PMFM (Poptropican Meme Face Mondays)

Poptropican Meme Face Mondays: Round 26

Ultimate iPad Expert

Heyyo Poptropicans, it’s Ultimate iPad Expert here.

ThisWeekIsGonnaBeAwesome

Welcome to round twenty-six of PMFM (Poptropican Meme Face Mondays)!

PMFM-Round26

The lucky meme-faced Poptropicans this week are Sporty Eel, P̤̮i̤̮n̤̮k̤̮ṳ̮ R̤̮a̤̮n̤̮d̤̮o̤̮m̤̮n̤̮e̤̮s̤̮s̤̮, and Speedy Lizard! And here are the memes:

Feel free to click on the images to view them in their full glory. 😛

Want your own meme face?

Well, it’s simple. Comment on the most recent PMFM post (just choose the one of the list here). Be sure to follow the criteria below:

  • Very crucial: Wear the outfit you want to have in the meme face on Poptropica and keep it on for at least a week.
  • As mentioned, find the most recent PMFM post (it will be at the top of this list)
  • Include your Poptropican username in a comment.
  • Include the meme face you would like on your Poptropican in your comment (a link to an image of the meme is very preferred).
  • Post your comment and wait! (PMFM is operated on a first come-first serve basis, so your meme face will come after all of the ones before are released).
  • Just a note: You do not need to re-comment on newer posts if you haven’t gotten yours yet. Once I reply to your comment mentioning “You being added to the list,” then I have seen your comment and added it to my literal list, so yours will be made after each one before is made.

This completes round twenty-six of meme faces. Tune in next Monday for the next Poptropican Meme Face Mondays!

What do you think about this week’s meme faces? Comment below.

Meme King out. 👑

• Ultimate iPad Expert •

Uncategorized

Unity and the future of Poptropica

HPuterpop

Unity. Unity is a hugely popular game engine for 3D games and apps. It has been used to create games like Kerbal Space Program, Monument Valley, I Am Bread, Crossy Road — the list goes on. It’s a huge 3D indie game engine.

So, why do I bring this up?

Oh.

My Thoughts

So, before I chase this rabbit trail, I’d like to clarify something: Poptropica being 3D is not official information. Is it likely? Yes. Is it certain? No. Unity has been used before to make 2D games, but overall it’s known as a 3D engine. With the Daily Pops we’ve been seeing recently with 3D environments, it seems that this is the path Poptropica has chosen to pursue.

South Pacific: This is some enchanted evening.
Bloon: We feel lighter than air.
Freeze Frame: Getting animated about Poptropica.

With that in mind, this update is bad news, 3D or not. The Unity web player does not work for Google Chrome, which is the main browser of the internet. The main one. Unity was disabled a year ago because of security issues. If Poptropica goes with that, they’re cutting off their audience — big time. With the theme of accessibility that they’ve been pursuing recently, this is a major slap in the face in that regard.

What else is wrong? Perhaps my largest concern about 3D is that Poptropica was founded on 2D grounds. That was their quirk, that’s what made them unique in times when 3D was the online world status quo (and still is). Instead of vague and cheaply made hexagonal 3D models, Poptropica had great art with a distinct and clear style. The controls were fresh, partly because the developers only knew 2D, and it created a unique and rich experience.

treebackground

Poptropica needs to have that edge. Online worlds have risen and fallen, but Poptropica has stayed constant and fresh because of the unique approach.

If Poptropica goes completely 3D, they lose some of that edge. Let me clarify, however, that from what we’ve seen from the Daily Pops, the “New Poptropica” does not appear to be completely 3D. It shows 2D graphics on a 3D plane, similar to popular indie, Don’t Starve. Don’t Starve perpetuates a storybook atmosphere, and it works for that type of game — but again, Poptropica has been built on 2D and it should stay that way.

Those are my two cents. Along with cutting off a large portion of Poptropica’s audience, the switch to Unity could destroy Poptropica’s unique art style and completely sink the company. What do you think of the change? While 3D might sound cool at first, look at it objectively. What are the gains? What are the losses? Tell me in the comments.

TAFN.

-HPuterpop

UPDATE: Poptropica’s Skinny Moon has left a comment on this post addressing some of our concerns! Here is a snippet:

Hi there Poptropicans! Thanks for your feedback! Let me explain something to ease your minds: We’re confident that we are creating a new game experience that will be accessible to you, our current Pop players, which is our most important consideration. And while we’re not ready to reveal any details yet, rest assured that we’re staying true to the 2D Pop experience you love.

Please know there is SO MUCH going on behind the scenes, and we always have you, our passionate, dedicated players, in mind when we’re working on all things Poptropica. Seriously. (…continued in the comments section!)

While she hasn’t given a lot of detail about what to expect, at least we now know they’re sticking to “the 2D Pop experience”!

Advertisements, Hellos & Goodbyes

Po-tropica and the Map Medallion

Ylimegirl

Hey guys! It’s a new author here bringing you some (slightly) old news!

In celebration of Kung Fu Panda 3‘s release for DVD, there are two new ad item cards available in your inventory! Po Follower is, well, a Po follower, and Pandas Everywhere makes all Poptropicans onscreen turn into pandas when spacebar is pressed.

Po please stop making that face.
Amelia’s let herself go.

Also, some of you may have noticed by now there is a new medallion… “Map”.

map
This may or may not be an excuse to show off how many islands I’ve completed.

What does this mean?! Is it a new quest where we must visit every single island? Is it another island based on Mystery of the Map? Can you receive it upon completing every island? Whatever it is, it definitely isn’t the result of classifying the new map as an island in the code. *cough* 😉

Finally, Poptropica retweeted a video from EthanGamerTV, a popular child gamer on YouTube with over 800 thousand subscribers. In his video, Ethan plays Poptropica’s tutorial Monkey Wrench Island (which the PHB recently reviewed here!), for the first time. (He also may or may not be a hot dog.) If you’re interested, check it out below! It’s quite professionally made.

That’s all from me for now.

-Ylimegirl (Emily 2)

Monkey Wrench Island, Reviews

PHB Review: Monkey Wrench Island!

Slippery Raptor

mwreview

giphyHey guys! I know it’s been a while since we’ve had my last post; so is a PHB review; and a Poptropica island. To quench your impatience for the New Poptropica, why not review the latest Poptropica island?

Every review usually tends to be full of spoilers, so if you haven’t played the island (which I assume you already have), I’d suggest you look away! Well, you’re a rebel, so read along! Hehe.

Monkey Wrench sneak peeks can be traced back in November 2015, which we thought was a PoptropiComic-inspired island at first. Two months later, after Poptropica responded to Slanted Fish’s open letter to Poptropica, we got a hint of what Monkey Wrench will be like. By the end of February, the name was revealed through the medallion list, and out of the blue, Monkey Wrench was officially released to all! A week later, Poptropica released the island page.

Monkey Wrench is often dubbed as the “better” tutorial compared to the previous tutorial on Home island, now we take a look at why.

Let’s start with the name: Monkey Wrench. At first, I thought the name could’ve been better since it looks like it gave the whole thing away. However, according to my sources (*cough* Brave Tomato), “monkey wrench” means a couple things! Informally, it is a term that means “sabotage“, the way the Red Baroness sabotages you in the race. It could also mean the wrench used on the island, yet it appears to be a kind of a combination wrench, not a monkey wrench. 😛

Storyline & Characters

storyline

The Flying Ace Race is underway! But one evil pilot is about to throw a monkey wrench into your plans. To beat the Red Baroness and win the race, you’ll need to build the fastest yellow blimp in Poptropica! Get ready to take flight in a compact adventure made especially for first-time players!

This island’s storyline, compared to the previous Poptropica tutorial, is detailed in every way. What I admire the most in this island are the characters. We welcomed a brand new villain on the block: The Red Baroness! Also, historical figure and renowned pilot, Amelia Earhart serves as our guide on this island and we got to ride her Electra too! The Red Baroness could’ve had more screen time as a villain, though.

Speaking of the Red Baroness, the island is also packed with references, like the lyrics of “I Will Survive” and cameos from different islands too! Along with those references is the constant chucklesome humor that Crusoe gives us, who makes us smile as we play the island.

The biggest revelation in this island is the Poptropica blimp, which has been an enigma for all Poptropicans. Now, in this island, we can confirm that it is through the help of Mongo, his primate pals, and Crusoe’s idea, that we have our all famous golden Poptropica blimp!

Overall, this island has a light storyline at first, but through thorough research and analysis of what the island really is, we can uncover untold mysteries that can blow our minds.

Gameplay

down

Overall, I can say that this island has a fair gameplay. One thing that I am bummed about in this island is it’s kind of glitchy. Recently, when I was playing this island before doing the review, I still had some difficulties, like the lever part with the crab, for example. I do hope Poptropica can fix these as soon as possible. Fortunately, it gets smoother as we go along the island. 🙂

Since it’s a tutorial, the island has a rich interaction among its players to the game itself. Pausing the game for instructions is helpful to new players, although for re-players I’m not sure it’s necessary. Some of the other interactive moments in the game are found in the ending, from the race to the face-off with the Red Baroness.

Soundtrack

jump

What I’m excited about every Poptropica island is the soundtrack. Man, it gets better with each island! I mean, just listen to this track, you can hear the ukulele!

I appreciate the sound effect details in every island. I like how when you jump on the plane, it makes sounds, as well as the finish line and several other places. I just wish that the monkeys could’ve made sounds as well, instead of having speech bubbles, which made it seem realistic as well. Still, the soundtrack is amazing. Kudos to the Poptropica composers, Jeff Heim and Kyle Fox!

Animation & Design

plane'

On every original Poptropica island, the art quality never disappoints. I mean, it’s really amazing! First, the monkeys have been the recipient of the best animation in this island, as well as their design with the Poptropican touch too. Along with the monkeys, the plane is cool, too. The way it broke and flew away, it was superb. Some of the more noteworthy animations were in the retreat and the race.

For the art, I like how they put on a jungle vibe for us, and the way Crusoe’s retreat is made is amazing. The character designs of Crusoe and other contestants of the race are worth noticing too.

Verdict

meep

This island is pretty awesome for a tutorial; it’s better than the old tutorial as well as even Early Poptropica Island! Poptropica made a good tutorial with all of the elements of a real Poptropica island. I really enjoyed it my first time as well as playing it again. You get celebrated for the race! 🙂

Poptropica has really outdone themselves this time. A great improvement as we go closer to New Poptropica!

If I would rate this from 1 to 10, this gets a….

rate

…and that concludes our Monkey Wrench Island review! By the way, our Stolen Snapshots game is still on! Feel free to guess whenever you like! 🙂

bye-monkey-graphic

-Slippery 💦

My Place in Poptropica

My Place in Poptropica: Shaky Skunk

Slanted Fish

This is the My Place in Poptropica story of Shaky Skunk, an on-again, off-again Poptropican who now runs her own fansite. See below for details on sending in your own MPIP!

shaky skunk.png

Hey, guys. I decided to write a My Place in Poptropica story, since a lot of members in the community are doing it, and I thought it would be fun, since I’ve been playing Poptropica for ages. So yeah, here’s My Place in Poptropica, Shaky Skunk Edition! 😀

Before 2008 | Prior to Poptropica

Before I discovered Poptropica, I would go on websites like Boombang, Barbie, Polly Pocket and other stuff for little girls. I was only seven years old, and had to use a crummy old desktop, so I was only on it after school and on weekends, and I also had to share using it with my sister! It was pretty lame, until one day…

2008 | Funbrain

One weekend, we were on the computer, and my sister introduced me to Funbrain. It was a little popular at school, and the kids would play it in free computer time.

I remember playing all of the games in the Funbrain Playground and even reading the book they had there. Until my sister pointed out an ad.

“Hey, what’s Poptropica?” she said, clicking the link.

She created her character, Mighty Skunk, or “MiniMindfreakCasey”, and started playing Early Poptropica and Shark Tooth Island. I watched her play in amazement. I thought it was a really cool game.

Eventually, my sister let me play. Since I was a weird little kid, I entered the username “BigYummyCandyApple”, cause why not? I started changing the name until a got a name that I liked and would stick forever: Shaky Skunk. My character had brown hair and a pink shirt.

Once I had finished Early Poptropica and some other islands, I spent my credits on the Followers: Classic Pack and the Classic PopGum. Soon, the entire class had been introduced to Poptropica. (I honestly have no idea how I remember all of this. 😂)

Eventually, I had finished all of the islands. I completed all the islands, with the help of the PHB and some other blogs, and wore my medallions in pride. After that, I would waste my time in the common rooms battling in games and watching my sister play, until they would release more islands.

2010 | Poptropica at School

It was third grade. Everyone on the computers had Poptropica open, getting stuck on Ghost Story Island, and I was reminded of that amazing game. I started playing the oldies, like Reality TV Island.

At home, I kept replaying my favourites, which had to be the sponsored islands.

2012 | Membership and the PHB Stalking

It was fifth grade. I had completely forgotten about Poptropica, and spent my time on Boombang and made mediocre drawings of cats on DeviantArt.

For some reason, the name Poptropica popped into my head. I went online and played most of the islands. My brother saw that I was obsessed with this game and bought me a month of membership.

With my membership, I got all of the members only and regular cards. Soon, my character was this weird hybrid of a goth and a dog. I was really happy, because I also got early access to Wimpy Boardwalk, and played the members only bonus quests. (Except for that horrid Wimpy Boardwalk one. 😡)

Since I needed help with like, two-thirds of the islands, I rediscovered the PHB. I would stalk it every day. I even added the mermaid and green girl costumes to my closet.

2013 | A Fresh Start

It was sixth grade. I was getting a little bored of my Poptropica account, so I made a new one. I entered the username “AdelaideQueen”, and my name was something like “Red Fox”. I can’t remember.

After replaying the islands, and discovering the HORRORS of sound updated islands, I was starting to get sick of playing Poptropica.

Occasionally, I would check Poptropica and replay my favourite islands, but I only did that about once or twice a year.

2016 | Rejoining the Community and Blogging

By now, I’m in ninth grade. It was January, and I wondered how Poptropica was going. I logged on to my BigYummyCandyApple account, and the memories came flooding back.

I wanted to replay all of the islands, but then I remembered the PHB. I decided to make my own blog, Poptropica Skunk Blog. I soon discovered the Poptropica community, chat rooms, and joined two other blogs. So, yeah, I’m still playing Poptropica to this day.

Hopefully in the future, I will still be a fan of Poptropica. I hope the game, islands and ad placements are improved in the future. Cause right now, the ads are just like the ones in Mocktropica.

That’s the end of my adventure. I hope you enjoyed reading it!

-Shaky Skunk 🐼

–

Hope you enjoyed this “My Place in Poptropica” story! Feel free to send in your own (please include a minimum of 550 words, type with good spelling and grammar, divide it into labeled sections, and include your username). Look out for more community MPIPs in the future!

~the PHB.