Hoptropica, Merchandise

Jump for joy, Hoptropica is here 🐰☁️

Sporty Boa

Good day Poptropicans! Hope you’re staying safe and cozy as the holiday season arrives. Speaking of arrivals, the retro-style minigame event we’ve been waiting for is here, and it’s finally got a name: Hoptropica!

Screenshot 2020-12-08 at 1.59.24 PM.png

Hoptropica leaps onto the first page of the island map and is free for all to play. But it’s only here for a limited time, so you’d better hop to it!

As you can see on the title screen above, the first step is to choose your furry doctor: classic Dr. Hare or—what’s this?—the delightful Dr. Beev is here too as a playable character. What a welcomed surprise! Once you have selected your character, it’s time to hop into the game.

The game’s premise and controls are pretty simple: just click above your character in the direction you want to hop (or use the left and right arrow keys), and try to go as high as you can before time runs out!

Of course, simple doesn’t always mean easy. Along the way, you’ll encounter both tricky platforms and helpful items. Here’s a guide:

Helpful items to pick up

  • 🕐 Clock – Grants additional time
  • ⭐️ Star – Grants even more time! (more than the clock)

Know your platforms

  • Pink/Green – Disappears and reappears (time your jumps!)
  • Ridged – Think fast, this platform falls if you stand on it for too long!
  • Clear – Can’t jump on this platform, it’s technically invisible
  • Spiked – Avoid jumping on this platform or you’ll get spiked!

Turn up the volume for a jaunty tune as you hop through the colorful pixel heavens! Hoptropica is visually appealing, fairly addictive, and fun to play, so enjoy it while it’s here. And if you’re really good, you might want to post your high score on social media with the hashtag #hoptropica for a chance to be featured by the Poptropica Creators!

Can’t get enough 8-bit Beev and Hare? The Creators also announced brand new stickers on their Zazzle merch store! Joining the handful of stickers from before are our new 8-bit buddies as well as the icons of islands already ported to Haxe, plus fan favorite Monster Carnival and under-the-radar Mission Atlantis.

They’re available for US$4.95 each, and Zazzle is also offering 15% off right now with the code ZHURRY4GIFTS. Browse Poptropica stickers here!

All right, I’m off to play some more Hoptropica. Stay safe and stay awesome!

—Sporty Boa 🐍

Bonus Items, Member Gifts, Membership, Store

Horseback riding through the snow, with plenty of sweaters to stay warm ❄️ 🐴

Purple Paw

Hey there, Poptropicans! First things first: another week has flashed by, and that means another store rotation! There’s not a whole lot of new items this time around, but the costume section has got a few cool outfits added. Let’s take a look!

The newest items added this week include:

  • Sunny Sport, Tie-Dye Hoodie, Rock Star (male & female), Elf Costume*

The Little Candy Cane, which remains in the store from last week’s rotation, is oddly showed in both the Power section and the Costume section. Strange, but the more candy canes, the merrier!

The store isn’t the only place to find fun new gear, as 12 Days of Member Gifts festivities are still going strong! For Day 7, Poptropica members received the fabulous—and ever so slightly ridiculous—Snowflake Costume! Just perfect for winter.

Blend in with your wintry surroundings…

Or, if sporting the giant snowflake look is too cold for you, there’s always the option to take the warmer route and bundle up in a Cozy Seater (Day 8)! (Perhaps they meant “Sweater”?)

…or just cozy up instead.

Once you’ve finished your holiday shopping, maybe pop on over to the newest ad: Spirit: Riding Free is available to play on Home Island, or you can access it through the in-between scenes on any island.

Get ready to ride!

The ad doesn’t involve much; all you’re asked to do is watch a short trailer video, and you’re given two themed prizes. The prizes are Lucky’s Racing Gear and Free Spirit! Check out what happens when you tap the space bar on that second item…

Come on, Spirit!

Neat stuff! And that’s not all that’s happening this month; join in on the PHB’s Gone-in-a-Flash holiday party, participate in December’s Fire and Ice themed Community Creations, and even submit your ideas to the Creators for the Create Your Dream Island contest before it closes! Happy holidays, and I’ll see you all next time!

~Purple Paw 💜

Bonus Items, Member Gifts, Membership

Charming winter member gifts and a sweet party coming up! ❄️🎁

Slanted Fish

Bundle up, friends! The merry times for members continue with the next batch in the 12 Days of Member Gifts. Stay warm with the Charming Winter Outfit and Charming Winter Boots (Day 5)!

And adding to Poptropica’s collection of pandemic related items are Sweet Sanitizers on Day 6! These handheld bottles come in three styles: strawberry, watermelon, pineapple. (That last one might even save you from any future Zomberry attacks.)

Remember, you can become a member anytime during the month of December to get all the 12 Days of Member Gifts and have one last chance to play all the classic islands on Flash before it’s gone by the end of 2020! Speaking of which (this one’s for non-members too)…

We’re having a Poptropica party to commemorate the end of Flash and celebrate the holidays. Come join us in two weeks, on Saturday, December 19 at 8 pm EST on the PHC and in Poptropica common rooms for our “Gone in a Flash” Holiday Party!

Deck the halls, and enjoy the haul! 🎄🎁

~🐠

PHB Parties

Save the date for the PHB’s “Gone in a Flash” 2020 holiday party! 💥

Slanted Fish

The party has ended. Check out the recap here!

Hey Poptropicans. As 2020 comes to an end, it’s time to say goodbye to Flash, the technology that Poptropica has been running on since its beginning in 2007, which is being replaced by Poptropica on Haxe.

But we here at the PHB couldn’t let it go without a bang! And as the holidays draw near, we figure the timing’s good for a Poptropica party. So join us and let’s commemorate the occasion as our accessibility to years of Poptropica memories will soon be “gone in a Flash”!

  • ⏰ When: Saturday, December 19 @ 8 pm Eastern / 7 pm Central / 6 pm Mountain / 5 pm Pacific (for all other time zones, check this time converter). In some parts of the world, it may be Sunday morning, December 20. Save the date!
  • 📍 Where: Hanging out in Poptropica’s common rooms on Mythology and 24 Carrot Island—we’ll try to meet on both Flash and Haxe, though whether Flash stays accessible can’t be guaranteed! Your best bet on where to find the party is to stay with us on our Discord server, the PHC — a fun, safe chat space where PHB staff and other Poptropicans regularly hang out. It’s open anytime, so come on in!
  • 💥 Why: To give one last hurrah for Flash, the engine that’s sustained Poptropica for over a decade. And to celebrate the holidays!

While Poptropica is working on bringing over many beloved classic islands from Flash to the new era of Haxe, and have already been making some progress, some things are still going to look different. We’re hopeful for the future of Poptropica, but the transition is definitely a milestone — one that we’d like to commemorate with you.

So bring your nostalgic tears, your anticipatory fears, and temper that with your gratitude for all the years and a fair bit of holiday cheers, too. We’ll see you there as the game changes gears! 🥳

— 🎄 the Poptropica help bloggers ✨—

Member Gifts, Membership, Sneak Peeks, Video of the Week, YouTubers

Snowy gifts for members, retro games for hares, and fan art for beavers

Gentle Dolphin

Hey, everyone! The Pop Creators are continuing to thank their members during the “12 Days of Member Gifts” event. We already saw the first set of December gifts, so now let’s take a look at the new stuff so far!

On the second day of December, Poptropica gave members a gift fitting of 2020: Winter Masks. These festive face masks let players be fashionable in the game as well as remind them to stay safe IRL.

On the third day, members received the ultra cool Snowmobile, which can travel on any island whether or not it’s snowing. And most recently, on the fourth day, members met the short and stout Snowman Follower. Great additions to Pop’s collection of member gifts.

Moving on from member gifts, let’s take a look at some sneak peeks and shout-outs. Over on Instagram, Poptropica shared a new sneak peek for the near-complete Dr. Hare minigame. The video clip below shows some gameplay accompanied by a jazzy upbeat tune. In regards to the game’s title, the Creators have narrowed the list down to two names and will reveal the official title next week.

But enough about Dr. Hare. Let’s talk about Dr. Beev! The latest entry in the “Video of the Week” series is a speedpaint video by Pop fan artist Birdie Bea. Watch her draw this cool poster based on the fandom’s favorite animal-themed scientist.

That’s all for now. What do you think of the December gifts so far? What do you think the new Dr. Hare minigame will be called? Would you be interested in a Dr. Beev minigame in the future? Let us know in the comments below.

Thank you for reading, and have a good day!

—Gentle Dolphin 🐬