This is the My Place in Poptropica story of Red Tomato, who became addicted to Poptropica to the level of OCD, and now writes fanfics and blogs at The Splat. See below for details on how to send in your MPIP story for publication here on the PHB!
Everyone is doing these MPIPs, it seems… so being the writer I am, I guess I’ll try too.
2016 | An Addiction, and OCD
Well, it all started in the lovely year of 2016 (cue angelic music) when I noticed a boy playing a computer game in class. I took a look at what he was playing. He was controlling a little stick figure hopping around on things. The stick figure had an oval shaped head with big eyes, and the body was a round circle. He said he was playing Poptropica.
When I got home that day, I looked up the game and soon created an avatar. The name it first gave me was Shaky Scorpion!!! I quickly clicked the “change name” button, and it gave me Red Tomato. I was ok with that one, so I started playing. The first island I completed was Monkey Wrench (of course, I was a noob) and the second, 24 Carrot.
Pretty soon, I’d finished a lot of islands and was totally addicted. I played all the time. Then, I was diagnosed with OCD, and with that, I was off to special treatment in a different city for two months. During that time, I didn’t play Pop at all.
2017 | Into the fandom
A few weeks after I came back, I found an old video of me playing Poptropica. Inspired to pick it up again, I logged back in and, after recovering from some nostalgia, I played for hours and soon became addicted again.
When Pop Worlds came out, I was kinda disappointed with what it had to offer. But I did manage to complete Crisis Caverns, 24 Carrot, and all 40 levels of Dr. Hare’s Revenge! Still, I spent most of my time on Pop Original (and I played other games that weren’t Poptropica, too).
One day, I stumbled across the Poptropica Help Blog. I enjoyed commenting on all the great posts, and even participated in a party on their chat server, the PHC! That was the 2017 Holiday Party. Anyway, I became a pretty active member of this community, and I’m still playing the game to this day.
I even took my love of the game and used it to write a fanfiction I called The Bond of Joeseph and Claudia Stockman, which is about the shaky bond between two black-haired siblings. (Joeseph lives on Virus Hunter Island—you may remember him as Patient Zero—and Claudia lives on Counterfeit.) I am also planning to write an ongoing series called Red Tomato and the Search for Pink Bunny and Gray Kitten.
I also draw fanart, though I’m not a very good artist. You can also find the original version of this post on my Poptropica blog, The Splat!
And that is “My Place In Poptropica.”
—RT
P.S. If you guys want to friend me on Poptropica, my username is Lalala14269 …BINARY BARD IS WAITING!!! 101010101010101010101010101010101010101
…ok, I’ll stop. See you guys soon!
Hope you enjoyed this “My Place in Poptropica” story!
If you haven’t already, we invite you to send in your own. Please include your username and a minimum of 500 words, typed with good spelling and grammar, and divided into labeled sections. If you send in your story, we will continue to post newcommunity MPIPs!
Interested in writing for the PHB under a different Pop-topic? Take a look at our Write for the PHB page for ideas, guidelines, and more. We always welcome new guest posts!
With the recent arrival of 2018 (and a goodbye to 2017), we’re looking forward to what Poptropica has in store for us antsy adventurers this new year. So we’re asking the question to all of you: What Islands do you want to explore on Poptropica?
Now, unlike the Create Your Own Dream Island contest Poptropica held back in 2013 that brought us Arabian Nights Island, we can’t promise anything to happen from your ideas. Instead, we just want to offer this as a space to discuss your island ideas, hear from others, and leave thoughts and feedback for each other!
Personally, I would love to see more islands inspired by aspects of globalization we haven’t seen before, or much of, in the game. This includes more diversity in representation of geographical regions (I’m especially partial to Asia, being from this corner of the world), cultural traditions (such as Native American culture), and even religious mythology (an island on Greek mythology is one of Poptropica’s most popular, but why don’t we also explore our contemporary stories valued by large populations of the globe, like those of Hinduism, Buddhism, or the Abrahamic faiths?).
The world is a rich place, full of stories, and we might not be able to get them all. But if Poptropica is a starting place for many young people, wouldn’t it be amazing if they got to experience a taste of even more places, people, and stories from around the world? In our increasingly globally-connected age, “around the world” may only be around the corner, and a Poptropican who understands their neighbors’ cultures makes for a better neighbor, which is why these are the types of islands I would love to see on Poptropica.
But what do you think? What island creations have you been cooking up in your mind? Are you inspired by certain fandoms, friends, legends, places you’ve been, or places you dream of visiting? What if you combine some ideas together? Ponder that and tell us…
What Islands do YOU want to explore on Poptropica?
As you can tell by the title, I’m the newest author to join the Poptropica Help Blog. I’m extremely honored to have been asked to join the team, and would like to make the most of this wonderful opportunity.
I go by Fierce Flyer, or Fierce for short (but I promise that doesn’t mean I’m mean! 😛 ). I’m a teen (13 years old!) who loves drawing, writing, sports and reading. You may know me from my Poptropica blog, Fierce Flyer Adventures (FFA) or from my presence on Discord servers such as the PHC. You can add me on Poptropica with the username: muuuuuuuuuuu4 (yep, I know that’s a lot of u’s).
I first got into Poptropica thanks to my older sister, who would always get back from school and hop onto the computer, where my brother and I would quickly pull up a chair to watch her conquer the Islands. So many fond memories brought me back to the game about a year and a half ago. Since then, I began blogging with Fierce Flyer Adventures. Throughout this time I met amazing people, became familiar with the Poptropica community, and found a bunch of friends.
Once more, thank you to the PHB staff for giving me this opportunity, which I’m truly grateful and excited for. I’ll try my hardest to bring quality and entertaining posts to the Poptropica community. I can’t wait to begin!!
Hello once again everyone! Spotted Dragon here bringing you the December recap for Community Creations! December’s theme was winter/holidays and the featured work is not in any particular order. Be sure to check out all the featured artists!
Haha, get it? The Poptropican’s name is Maroon Ring and she’s lost (marooned)… Anyone? No? Well I thought the title was clever and to top it off, her outfit was an old costume contest entry! The drawing was inspired by another artist’s Drawcember prompt set, specifically a snow/ice setup. The lighting is wonderful and everything gives off a strong winter vibe. Super soft and cool! Find her DeviantArt here.
Santa Claus by Tough Sky
This festive costume is dazzling! It’s a perfect image of good ol’ St. Nick and the lights entangling him simply add to his holiday spirit. And I’m curious about that scar… Sledding accident perhaps? Whatever the cause may be, this outfit for sure represents this snowy season. Super cool! Frequently find Tough Sky in the comment section.
Blue Ice by Sporty Boa
Introducing… Blue Ice! A wicked new winter villain! Born on Astro-Knight’s bone-chilling Ice Planet, her backstory is one of cold hearts and harsh motives. Read more about her and other villains here! Not only is this a stylish design, but the attention to origin story definitely gives this drawing some bonus points. Cool concept! (Am I allowed to use the same pun twice? Whoops!) Find SB’s blog here.
Happy Holidays by CrazyPaintBursh
Super cute! I love the attention to each villain’s winter outfit. Everyone shows a unique emotion and the colors are bright and cheerful. Each outfit fits the villain’s personality perfectly and are all great for the cold season. Gives me positive, family-fun feelings. Amazing holiday card! Find her DeviantArt here.
The Gift of the Poptropican by SuperGrape1
Once upon a time, in a world known as Poptropica, it was the night before Christmas, and all of the Poptropicans in Poptropica were celebrating with holiday cheer. However, meanwhile on Home Island, a Poptropican named Super Grape is seen sitting on a couch inside her house, and she seems to be stressing out about something, and all throughout the house, not a creature is stirring not even a mouse. Suddenly, a fireplace is seen nearby the couch that Super Grape is sitting on, and all of the stockings are hung by the chimney with care. Anyway, the reason that Super Grape was stressing out was that it was Christmas Eve, and the next day it would be Christmas morning, and she had forgotten to get a Christmas present for her boyfriend Incredible Wing. What am I going to do, I have to buy Incredible Wing a Christmas gift at the last minute and all of the stores are going to be closed for Christmas, Super Grape thought as she starts to panic… READ MORE
A classic Christmas tale! A well known holiday plot line is one in which two people give up things they deeply care about in order to buy a loved one a present. Spoiler though! Both gifts closely relate to each object the person gave up and so are both ultimately pointless. Super Grape’s story has lots of similarities to this plot, so it may seem nostalgic to many readers. Buying gifts is a struggle almost everyone can relate to and it’s portrayed well throughout this narrative. Find her DeviantArt here.
Honorable Mentions
A Christmas Special by ArtisticAsianBunny
Happy Holidays by PegaKid
Merry Christmas by Yoomzie
Wonderful entries as always everyone! 2017 has been an… eventful year to say the least, but I always have a blast seeing your creations! I hope you had a great holiday season and I hope you have an even greater 2018! 😀
January: 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-fic, realms, 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 January’s theme? January’s theme is…
CROSSOVERS!
People often say “new year, new me,” right? Well with Poptropica Worlds, it’s kinda like we have a whole new Poptropica! But across our community, we share many other interests and fandoms too. So why not celebrate that in this new year with something… new?
Head over heels for a TV show? Draw the characters as Poptropicans! Totally in love with another videogame? Write about that universe as a Poptropica Island! Dying to tell everyone you know about a certain novel? Create costumes for the characters in Poptropica! The possibilities are endless, so try mashing up all your favorite fandoms!
Submitting: 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!
Hey, Poptropicans! It’s finally the end of 2017—what an eventful year for all of us.
To continue an annual PHB tradition, I, Slippery Raptor, present to you… the PHB’s 2017 Rewind! This tradition commemorates and reflects back on to the biggest Poptropica highlights of the year, from the game to the community. It also serves as a yearbook of sorts for the PHB community.
Time flies by us so quickly that we may barely notice when we’re already at its end. Good thing we have this Rewind series to turn back the hands of the clock!
Prepare yourselves as we walk down the memory lane and flip through four chapters of 2017. Now, take a deep breath as we enter a whole new world. Here we go…
Poptropica Worlds was this year’s most-awaited update from Poptropica, but before we talk about its grand release, let’s go back all the way to January…
It all began with a video teaser that announced the forthcoming of the New Poptropica, now with a new name, “Poptropica Worlds,” with hints from the Creators of the features to come with the new update. This was, then, followed by a series of leaked images and scenes from Crisis Caverns (which was then rumored to be part of Poptropica Worlds, and it was)!
Another month went by, and Poptropicans became even more restless and impatient for the new game to come. On the PHB, Slanted Fish wrote an opinion piece on the long wait for the overhaul project that was, by that time, already under significant delay.
Finally, Poptropica released anFAQ page for a bunch of queries pertaining to Poptropica Worlds! To further quench the fans’ thirst for more updates, they even showed previews on Google Play on what to expect in the impending update:
Poptropica
Poptropica’s Mysteries
50+ islands
1000+ Store items
Challenge Your Friends
Soon after, Poptropica teased out some more Poptropica Worlds art: a glimpse into a player home and the new avatar style. Excitement continued to grow with the release of an exclusive pre-beta kit sent only to a select few in the Poptropica community, including the PHB team, who were invited to share its #NewPopDrop contents with everyone. The kit contained a massive behind-the-scenes look at what was to come in Worlds.
The final sneak peeks came as silhouettes of various items were posted on the Creator’s Blog and Poptropica social media person Skinny Moon promising that there were “more to come.”
It finally brought joy to the world and the whole Poptropica community when Poptropica Worlds was released in late May, first on Android, and then on desktop shortly after. What an amazing milestone it is for everyone that Poptropica Worlds had finally come! (We wrote a review on the new game in comparison to the old: check it out!)
In June, Poptropica Worlds featured its first advertisement in-game: Cars 3, with a similar approach to how one type of ad worked in the original Poptropica—watch a video for a free item. Sadly, we’ve yet to see any ad games in Worlds.
Also in June, we put out our review for the newly-released Crisis Caverns Island.
July came with a handful of updates for Poptropica Worlds. First, the remastered 24 Carrot Island was welcomed in with brand new characters and a more enriched plot! (Check out our review here.)
We also had a big summer update that featured the first home expansion, color-changing outfits, and brought back the Colorizer—one awesome way to celebrate summer!
What happened next? Well, in August, Poptropica finally released a video trailer for Pop Worlds! It included lots of sneak peeks and references to the original Poptropica and future updates to come. Exciting! The PHB also got a stellar new logo this month.
Onto the last three months of 2017! October brought a new mini-game to Poptropica Worlds: Dr. Hare’s Revenge—quite odd for his disappearance in the initial release, but good thing he was later added in a recent update!
November passed with more Poptropica videos, and then December came with the final update of the year: a hare-raising Dr. Hare update! We got another room expansion for our houses and finally saw the winning designs of the past year’s costume contest added to the shop on Worlds.
It may not be quite as eventful as Poptropica Worlds this year, but we still received a handful of updates on the original Poptropica. So let’s cover some of the other, non-Worlds happenings around Poptropica HQ—and the fandom community!
Fast-forwarding in February, the first major update we got from Poptropica was the announcement of the #MyPoptropicaCostume contest winners, wherein the Mermaid and Hip-Hop costumes were both declared grand prize winners!
We also celebrated Valentine’s Day with a #PoptropicaLove contest using the Valentine-themed Photo Booth, all set to spread the love to the community.
“Ocean Princess” by Creepy Peanut
“Hip-Hop Boy” by Speedy Toes
In March, with the snow still falling in Boston, Poptropica added a brand new game to Home Island: Snowpocalypse! The game is a crazy snowball fight with characters from various islands we know and love. Here’s Zeus getting pelted:
Moreover with the madness, Poptropica also decided to bring back classic costumes and power cards to the store! Not only that, we also saw the arrival of the Home Island Movie Theater—although, it wasn’t at all what we were hoping for.
Jumping to July, Mitch Krpata once again came into the limelight with an interview on a podcast called The Oddball Show, where he talked about Poptropica (among other things), and which we recapped here. We also bid our farewells to beloved Poptropica Creator Skinny Moon, who left her position to continue her previous career as a freelance copywriter and social media strategist.
In August, Poptropica challenged players to be a part of the #FreeThe15 challenge that rewarded us with 21 new items for our homes on Poptropica Worlds.
Then in September, we celebrated the highly anticipated10th birthday celebration of Poptropica, which came with grinning monkey hats—both on Poptropica Original and on Worlds! The festivities also included a membership contest with quite a peculiar task. Nonetheless, the party raged on as Poptropica finally unveiled the concluding chapter to the graphic novel tetralogy, The End of Time. (Check out our book review here!)
Not much happened in October, though the Poptropica Comics did return with Jorge and Oliver still onto their mischievous misadventures. November came with a Thanksgiving giveaway that made us search for missing followers around Poptropica.
In December, we concluded the year with the re-introduction of the mini-game Legendary Swords to Poptropica Original. At first, the re-release was members-only, but the Creators later opened it for everyone.
Wowie, what a 2017 for Poptropica! Let’s head into the next chapter…
Our community has been witness to many events this year, both fun and serious, and it’s these things that make us a formidable community. Let this chapter help us recall the memories we’ve shared in 2017.
In January, we welcomed a brand new post series to the blog: Community Creations! This monthly series features the creative works of Poptropicans that revolve around a given theme each month, with PHB staffer Spotted Dragon spearheading each round. Over the months, we’ve seen some amazing fan art. Here is just a handful:
March came along and, prompted by a PHB post by Perfect Sky calling for giving more love to smaller Poptropica fan blogs, a movement began, known as #SaveTheCommunity and later #PopBlogsMatter. To that end, the Poptropica Bloggers Network (PBN) headed up by Purple Claw and Hyper Gamer—which is dedicated to helping smaller Poptropica blogs—saw a revival, and fan blogs outside of the PHB continued to flourish.
April brought along yet another April Fools’ prank from the PHB: PopFeedz! This was a joke site we made that took the PHB as we know it and spun it into a more Buzzfeed-esque version of our site. Lots of you really liked it! You can check out the original over on popfeedz.wordpress.com.
In May, something pretty exciting happened for the PHB and other fan sites: VIP status! There hasn’t been a ton happening in this department, but it’s nice to get that recognition after so many years.
June was a fulfilling month: we launched our Write for the PHB campaign, to empower all of you with the how-to of contributing to our site. We also had a PHB special that featured Popsonas of the PHB staff. The month concluded with us coordinating Poptropica’s first-ever Pride Party, in which we celebrated love in its many forms.
Then in July, the PHB’s birthday month, we hosted our annual Poppies Awards! From nominations to the awards ceremony, we had lots of fun and hope you did too. To celebrate some more, we also put together a collection of Greatest PHB Posts and walked through a gallery of PHB headers over the years. Happy 9th birthday to the PHB!
October was filled with fright as we hosted our 9th annual Halloween costume contest, which took entries from both Poptropica Original and Worlds, with both games putting out their Halloween costumes at the front of their stores. Also, we were finally introduced to Dave, who had been making videos for Poptropica’s YouTube channel for quite some time.
November passed with some more videos from Dave and livestreamer Stephanie, and we also hit a biggie: 30 million views on the PHB! Thank you all so much!
In December we held our annual Holiday Party, with a special guest: Unwilling Santa Zeus! PHB staffer Lucky Joker also debuted one of our biggest blog specials ever: 100 Years of Fashion, Poptropica-style.
To continue a tradition from last year’s Rewind, I now invite you to the Tributes, a section dedicated to keeping the memories of the PHB staff who left us this year:
Ultimate iPad Expert 📱 — 2015–2017
Before he joined the PHB team, Ultimate iPad Expert served as an admin on the Poptropica Wiki. A meme entry for HPuterpop’s fan art contest led to inspiration for more memes, and soon enough, Poptropican Meme Face Mondays was born. PMFM lasted a whopping 70 rounds, and UiPE himself earned his legendary moniker, “Meme King”—plus the 2016 title for Best PHB Author! Wherever he is now, I trust that he’s living his ultimate best. Long live the Meme King!
Perfect Sky ⛅ — 2016–2017
Long before she became a member of the PHB staff, Perfect Sky was renowned for her Poptropica movies on YouTube. Besides her creativity, she is known for having a passionate heart for the Poptropica community who is never afraid to stand for what she believes in. She’s someone with a heart of gold and we thank her for everything she has done for the community. Thanks for making the skies perfect, PS!
Slippery Raptor 💦 — 2014–2017
I’m sure you’re least expecting this thing to happen here, right? But, this is really happening. Prepare your tissues.
This is the end for me, everyone, and I would just like to extend my deepest gratitude to the whole PHB staff (both current and former) for giving me this opportunity. Being part of this community and blogging here has simply been a surreal experience. Before I joined, I remember dreaming of joining the staff by spamming the comments section with “Can I be an author here?” It’s so funny that, years later, I found my place here, and would actually stay for a few years more than I had expected.
I’m also thankful for the whole Poptropica community: you all are so amazing, crazy talented, and even so silly sometimes. I’m so happy to have witnessed so many changes in Poptropica and in our community that I felt very much involved with, and that’s something I won’t forget. Thanks to all my friends out there! I hope I can still drop by on Discord here and there.
Just to briefly explain my departure: I have a lot on my plate right now, with college around the corner, academics and organizations to balance, and other things. I also cannot deny the inevitability of growing up and my feelings of “outgrowing” the game. Another factor would be the arrival of Poptropica Worlds, which is not a bad thing, but it isn’t quite the same as the Poptropica I grew up with—plus, updates have been more scarce. I do hope you understand that and trust me, it’s something everyone will go through eventually.
To the next author who will succeed me, I hope you enjoy being a PHB staff member! And to everyone else, stay awesome as you always have been doing, and continue the awesomeness we’ve started. I don’t want this to be too much of a long, melodramatic piece, but I hope you’ll all keep moving forward for me. Carpe diem—seize the day. I wish you all the best of luck!
May God bless you all so much. Thank you, and that will be all.
2017, everyone! What a crazy rollercoaster ride—filled with ups, downs, and even loops! In the midst of all the good and bad that have crossed our paths in the past year, let’s put them behind us and look forward to the new year. As we all transition to a whole new world in Poptropica Worlds, I do hope that you’ll enjoy every update yet to come.
Thank you all for riding with us in 2017. As we ring in the new year, a new chapter in the PHB’s life begins as we look forward to our 10th birthday in July. We wouldn’t want to miss it for the world!
We here at the PHB hope to continue what we started back in 2008: our unwavering passion towards Poptropica and its community. We hope you enjoyed 2017 as much as we did! See you in 2018, Poptropicans!
Before he joined the PHB team, Ultimate iPad Expert served as an admin on the 
🦄 Ponytropica 🦄 