What’s up, Poptropicans? It’s the start of a new month and you know what that means — all new member gifts are here — and it looks like Reality TV: Wild Safari Island had an influence on them. The exclusive prizes this time are:
Ostrich Rider
Sparkle Shades
Monkey Follower
Remember, if you’re a member, these items will be added to your inventory automatically when you log on. If you purchase a membership anytime within the month, you will also receive these special items.
Lucky Joker looking fabulous
I think all three of these member gifts are pretty cool and funny, but what about you? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.
Well, that’s all folks! Thank you for reading as always and I’ll talk to you soon. Pop on!
Hello once again everyone! Spotted Dragon here bringing you the July recap for Community Creations! July’s theme was technology & social media and the featured work is not in any particular order. Be sure to check out all the featured artists!
What an interesting color scheme! With islands based on many different decades, the world of Poptropica gives us a glimpse of technology’s evolution over the years. Social media isn’t a tool for every Poptropican, wouldn’t ya know it! This drawing of Ringmaster Raven implements our theme of technology in a period accurate way, which is super cool. The bold contrasting colors are captivating (one might even say hypnotic), particularly when paired with the desaturated figure. Perfect for Monster Carnival! Find her DeviantArt here.
Entangled by epiphxny
Oooh, pretty eerie, huh? This Poptropica fan villain, aptly named Static, communicates through electronics and thus fits perfectly into our theme. Feeling trapped in life due to her dark past, Static’s predicament can reflect how “tangled” technology can make us feel at times. Though social media can be fun and useful, we need to recognize our limits! Anyway, the composition in this piece is wonderful. The details in the character are fantastic and the static texture is striking! Find their DeviantArt here.
Shark Boy Balcony Insta Pic by Maroon Raptor
Cute! Ever wonder what a Poptropican’s social media feed would look like? Who knew Shark Boy’s Instagram would be so aesthetic! The beautiful Back Lot Island background makes for a great snapshot opportunity, as all those likes show. Still, no one is without a few haters! I’m looking at you Dr. Hare, c’mon man… Anyway, I totally love the format of this piece! Very interesting to see Shark Boy out of his suit as well. Find their DeviantArt here.
An Intro to Technology by ray-of-flight
What did I say about social media not being available on every island? Well, this comic strip displays the issues of that exact dilemma. How would each villain fare if they had access to modern, or even sci-fy level, technology? Either way, the humor in this submission is fantastic. The various reactions to technology show many different personalities and the facial expressions are priceless. Great results! Now I just want to see how other villains would fare… Find his DeviantArt here.
They About to Wreck This City by WitchyArtistGal
Another cute pic! Who could forget about the importance of selfies on social media? I’d like to thing that our gang of super power villains here would be avid Snapchatters. I love how each character is posed in the photo, showing differing expressions and a good handle on composition. A simple design, but a super fun concept! Makes you start to imagine what each of their feeds would be like, right? Find her DeviantArt here.
Honorable Mentions
Surfing the Web by Criaha
Temper Tantrum by NineTenOnetyOne
Social by xXLilAngel2004Xx
Everyone had such unique takes on our theme this month! Super fun to see everyone’s ideas. Keep it up!
August: How do I Participate?
Community Creations is a cool series for anyone in the Poptropica community to join in on. To sum up what it’s about, it’s basically a chance to show off your artwork, creepy fan-fics, Pop clubhouses, costumes, and anything else that pops into your mind.
If we really like the piece you submit, we will feature it here on the PHB! As long as it relates to that month’s theme. So what is August’s theme? August’s theme is…
Movies & TV
With the release of the Reality TV Island sequel, isn’t this theme appropriate? From Game Show to Back Lot Island, we can see how the world of cinema has influenced the world of Poptropica. Whether we’re filming in sunny California, or, well… the sunny safari, there is a lot to work with here!
Draw your favorite scene from Reality TV! Make Poptropica costumes of your favorite movie stars! Maybe write up a critique of Bucky Lucas’s latest blockbuster? What do you think a Poptropica TV show would look like? Your creations are up to you!
Comment below with a link to whatever you’ve created OR share it with me (SydVC aka Spotted Dragon) on DeviantArt, Twitter, or Discord.
Results: I will feature 5 of the submissions as well as 3 honorable mentions.
Limitations: Nothing NSFW, and make sure you relate to the theme.
Due Date: I will take any entries before the end of this month. Submit as many things as you’d like!
I will always be sure to let you know I have seen your creation. Bonus points if you make a compelling description for your piece! While quality counts, I’m mainly looking for something to simply catch my eye, so don’t be afraid to join in!
So what are you waiting for? Go make something awesome!
It’s been three years since Poptropica Original has gotten an island, and a year since Poptropica Worlds did. But we’re pleased to finally welcome Reality TV: Wild Safari to the Poptropica map, and to share our thoughts on this latest adventure that’s a sequel to the original Reality TV Island released in 2010. From people to places to plot, we’re going to cover it all. Let’s go!
Be warned: This review contains spoilers!
Storyline & Characters
As far as the story goes… well, there really wasn’t much on that front. You arrive on the set of the reality TV show and immediately get to jump into the games. Unlike the original Reality TV Island, there’s no build-up to get you there: no washed-up TV star to deliver pizza to, no dreaming about making it out of a rundown town—really, no story, conflict, or scandal about what has transpired between the last season from nine years ago to now.
But the TV set itself has some fun elements, too. There’s a base camp for the show crew that doubles as a common room, monkeys handling cameras, and even the iconic bonfire from the original RTV — and set in a wild safari that looks a little different from the previous season.
The challengers you compete with are really where the island shines most. In addition to a handful of familiar characters from various Poptropica islands (Ringmaster Raven, Scherazade, and Omegon among them), we also meet lots of new celebrity parodies with hilarious names.
Some of our favorites are Shett and Blinked, based on YouTube comedians Rhett and Link; Baby Googoo, based on singer Lady Gaga; and Mandy Screams, based on YouTube personality Miranda Sings. Read more about who’s who in our Reality TV: Wild Safari Island Guide trivia!
Gameplay
As far as gameplay, we basically have three mini-games to look at: Spear Throw, Deep Dive, and Cheetah Run, all of which make up the majority of the island experience.
Though placed in new settings, each of these challenges are actually quite familiar, sharing similarities to other island or ad mini-games. For example, the spear throw borrows mechanisms from Poptropolis Games’ archery event. A bit unoriginal, but fun nonetheless.
That being said, a unique gameplay element that Wild Safari brings to the table is the option to change the difficulty level. This isn’t always an option for us, and is actually quite useful to those players who may struggle with certain gameplay challenges. In fact, selecting your difficulty level has been built seamlessly into the island’s dialogue, aiding in our immersion to the whole experience. You can also win about 5–60 credits for playing all the games, depending on the level you selected and your performance!
One other thing that’s different from the original RTV is that no matter the end results, you’ll win the island medallion. You could come in dead last and TV show host Jim Probably will still give it to you with the assurance that “it’s a Poptropica thing.” While it’s nice not to have the frustration of being voted off the show when you’re down to the final round, as can happen in the original, this new setup feels too easy — after all, you’re literally receiving a participation trophy (or medallion, as it were).
Visuals
As usual, Poptropica’s scenery is beautiful. The safari setting meets our visual expectations, despite there not being a whole lot of scenery to begin with. Perhaps this island isn’t as breathtaking as others, but we’ve got no clear complaints about the aesthetics. Plus, how can we resist some cute animals?
“Washed Up” newspaper references old Reality TV hero Bucky Lucas.
Monkeys on the camera crew are a new fixture on this sequel island.
The interactable elements at our base camp are pretty fun, too. From spooking a camera-woman to, well, spooking a zebra, there are many clickable objects and easter eggs to discover. In particular, we enjoyed the small tribute to old Reality TV hero Bucky Lucas on the beach shore, and the monkeys managing cameras and celebrating winners with drums.
Little additions to an island such as these bring a bit of life to the experience, even though they may not have a huge impact on the gameplay.
Verdict
Considering all of these elements that the island has to offer, our final rating for Reality TV: Wild Safari Island is…
Does this Reality TV experience live up to its predecessor? Maybe not… Was it still enjoyable? Sure thing! Sequels often fall short of expectations, and are commonly labeled as unoriginal. Then again, Greek Sea Odyssey Island successfully brought new Mythology features to the table, and we think the Creators could have delivered better story here, too. Wild Safari simply lacked the substance found in the original.
Still, the island had its charming components. The safari had excellent humor, visuals, references, and dialogue to say the least. Even the mini-games were pretty fun! And that’s why this island gets a 2 out of 5 baby hippos from us.
Thanks for reading our review of Reality TV: Wild Safari Island! How does this adventure compare to the preceding Reality TV Island? Do you agree with our verdict? Share your opinions in the comments below!
It’s a fine time to check out 2009! With both the Poptropica Creators’ Blog and Poptropica Help Blog in full swing, the online Poptropica community was growing exponentially, even inspiring new fan sites.
The year kicked off with Big Nate Island in February, after months of Big Nate comics shared on the Creators’ Blog.
While sneak peeks for upcoming islands from the Creators were wildly popular, the PHB took a step further and started a series known as PHB Sneak Peeks. These were glances at things even the Creators hadn’t revealed:
Over on the PHB, we were up to lots of shenanigans as well. In April, for example, we had great success with our “Club Penguin Help Blog” prank that fooled even the Poptropica Creators — if only for a little while.
That summer, the Poptropica community grew to include a Poptropica Help Forum (the PHF was created by Coderkid, who later became PHB staff) and Poptropica Help Chat (PHC) (which was hosted on Xat). Both brought good times, but only the PHC remains to this day, and we’re on Discord now.
We also began a monthly Poptropica magazine, and PHB readers voted on the name The Poptropican’s 911, for all your Poptropica emergencies. The first issue was published in June, and the series ran for a year. Also in June, the long-awaited Astro-Knights Island was released!
Comic by Green Seal, who later became a PHB staff blogger.
Another big thing that happened in Poptropica in 2009 was the launch of the store. (Can you even imagine a Poptropica without the store??) A hundred credits were given for each island completed, and players happily bought cool new items like the Colorizer, Electrify, and more. Credits could also be bought with real money. The store looked a little different back then, too.
On July 26, the PHB celebrated its first birthday – and by then had reached 1.5 million site views. A few days later, the Multiverse feature was released, and that became the staple way of partying it up on Poptropica. (Too bad it’s no longer around… but we do still have common rooms and clubhouses.)
To wrap up the year, Counterfeit Island finally came out (in its early access period, and after half a year of waiting!) in late December, bringing the map total up to ten islands. (Counterfeit and Astro-Knights were the only islands with early access tickets.)
Before membership, players could buy an early access ticket to a new island for 500 credits in the store.
That concludes the 2009 page of the Poptropica Yearbook! Stay tuned for the next pages, and soon you’ll be able to view the complete series on a new page in our Pop Plus collection, titled The Poptropica Yearbook.
While you’re here, sign the yearbook by commenting? ✏️
It’s Sporty Boa here to recap what’s been another memorable Poppies awards show and PHB birthday party. The Poppies are our annual community awards event, where we celebrate Poptropica, the PHB, and the community as a whole. We thank all who nominated, voted, and celebrated with us! 🥳
It was a pleasure to announce this year’s winners alongside my brother and co-host, Fierce Flyer, as well as fellow PHB authors Gentle Dolphin, Lucky Joker and Slanted Fish via our YouTube livestream! If you weren’t able to catch us live, you can hear the full recording down below:
Without further ado, let’s recap and take a look at our official Poppies 2019 award winners and runner-ups! (You can find the full breakdown of the results in our livestream slideshow.)
Popular Poptropican:idk the glitcher (runner-up: Skinny Moon) (Thanks to idk, we were able to party in Multiverse rooms despite the feature being removed from Poptropica earlier this year!)
Congratulations to all the winners, runner-ups and nominations!! 🏆
“Best Fan Art” Nominee Gallery
We’re always impressed by what this fandom produces. To celebrate that, we’re showcasing our top nominees for this year’s “Best Fan Art” award:
Once again, a huge thanks goes to the Poptropica Creators, the PHB staff, and most importantly, the community for making this possible.
Thanks for sticking around to see the Poptropica Help Blog reach 11 years! We hope you continue to be a part of this incredible journey for years to come.
🦄 Ponytropica 🦄 