Category: Web Development

Whether it’s the PHB or Poptropica.com, these websites get updated from time to time, and these posts are here to document those developments.

Web Development

Poptropica’s official island tour pages revamped

Slanted Fish

Hey Poptropicans, it’s Slanted Fish here with a discovery! Poptropica’s been quietly working on revamping their island tour pages, and it looks like they may even be modeling them after the PHB’s Island Guides.

There’s Blue Tooth’s character, so presumably she’s the one writing these.

These revamped pages aren’t yet visibly linked anywhere on Poptropica’s website, but you can hop on over to poptropica.com/island-tour/ and click around the sidebar links to get to each one. Here’s a sampling of one of the pages: Monster Carnival Island.

Poptropica’s new “Island Guide” pages share a fair bit of similarity with the PHB’s Island Guides in regards to layout and content, but there are some differences too, such as the photo gallery at the bottom and the fact that the written parts aren’t a complete walkthrough, but more like an extended description without any big spoilers.

(Side note: Poptropica has made official written walkthroughs before, distributed via an old mobile app called Poptropica: Tips & Tricks, which used to charge 99 cents (US) per individual walkthrough. As you might guess, with guides like the PHB’s available for free online, the app wasn’t too popular.)

Some of Poptropica’s new island tour pages also contain little segments labeled “POPTROPICA TIP” and “Did You Know” (trivia). They also link to fun downloads (like wallpapers) near the bottom of their pages, while the PHB puts these near the top and calls them “Island Extras.” Features that Poptropica’s guides share in common with the PHB’s are the inclusion of video walkthroughs, screenshots of gameplay, and the official synopsis.

Most of the islands that are currently left in the game (that is, the SUI/sound-updated islands, since many others had disappeared this summer) have gotten their island tour page revamped. Reality TV’s (Wild Safari) is marked as coming soon in the sidebar, and the sponsored islands (Galactic Hot Dogs and Timmy Failure) still have yet to get their pages revamped. Curiously, Snagglemast Island is simply referred to here as “Tutorial Island.”

Anyway, I’ll leave you to explore the new island tour pages. What do you think of the revamps? Share your thoughts in the comments!

See you around, Poptropicans~ ✌️

App, Bonus Items, Store, Web Development

Falling so I’m taking my time on my ride

Slanted Fish

Buckle in, Poptropicans, because there’s a long ride of updates coming your way! Who knows where this is all going, but let’s keep our eyes on the road.

For starters, we’re going to have dessert… in the form of a flower cake car. That you wear. What? Bizarre, I know. But it’s Poptropica’s 12th birthday this month, and Poptropica has deemed it fit to hand over some new wheels to all her friends. So head over to the store to pick up this free, limited-time item!

Maybe twelve is a little young to start driving, but not on Poptropica! Blue Tooth over on the Pop Creators’ Instagram has already posted a video of her zooming through town on the new ride:

Let’s take a right here, and—oh! Looks like the birthday gift isn’t the only new item stocked in the store. Fall seasonal items are here!

Let’s see what we’ve got here…

  • Poptropica’s 12th Birthday (the cake car we just saw)
  • Warm Vibes
  • Cozy Cocoa
  • Tie-Dye Hoodie
  • Splatter Tee
  • Elephant Follower
  • Flower Planting Power (members only)
  • Snow Fall
  • Jellyfish Prank
  • Autumn Scarves (comes in four colors: blue, green, yellow, red)

Pretty neat, and best of all, most of them are available to everyone (with only one member item)!

Speaking of fall, Home Island got a fall seasonal makeover! It’s currently only on mobile, but the autumn colors are lovely, and even the buildings were treated to some touch-ups. There’s even a new cocoa stand, although it’s just for show, next to the Blast-off Arcade, which is now pushing out steam. Plus, brush up against any of the leaf piles and leaves will flutter!

(As you can see, that magic carpet from the Aladdin ad is pretty good for taking screenshots! Plus it’s just so fun to glide around with.)

Stay with us—we’ve still got a couple more updates to share. Poptropica has hit us with quite the swerve with this web browser layout change:

New layout on Poptropica.com
Thanks to Gentle Dolphin for the screenshot.

They’ve kept the sidebar ads but also added a new element below the game screen: a call-to-action segment to read the Creators’ Blog, and beside it, a random auto-playing video. Videos I’ve seen in this space include ones from Poptropica’s YouTube channel as well as outside content from Kidspiration. You can click on the video to hear sound, pause it, or enlarge the screen.

Not only that, but the new layout also shrinks the screen of the game itself (wasn’t having a bigger screen one of the perks of SUIs?). With all the distractions around the game screen, this really seems to inhibit players’ ability to enjoy their time on the site, don’t you think?

And finally, Poptropica has picked up its Poptropica Lookbook again. They first mentioned #PoptropicaLookbook on their Instagram three weeks ago, asking Poptropicans to share their outfits, and Mighty Rock, clad in blue hues, has been selected for a feature!

By the way, Poptropica, that’s the glass from the Carrot King Diner on 24 Carrot Island, with which you could mix drinks of various colors. A long time ago, you could dye your Poptropican’s hair this way — just by mixing the color you wanted. Ah, how times have changed!

Whew, we made it to the end. Let’s park it right here, and don’t forget to leave your thoughts below. Thanks for riding along, Poptropicans. See you next time!

😎🚘🍁

Advertisements, Web Development

Redesigned buzz page and flexing Buzz Wings

Slanted Fish

Hey Poptropicans, it’s Slanted Fish. In this update, we’ve got redesigned pages and two new ads. Let’s pop right into it!

As you can see for yourself, the Poptropica Creators’ Blog has finally received its design update, so we can now catch up on the latest buzz on a page that matches the modern look of the rest of the Poptropica website which had a makeover two months ago. (Curiously, the icons on the sides don’t currently hyperlink to anything…)

Included in that makeover was a matching design for the other pages linked at the top of the Poptropica website, including the FAQs, which have been updated to reflect some recent changes regarding features like friends. (RIP to the good-old, gone-but-not-forgotten “add friends by username” feature!)



And, just days ago, the Poptropica homepage changed visuals to display the promo image for 2017’s release of Crisis Caverns Island, which is only on Poptropica Worlds. Could this mean a revival for Pop Worlds?

Still no link to Worlds on the Pop website yet, but will that change? That remains to be seen.

In other news, Poptropica’s got a couple of ads going! These may look familiar, but they’re slightly different from past iterations. On this ad for the upcoming Toy Story 4, watch the quick trailer video to get Buzz Wings Power! Tapping the space bar while wearing this will make you fly up for a moment before coming back down to touch the ground.

There’s also an ad game for Big City Greens, the Disney Channel show. Like last year’s version of the ad, the prize is a Cricket Follower (if you already got it last year, you may not get it again) (thanks for the tip, Mighty Pear!).

Anyway, it’s a fun little find-the-items game that’s more of a challenge than usual. See pics below for answers:

And that wraps up this post. Share your thoughts on what’s buzzing in the comments, and as always, stay popping, Poptropicans!

~/🐠

P.S. Want a place to hang out with other Poptropicans online? Check out our Discord server, the PHC (Poptropica Help Chat). 🎉

Advertisements, Web Development

Map of mighty changes

Slanted Fish

Hey Poptropicans, it’s Slanted Fish. Let me just check the map real quick to see where we’re going today — huh? It looks like things have moved around! Take a look for yourself at Poptropica’s indecisive GPS:

(Thanks to Quick Fang for the tip and pictures.)

Categories have improved since the last map update in 2017, which had raised a lot of questions. The new categories, which generally make more sense than the previous ones, are as follows:

  1. The Adventures Begin (Home, Monkey Wrench)
  2. Adventures of Time (Time Tangled, 24 Carrot, Mythology)
  3. Adventures of Atlantis (all 3 episodes of Mission Atlantis each with their own “island,” with some new icons)
  4. Adventures of Destiny (Mystery of the Map, Escape From Pelican Rock, Shrink Ray)
  5. Adventures of Survival (all 5 episodes of Survival each with their own “island,” with some new icons)
  6. Adventures of the Mighty (Poptropolis Games, Virus Hunter, Monster Carnival)
  7. Adventures of Heroes (all 3 episodes of PoptropiCon each with their own “island,” with some new icons)
  8. Adventures of the Strange (Galactic Hot Dogs, Timmy Failure, Mocktropica)
  9. Adventures of Nights (all 3 episodes of Arabian Nights each with their own “island,” with some new icons)
  10. Old School Islands (spanning 8 map pages, containing the rest of the islands, which are non-SUIs: not Sound Updated Islands)

Considering the categorization of “Old School Islands” (which simply means they’re older) and how they’re relegated to the end of the map pages, it looks like those islands, because they lack the newer technology that gives other islands their bigger screens and other features, may not be as much of a priority for Poptropica.

It’s not clear whether they’re working on bringing those islands into the newer tech, so that they can be accessed after the end of Flash, so if you like those islands — play them while you can. As for the other, larger-screen islands, it looks like they’ll be around for the future.

In other news, there’s a new ad around for The LEGO Movie 2, which is already in theaters. The game is simple: click to dodge obstacles in your path as you (playing as either Emmet or Lucy) drive an automobile while being chased by a Duplo alien.

At the end, you’ll win a Planty Follower (which bounces!) and an Angry Unikitty Follower.

There is also an ad for Frosted Flakes, but upon trying to hit the slopes, I only get sent back to the main area and can’t play the game. If it works later on, though, this post will be updated.

Check back later for more Poptropica news — we’ve got a post coming about the spring store updates!

Keep on ‘tropping, Poptropicans.

Web Development

The new login screen is live!

Sporty Boa

Hey, Sporty Boa here! What’s up Poptropicans? I’ll tell you what’s up — it’s the brand new login screen for Poptropica Original!

That’s right, yesterday the login screen we caught glimpses of was released on Poptropica Original. And who else to greet us into this new experience but the pink fluffy bunny himself, Dr. Hare?

newloginscreen

He’s not the only one — throughout the new login sequence, you’ll find other fan-favorite Poptropica pals! New players will still be able to customize their age, outfits, and name, but the user experience is different, bringing a bright and poppy twist to the old classic screen that had been around for 11 years. (More on the changes were covered in our original sneak-peek post about the update.)

So whatcha waiting for? You can go experience this new login screen for yourself on Poptropica.com, as well as voice your opinions in the comments below.

I personally really like this change, as it gives a fresh new take on the old login experience! Well folks, stay awesome and I’ll catch you later. Boa out!