🏝️ Poptropica Help Blog 🗺️

Hey Poptropicans, welcome to a special edition of the Pop Fan Artist Spotlight series! This fan artist we’re featuring today isn’t your traditional kind of artist—instead, he creates his masterpieces on Poptropica Realms. Introducing: Hawkeye4077, aka Zany Ice!

Hawkeye’s work with Realms imitates large and noteworthy characters and landmarks from various sci-fi and adventure films and other media, from The Iron Giant to How to Train Your Dragon to Godzilla: King of the Monsters. Click on the images to see all the detail within!

You may recognize Hawkeye’s Poptropican name, Zany Ice, which was recently featured for a Video of the Week by the Pop Creators. But he’s been working on more than just the Wolfwalkers ad video! Here’s one that compiles all his MOCs (My Own Creation) — including more than the ones shown above — into an impressive photo slideshow:

In another video, Zany Ice gives us a look at the process of making one of his Realms creations, the Grimlock from Transformers:

It’s been a hot minute since the Flash-based Realms (Poptropica’s sandbox creative world) has gotten much attention from Poptropica, and with Flash in its final days, who knows if it’ll return after it’s gone. But Realms did disappear before due to bugs with the old Flash technology, and after much player demand, was resurrected by the Creators a year later. Maybe the same thing can happen again?

In any case, we hope you enjoyed this look into some of the many possibilities that Realms offers. Perhaps it even inspired you to give this fun sandbox game one last spin before its candle goes out with (a) Flash? 🕯 You might find our Realms Guide helpful!

Thanks, Hawkeye4077, for sharing your Realms of wonder with us! 🌎 You can find him on our Discord server, the PHC, sharing other kinds of creations too, like peeks into his comic, Iron Volt. Join the fun on the PHC!

~🐠

Comics

Catch up with Poptropica’s comic strip 📰💥

December 25, 2020December 13, 2020 Slanted Fish

Hey Poptropicans—did you know that Poptropica has its own comic strip? It’s true, and now, you can catch up with most of the series here!

In these comics, two young heroes, Oliver and Jorge, get thrown into the foreign world of Poptropica and have to survive as they hop from island to island full of silly and unpredictable challenges. You might recognize these boys from the Poptropica graphic novel series, which actually came out after the comic strips did. Both were illustrated by Kory Merritt, and the comics were written by Paul Gilligan.

Poptropica’s comic strips ran daily for a period of time from 2014–2016 and were available on various online platforms. These days, though, they’re harder to find. Fortunately, one super-fan recently put together all the comics so the rest of us can enjoy them without much digging.

Thanks to weeks of searching and piecing by Invisible Ring, the Poptropica comics are now available on Google Slides, with Part 1/2 starting from the beginning (as the above strips show) and Part 2/2 picking up from where the first part left off. There are over 300 strips in total, so settle in for a nice leisurely read! ☕️📰

The adventures entail monkey people, vegetable Frankenstein monsters, a Wizard of Oz world, and more—funnily enough, none of the places they visit are actually from the game, but as these are official comics, they can still be considered canon!

Believe it or not, Invisible Ring mentions there have been more strips published, though they have yet to be found. These missing strips explore islands featuring themes of black and white, Atlantis (though not in the style of Mission Atlantis Island), and even a library.

Anyway, enjoy the comics from the links above, or find them again anytime on our Comics page under Pop Plus from our site menu. Merry Christmas and happy holidays from the PHB! 🎄

Just in time for the holidays! (picture credit: Poptropica, 2014)

Home Island

Since we’ve no place to go, let it snow ☃️

December 24, 2020December 24, 2020 Slanted Fish

Hey Poptropicans, have you seen that Home Island is covered in snow? ❄️ It’s different from last year’s winter makeover — you won’t find any falling snow, random birds, or snowballs to grab.

Instead, you’ll find colored lights, lamps, and garlands on buildings, plus a wicked bearded snowman beside the New You building. Jolly good! ☃

And if you haven’t already played it yet, don’t miss out on the new Grapple-Pap Gift side-quest by talking to the old man! 🎁 It’s only here for a limited time, so enjoy it while it lasts and spread some holiday cheer before Grapple-Pap comes for you!

After you’ve played the side-quest, you might enjoy this fan video from jaekelopterus3 (Perfect Fish) containing an analysis of the visual storytelling with the design of Clareta and her rundown home. (Beware: Spoilers ahead.)

“Poptropica’s visual storytelling: An analysis of Clareta from the Grapple-Pap side-quest” by jaekelopterus3 (Perfect Fish)

In other news, the Poptropica Creators recently shared a couple more fan art features on their Instagram story. Check out these cool OCs (Original Characters) and their snazzy outfits!

Plenty more is going on around Poptropica, so be sure to catch up on the post below to see what else is new! And check back on the PHB tomorrow for a special post — we’ve prepared the perfect Poptropica entertainment to snuggle up to this Christmas. 📰🥰

Have a merry Christmas Eve — or just a quiet, socially distant day, considering the times — and happy Grapple-Pap! 🎄

Fan Art Features, Haxe Javascript, Pets, Social Media, Store, Video of the Week

What’s in store for Poptropica’s future?

December 23, 2020June 6, 2021 Gentle Dolphin

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 vulnerable to 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.

Thank you for reading, and have a good day!

—Gentle Dolphin 🐬

Guest Posts

Branding do’s and don’ts, explained through Poptropica icons 🤔👩‍🎤

December 22, 2020December 17, 2020 Slanted Fish

Hey Poptropicans, this is a guest post by Mud Bub, who’ll be diving into some do’s and don’ts of personal branding from a Poptropica perspective. Enjoy!

Whether through local shops or worldwide figureheads, Poptropica is riddled with examples of personal and brand designs.

Brand design can be used in many ways. Businesses use them in order to stand out against competitors and to attract consumers—that’s corporate branding. Even other entities can use corporate branding to stand out, like schools and sports teams. And people can use personal branding if they want to stand out as an influencer or on a resumé.

But how do Poptropica icons use branding, and what can we learn from them? Let’s take a look…

Don’t: Set a bad example

Who could forget Sir Rebral’s clever moniker or Gretchen Grimlock’s pink spunk? Memorable names and imagery are key to gathering an audience. However, while lovable villains may get publicity, they can’t reap the benefits behind bars. Be humble, instead. Like Ned Noodlehead.

Do: Appeal to the masses

Talk about knowing your audience! These logos for the Tribes of Poptropica are all alluring in their own ways that is bound to attract players. Not only can players excitedly pick their own teams, but the designs certainly bring about a sense of identity with community.

Don’t: Be a cliché

We love Black Widow, especially that hair! But, really? She couldn’t have thought of a more unique gimmick? Been there, done that.

Do: Be consistent, memorable and applicable

These icons representing Poseidon (trident), Zeus (lightning bolt), and Hades (skull) from Mythology Island are so well applied! They’re found on the mirror, island logo, and even on the medallion and merchandise. On the other hand, while they aren’t the most original, they are still easily recognizable to all Poptropicans and make the trio of gods truly memorable.

Don’t: Be afraid to expand your horizons

Because of Elf Archer’s persona and multi-media presence, she is beloved by many Poptropican geeks and is recognized as one of the biggest faces of PoptropiCon Island. She prevails not just on paper, but on cardboard, plaques, and theaters.

Do: Pop EVERYWHERE

Not to preach to the choir here, but Poptropica does this best. The very vessel of transportation for the player — the yellow Poptropica blimp — is a giant free ad of Poptropica in and of itself. We don’t just recognize Poptropica from its logo, but from its other iconography as well, from unique character designs to the tropical blue patterns and yes, the yellow blimp. These designs have truly stood the test of time.

Don’t: Communicate a bad message

Sheesh, who would write something like that? Anyway, healthy competition is fine and all, but it is never appropriate to put others down or get a big ego in the process.

Do: Advocate for yourself

CJ on Shrink Ray Island is known for more than just being a science genius. She thought quickly on her feet and helped you return to normal size, fighting against evil! CJ’s noble character makes her the literal face of the island, on par with Big Nate and Greg Heffley on their respective islands. While CJ is not an overt example of branding like the other two, being the face of an attraction is certainly comparable and commendable.

Additional tip: Be inspired

There’s so much to see on Poptropica — have a look around, and you’re bound to find some inspiration for how you want to portray yourself. Be inspired, but be uniquely you!

–Mud Bub

Hope you enjoyed this guest post by Mud Bub. If you did, you might also like her other posts, Museum of masks, Poptropica-style and Pop 5: Islands From an Artist’s Perspective.

The Poptropica Help Blog welcomes interesting Poptropica insights from anyone in the Poptropica community with thoughts to share. You can find some tips and guidelines on our page on how to Write for the PHB, and share blog posts on the PHC, our Discord server.

📰 If you have an idea for a PHB post, send it in! ✨