Hey Poptropicans, it’s Slanted Fish here with a few updates around the PHB! To keep things organized and easy to find, we’ve added:
🖥 The PHB Series Guide, where you can browse through the many posts we’ve shared on the Poptropica Help Blog, sorted by series. Find links to blog posts like My Place in Poptropica, Pop 5s, Pop Places IRL, and more on this handy page, listed under the Pop Plus tab on the menu!
🖼 Also on the menu is a new Art tab, with convenient links to our many collections of amazing artistry from both Poptropica fans and Creators alike. Be inspired by Community Creations and Poptropica Portfolios, plus find old favorites like Comics and Digital Wallpapers that were formerly under the Pop Plus tab. There’s so much to see!
🐈 Last but not least, there are some changes to the Categories of our blog posts, which you can browse from the sidebar. We’ve added parent categories for Islands, PHB Series, and Poptropica Official Series to help you sort through the many, many pieces of news and other kinds of content we’ve been publishing over the years.
Showdown: One ladder, many shoots.
We hope all these updates are helpful for finding things around the blog, and can maybe even lead you to discover new things in the Poptropica community! With so much content created over the years, there’s plenty to explore. Enjoy the new Art and PHB Series Guide pages! 💙
Hey Poptropicans! The long-awaited announcement for the Design Your Dream Island Contest winner is here — but apparently, it’s only just the beginning. 🏝✨
Dropping in late Monday night (around 8 p.m. Eastern time), the Creators’ Blog finally posted a winner whose idea will turn from fable to reality in Poptropica: Fairy Tale Island by Perfect Crab! But wait, there’s more: blown away by the hundreds of entries they received in the past couple of months, the Poptropica Creators will be announcing multiple winners for this contest. Stay tuned as we await further news this week!
Transported by the magic of the movies.
Meanwhile, Perfect Crab’s idea is sounding like the perfectly twisted fairy tale. Here’s what the Creators had to share about it:
The plot: On an island ruled by fairy tales, something has gone awry. The fairy tales are getting mixed up and no one is getting their happily ever after.
We loved this entry because it had a full storyline, a great set of characters, and intrigue! It also touches on a bunch of classic tales that are rich in storytelling.
Poptropica Creators’ Blog
Congrats to Perfect Crab for this crowning moment, which comes with a one-year membership prize! And, although it’ll probably be a while before the island gets made, we can’t wait to play Fairy Tale Island.
(If you’re reading this, Perfect Crab, we’d love to share more about your island idea here on the PHB. And for everyone else who isn’t Perfect Crab, we’d be happy to share yours too — just contact us!)
Whether you have stakes in the game as a contest participant or just want to hear about other people’s island ideas, you can join us over on our Discord server, the PHC, as we eagerly anticipate the rest of the results of the Dream Island contest. May the greatest islands win — and may we all win when Poptropica pulls up with new adventuresome islands, like Fairy Tale Island, in 2021!
In other news, December 28 was also a big day in Poptropica for one other reason: it was the official end of the Flash era of Poptropica, with all Flash accounts scheduled to smoothly transition over to the game’s Haxe build, which has steadily been updating since February of this year.
So if you’ve been playing on Flash, you may log in to see some changes — most notably, the fewer islands on the map — but rest assured, most of your stuff (from items to islands completed) has made it over to Haxe. Scrolling through my items, I found many classics from the Flash days that haven’t formally been introduced to Haxe until now, like the 8th birthday balloon and even the infamous Fart Gun.
Animated items ran noticeably slower and may have contributed to lag.
Classic items from the Flash days made it to Haxe.
Some players have reported still being able to access the game on Flash via the unofficial Format Loader tool. But with the plug being pulled on Flash any day now, that’s probably not going to last for long — so be ready for the inevitable migration. We know, it’s sad to say goodbye, but at least the presence of Early Poptropica on the map (i.e. all the classic islands for members) might assure us that Poptropica is keeping their promise of making the old islands accessible after 2020.
There are some new store items in Haxe, too. Well, more like one item recolored a few times and being passed off as different—take a look at the jackets of the Boss Babe, Neon Rockstar, and Pretty Tough costumes. New hair, same styles. The other items in the store are similar to last week’s selection, though some costumes were switched out.
Catch you all soon in the next update — we’ll be waiting for the other winners of the Dream Island contest. 🤞 What a way to end the year!
So much has happened in the past 365 days… and we’ve got a lot of it on the record. Tune into the PHB on New Year’s Eve for a look back on 2020 in our upcoming annual Rewind! 🥳
As 2020 draws to a close, we are dreadfully awaiting the end of an era on the internet: the Flash shutdown.
This event will drastically change the internet at large with countless Flash games being rendered unplayable. Not wanting Poptropica to become lost to time, the Creators have been hard at work moving the game to a new platform and preserving it for (hopefully) more years to come. Now to answer the burning question: “What’s in store for Poptropica’s future?”
Players may have seen a new pop-up appear when they boot up the Flash version of the game. This pop-up, along with a more detailed Creators’ Blog post, lets players know what’s going to happen to the game in the coming days.
On December 28, Poptropica will officially make the switch to Haxe as its sole platform. Players don’t need to worry about their years-old accounts being lost to time. The Creators assured players that existing Flash accounts will make a smooth transition to Haxe. You still get to keep your username, inventory, medallions, friends, and more!
What about the islands that have yet to be converted? While the Creators are still converting all of the islands, they are also working to make the old Flash version of Poptropica accessible to players! Sounds crazy, right? Here’s what they said regarding the matter:
For those of you who are members and are playing the Early Poptropica islands – this will stay on the map and can be accessed in the newest version of the game. We’ll keep this access up for as long as possible and recommend not updating your browsers! Newer versions of browsers are starting to block Flash which will keep you from being able to access these.
To summarize, members will still be able to play the classic islands as long as they don’t update their browsers. While we understand why the Creators say not to update browsers as it’s the only readily available way to access the classic islands, there are some notable flaws with this approach.
First, not updating your browser can leave your computer vulnerableto performance issues and security flaws, which is one of the big reasons why Flash is being retired. Second, some browsers automatically update without the users’ knowledge. Some browsers like Chrome have been warning users that Flash is going away after 2020, so it’s unlikely that such browsers will be supporting the classic islands after this year.
Although it’s uncertain if these classic islands will be accessible for long, their memories will live on in the hearts and minds of players. If you’re feeling nostalgic, you can watch playthroughs on Youtube or read our island help walkthroughs right here on the PHB.
Man, that was a lot to take in. There shouldn’t be too much left to cover, right? Right?
Anyway, a new item rotation has graced the Poptropica store. Players can buy classic and contemporary items to customize their avatars. A few holiday-themed items such as Tangled In Lights and Snowman also arrived just in time for Christmas. 🎄
The Creators didn’t want pets to be left out of the fashion fun, so the pet store also saw a new rotation of items. There a lot of accessories that we have seen before, though the Blue Sunglasses may be new.
Now let’s take a moment to highlight some awesome stuff from fans. Our most recent fan art features come from Instagram artists quria.kressly, birdswithshoes, and grandmother_duck. We also got a Poptropica merch feature from an unknown fan who bought a Binary Bard phone case.
Our “Video of the Week” comes to us from Zany Ice, who created a walkthrough video for the new Wolfwalkers ad game. I recommend playing the game if you haven’t already; it’s one of my favorite Pop ads from this year.
Aaand now I’ve covered everything! Phew!
How do you guys feel about the upcoming move to Haxe? Nervous? Excited? Nervouscited? Feel free to discuss with others in the comment section below. Though Poptropica’s future is uncertain, we can come together as a community and face the new changes ahead.
Hey everyone! After hardly six days since the Creators’ first announcement, Arabian Nights Episode 1: How Bazaar has appeared on the Haxe map! And, as promised, it’s open for members and non-members alike to play.
Arabian Nights, as shown on the Haxe map.
I’ve just run through the new How Bazaar, and here’s what’s I found to report: it seems that, unlike Mythology Island, the Creators made the decision to keep Arabian Nights the same as its Flash equivalent. Most of the scenes remained almost exactly as those in Flash, and the only differences I could spot in the entire island were minor dialogue changes.
Better yet, I experienced very little lag whilst playing. Despite the pop-up ads between scenes, the gameplay was quite smooth! I’d say that overall, Arabian Nights has given me fresh hope for what can be done on Haxe. If Arabian Nights can be executed so well, maybe the islands still waiting for a port will turn out awesome too.
By the way, bring along the PHB’s Arabian Nights Island Guide for handy help as you play through the episode!
A couple scenes from Arabian Nights on Haxe.
For the first time in a while, Quippy has appeared on time! You’ll find the little droid—sporting a cunning thief garb—in the Rumi’s Rugs common room, waiting to deliver his newest stash of Arabian Nights gear.
Did Quippy join the ranks of the Forty Thieves?
And speaking of the Arabian Nights gear pack, let’s see what’s in store! The four new items include: Arabian Style, Silent Thief, Desert Lizard Follower*, and Purple Smoke Bomb*. (Two of which are members-only.)
It’s the latest desert fashion.
The Creators haven’t yet mentioned if the later episodes of Arabian Nights are planned to be released as well; although, in separate news, they did mention in their most recent post that they’ve already received hundreds of submissions in the Create Your Dream Island contest! Wow. Competition is getting real, and there’s still plenty of time left to submit your ideas! All this Arabian Nights stuff is sure to get creative juices flowing.
That’s all the news today! What are your opinions on the new Arabian Nights? What islands do you hope to see converted next? Share your thoughts in the comments!
Come one, come all! Poptropica’s first Fall Festival is now open to all players! This limited time event includes thrilling attractions, collectible prizes, and plenty of autumnal joy!!!
The Fall Festival is only available on the Haxe version of the game. If you don’t have a Haxe account, you can either make a new account or use idk’s Format Loader and select “HTML5 (Haxe JS)” to switch to Haxe.
Once you log in, you can find the Fall Festival on the first page of your map, where the Zomberry Hero event used to be. On a side note, the mysterious envelope next to the Poptropica logo has disappeared. Where did it go? More on that later… 👀
The festival’s decorations take some influence from Monster Carnival Island, as seen with the Snack Shack and the heart-shaped tunnels. Th area itself is one big common room, so you can run around, talk to other players and challenge them in head-to-head games.
Speaking of games, you can find three arcade cabinets to the right of the festival. The three games available— High Dive, Bubble-Loons, and Star Link— are carnival-themed versions of three classic common room games: Sky Dive, Balloons, and (of course) Star Link.
After playing with some friends, check out the newest thrill ride: “The Swirly.” You may recall seeing this attraction in an Instagram teaser last month. Unfortunately, you can’t ride it as it is currently being occupied by other Poptropicans.
Anyway, jump to the hill next to “The Swirly”. You’ll find a scarecrow wearing a cozy outfit and holding a steamy beverage. Click on it to obtain the “Chill in the Air” outfit.
Every festival has to have a Ferris wheel, and this one is no different! It’s unfortunate that wheel doesn’t spin (they may have lost the transformer), though you can jump on the carts to get a view of your surroundings.
When you’re on the Ferris wheel, you can spot a shiny red lever on the Fall Festival sign. Pull this lever to unleash a storm of raining pumpkins! Don’t forget to bring your umbrellas and helmets!
Head to the hill on the left to see the winners of the butter sculpture contest. That cow sculpture looks friendly, so why not befriend it and have it become your Butter Cow Follower.
Looking at all of that butter is making me hungry. Jump down the hill and grab some cotton candy at the Snack Shack. Next to the shack, you can find a small plush bear sitting on a giant version of itself. This cuddly teddy is the perfect companion for fairgoers of all ages.
That was a tour of Poptropica’s first Fall Festival! It’s a pretty simple but fun event for players who want to hang out and enjoy the setting of a county fair. Who knows if this will become an annual thing? This is a limited time event, so don’t miss out on the fun!
Going back to that mysterious envelope, it seems to have moved from the Poptropica map to the player menu. Open your menu and click on said envelope to access the brand new messaging system.
This new messaging system will notify players of new updates and events in the game. The interface is similar to the cellphone on Paradise Island, which is what players used to check out new updates.
That’s all for now. Will you guys check out the Fall Festival? What do you think of the message system? Leave you thoughts in the comments below.
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