? BrittScarlet captions the image on Instagram with “Breaking News: Smart Sinker a infamous adventure was seen at the 2021 Poppies with Binary Bard rocking out in their fancy outfits,” which adds all the more story to the scene. I can easily imagine all the flashing lights of cameras and pop-arazzi at this blue carpet event! And to think, a hero and villain couple? Scandalous! I love the smooth coloring, line art, and, of course, the fancy outfits. Find her Instagram here.
Awards Show by Midnightoilstudios
Another carpeted event (this one more red than blue) is quite the fancy setting. But what really stands out here is the villain-inspired clothing! Original character “Aria” is sporting a Dr. Hare inspired look while “Sean” showcases a Black Widow themed getup. I love that sort of creative design work, and, I gotta say, I’m a bit jealous of that spider-web suit jacket. You think I could pull it off? Either way, this is a fantastically fancy scene and I love the glitter texture added in many elements. Find her DeviantArt here.
Most Likely to Succeed by Barefoot Knuckle
Here we may have another carpeted awards show, but the awards themselves are a bit different. CJ from Shrink Ray Island is featured in this scene receiving a trophy for an invention. It’s a bit of a step up from first place at the local science fair, huh? I love how even in this fancier-than-average setting, CJ’s personality still shines through in her expression. And Barefoot Knuckle even researched science trophies and formal hairstyles/dresses when crafting their composition! Excellent work was put into this creation and it shows. Find the artist frequently in the comment section.
Getting Ready for the Poppies by Golden Heart
Ooo la la! This gown easily caught my attention. The shimmering blue dress paired with those elegant gloves just screams fancy! Or, perhaps politely whispers it? Let’s be mannerly here, of course. Anyway, I asked for glitter and I sure got it in this piece. But I also have to commend the pose of the character, as the closed eyes and bent arms seem to elevate the grace of the design. Simple, put certainly poised and well executed! Find her frequently in the comment section and the PHC Discord.
Month of Fancy Short Story by Shy Scorpion
The party that makes history, at least that’s what the invitation said. You look at the castle in awe. How did you get an invite into a fairy-tale ball on Fairy Tale Island do you ask? This ball is being held to celebrate the one year anniversary of We-Didn’t-Get-Out-Happy-Endings-Sucked-Away, and since you defeated Rumplestiltskin (the guy responsible for almost taking away all the happy endings) they invited you. That’s why you are walking up the red carpeted stairs in your fanciest, sparkliest, most expensive outfit you could find.
Wow, the place looks… Well, fancy! Massive chandeliers, bejeweled vases, and everything is shiny, right down to the people. Floor length gowns with so many flounces and pressed suits with expensive looking bow ties. But while all these things are nice to look at, you are really hoping to see your friends.
You look around and finally are able to spot Snow White looking stunning in a purple ball gown and an exquisite bun and tiara. “Hi Snow, how are you doing?” you say as you run over. “Adventurer Kid, hi, I’m doing great.” Then you notice the man standing next to her. Ringmaster Raven!
This story takes our suggestion of a Fairy Tale Island fanfiction and truly brings it to life. I always love seeing what you guys can do with written submissions. Revisiting these characters a year after the ending of the island is super fun, especially with the addition of other fan-favorite characters like Ringmaster Raven. Maybe we should listen to the fans about rewriting the ending to Fairy Tale Island after all… But anyway, it suits our fancy theme quite well. I can just imagine the sparkly dresses! Find Shy Scorpion frequently in the comments, and read another fanfiction of theirs here on the PHB.
Honorable Mentions
Olympian Gods Dinner by AdventurersNHunters
Fancy Nyah by Kid Whom Has a Hat
Popover Masked Singer by Smart Icicle
Poptropica Fancy Entry by 1234rose18
Princess Scheherazade by Barefoot Knuckle
Cute Outfit for the Poppies by Dangerous Dragon
SB Poppies by Sporty Boa
Fancy by Friendly Feather
My, my, everyone was quite fancy this month, indeed! I applaud all your dapper designs and chic creations. And I hope that everyone enjoyed the Poppies as much as I did!
August: How Do I Participate?
Community Creations is a cool series for anyone in the Poptropica community to join in on. To sum up what it’s about, it’s basically a chance to show off your artwork, creepy fan-fics, Pop clubhouses, costumes, and anything else that pops into your mind.
If we really like the piece you submit, we will feature it here on the PHB! As long as it relates to that month’s theme. So what is August’s theme? August’s theme is…
Flight!
With the arrival of the Baron’s airship on Home Island, the idea of flying (or piloting a huge airship) has been on my mind. The classic yellow blimp has been a trusted mode of transportation for all Poptropicans since the birth of Poptropica itself, so I’m sure you’re all familiar with it. But it isn’t the only mode of flight in-game, as we’ve seen!
Whether it be our blimp, or the Baron’s airship, or the hot air balloons, kites, planes, wings, and other devices that have been featured on different islands, or even… well, Balloon Boy himself! Flying is no strange feat in the world of Poptropica. So this month, I challenge you to use the power of flight in your creations. Perhaps design your own blimp or airship? Or write a story about the Baron piloting through the clouds? The sky is your limit! Literally!
Submit: Comment below with a link to whatever you’ve created, email it to the PHB team on our Contact page, OR share it with me (SydVC aka Spotted Dragon) on DeviantArt, Twitter, or Discord.
Results: Next month, I will feature 5 submissions that stood out to me the most as well as some honorable mentions.
Limitations: Just make sure you relate to both the theme and Poptropica (and nothing NSFW or otherwise inappropriate).
Due Date: I will take any entries before the end of this month. Submit as many things as you’d like!
I will be sure to let you know I have seen your creation. While quality counts, I’m mainly looking for something to simply catch my eye, so don’t be afraid to join in!
So what are you waiting for? Go make something awesome!
🦄 Ponytropica 🦄 