Howdy Poptropicans, it’s LJ with lots of exciting news today!
First and foremost, a teaser image of what looks to be for the upcoming adventure and first winner of the Dream Island contest, Fairy Tale Island, was posted on Poptropica’s Instagram yesterday. Take a look!
Here we have a set of creepy eyeballs peeping through some prickly vines. It isn’t much, but Poptropica hasn’t been very good at providing us with sneak peeks in recent years, so it’s still enough to get me super hyped! Imagine, after 5+ years, finally getting an actual island with good substance. My hopes are high for this one since it was created by a fellow player. Fans often produce the best ideas for the games they love.
🧚♀️ Check out more sneak peeks for Fairy Tale Island »
In other fun news, the new store Adventure Outfitters we first saw a glimpse of in February’s Home Island revamp is now open for business!
I have to say I’m a big fan of the entire look and feel of the space. There’s a mix of modern and vintage vibes in the architecture which I love, and this is the first time in Poptropica’s history where we actually have a walk-in store as opposed to a page with cards.
(Disclaimer before I continue: All prices are subject to change as the update is VERY glitchy at this point. Thanks for understanding! Let’s continue…)
When you first enter, you’ll notice a large glassy ice skull (you might recognize it from the retired Pathfinders common room) mantled over the door; it’s available for purchase for 250 credits if you click it. Also, there’s a cute little friend to the right ready to sit atop your head. Honestly, I’m not sure whether it’s a hedgehog or a porcupine, but all the same, it’s 250 credits.
There are more items hanging around the walls on the left and right sides of the store, but we’ll get to those later.
If you head to the right towards Amelia (how did you get in here so fast?), you’ll notice “the gear section.” This is essentially the costumes section in the old store format, with arrows to flip through the offerings. There are currently 18 outfits available, with costs varying from 0 credits to 350 credits. 5 of the 18 outfits are members only.
Further to the right, there are two buttons marked “Gear” and “Pets,” so you can switch the inventory that’s displayed. If you click the pets button, the pets will appear along with their outfits and accessories.
Like before, the puppy and kitten are available for everyone, while the rest are members exclusive. For the pets section, there are also 18 pet garments in stock at 75 credits apiece. One-third of the items are members only. Now to the side sections…
All the way to the right of the store, you’ll see a selection of furniture items as well as a jetpack. The jetpack, clouds, and hammock are for 200 credits and the freezer is for 75.
On the very left, there are six various items for sale: a Golden Warrior costume, a vanity, a reversible octopus plush, an alicorn follower, and a rideable scarab beetle — all for 250 credits — and a lantern for 150. It’s unknown why these items don’t have their own display like the gear and pets. Perhaps for extra décor?
Something else that’s new in addition to the store itself is the cart and checkout system. Anyone who’s ever shopped online is familiar with this concept. Rather than clicking an item and buying it immediately, you now have to add it to your cart.
I should note that whenever I tried checking out with a plethora of items in my cart, it just simply wouldn’t budge. I believe you can only check out a few items at a time.
Also, you’re unable to leave the store without either checking out or emptying your cart completely — which means you can’t save what’s in your cart and come back later. Not so useful, in my opinion.
It’s a new month, and that means new member gifts! This month, members will see a Trick Board, a Flying Spinner, and a Mini Mister Pack (you know, like mist sprayer) added to their inventory. All appropriate for the tricky month of April.
(Speaking of April Fools’ tricks, we hope you enjoyed ours. 😜 )
UPDATE: The pop-up that appears when you first save an account has gotten a minor but nice refresh featuring two currently unreleased costumes: a red hoodie with yellow shades, and a bonnet with a black cat plus a banjo in hand. Also, the reward for making a new account has been upped to 1,500 credits!
Whew! Lots of things going on in Poptropica right now. What do you think of the news and the store update? I really appreciate the Poptropica creators trying to keep us entertained in between island releases and I always try to be optimistic, but how many Home Island makeovers do we really need? I believe if the creators halted the island makeovers (and other superficial updates for that matter) for a while and made extra time for porting the old islands — the integral part of the game — into Haxe, more players would be happier. I know I would.
Leave your opinions in the comments; I’d love to hear them. Thank you for reading and I’ll talk to you in the next one. Pop on!
– LJ 🍀
