Tag: classic islands

Game Show Island, Island Flash-backs, Mocktropica Island, Uncategorized

Island Flash-back: Game Show & Mocktropica 💻

Smart Bubbles

It’s the end of the year, and we have two islands to mark it (totally not because I got so lost in the holidays that I forgot to make November’s post!). I’ll be highlighting both islands selected for the past couple months, which are…

Game Show & Mocktropica!!

While not often listed among the most favorite classic islands, many fans have good memories of Game Show Island, and it has a particularly unique design and setting! It takes the futuristic aspects of Astro-Knights and the apocalyptic ones of Steamworks, and fuses them together in an A.I.-takes-over-humanity story. Also includes the fun and games style of Reality TV, this time with more danger!

More Robots: It’s like they’ve taken over or something.

But unlike Sprocket and Merlin, these robots are not so friendly, all culminating to an epic battle against the evil supercomputer Holmes… who you defeat with a flash drive. Ahem. Definitely a brains-over-brawn island!

Deep Thought: Putting processing power to good use.

All jokes aside, this island does have a lot of fun puzzles, at times requiring players to test their real-world knowledge with fun facts! It also features several IRL locations, including Istanbul, Miami, and Buenos Aires.

Operating System: When technology meets talent, anything is possible.

For our second and final feature, Mocktropica Island is a special one that is not remembered so much for storytelling, worldbuilding, or puzzles, but for its humor that pokes fun at the game itself, and all the negative directions the game and its developers could turn… some of which are hitting a little too close to home now.

Also, the theme music is severely underrated.

Strap In: Concussion prevention starts with sensible headgear.

Mocktropica is definitely a cult classic. But will the devs ever re-release an island that would be even more self-deprecating now (especially considering the references to former employees)? Only time will tell. And let’s not forget the official Mega Fighting Bots website!

Let’s remind the Pop Creators why these islands became so memorable, and why the efforts that went to create them should not go to waste. Encourage them to preserve their past stories and their potential!

Until next year!

Castori honorem ~ Maryann/Smart Bubbles

Island Flash-backs

Island Flash-back: Poptropolis Games 🏅

Smart Bubbles

The COVID-19 pandemic may have cancelled many events, but better late than never on the recent 2020 Tokyo Olympics! Its return makes this next Island Flash-back quite appropriate for the sportful season…

Poptropolis Games!!

An official poster made for the island’s re-release

From a fandom standpoint, this island doesn’t seem to be as well-known or well-loved on the surface. There’s little fanart of characters or scenes compared to others such as Counterfeit or Monster Carnival. But look a little deeper and you will see how much this island has incorporated itself into fandom culture and events!

  • Concept sketches for the island’s scenery
  • Power Lifting, Poptropolis Games

Even after disappearing from the official game, fans continue to identify themselves by the Poptropolis Tribes. A year ago, the PHB hosted the 2020 Tribal Tournament, in which community members could win points for their respective tribes!

  • Concept art
  • Octopus Volleyball, Poptropolis Games

Another noteworthy thing is the music: the Poptropolis theme is easily one of my favorites from the game. Hear it below, and more on the PHB’s Behind the Scenes page! (You can also hear it on composer Jeff Heim’s “Poptropica Demo Reel 1” starting at about 43 seconds.)

A bit of trivia for those who were not playing during or before 2012: This island was originally released as a “classic” island with no sound, and came out in June of that year, timed near the London Olympics. To many a player’s surprise, the island “sank” and was removed in early 2013, but eventually was “risen” after an event that encouraged players to help “dig up the games.”

“PHB Poptropolis Games Banner” by Gentle Dolphin on DeviantArt

So let’s dig up the games again! Poptropolis Games and other classic islands were rendered unplayable in the Flash-Haxe transition, but it should not go to waste! Let the Creators know what you appreciate about the island to encourage them to preserve it!

  • Going for the gold!

Until September (and Poptropica’s birthday)!

Castori honorem ~ Maryann/Smart Bubbles

Pop Protips

Pop Protip: Play the old islands with Flashpoint 🏝🔦 (Windows and Mac)

Slanted Fish

Last updated: March 2024

Are you wondering why the Poptropica map doesn’t have more islands than it does? If you’re an older player, you may recall a time when Poptropica had wayyy more islands on the map—more than 40, even! Where did they all go, and how can you play them again?

Quick background: Poptropica used to run on Flash, an old technology that was finally laid to rest in 2020. To keep Poptropica alive, the game moved a new platform called Haxe, which is how Poptropica currently exists today. However, in this Flash-to-Haxe transition, Poptropica has had to re-code what they had for a post-Flash era.

With the official game’s migration to Coolmath Games in early 2024, it’s been made clear that there is no official plan to restore the old islands, reneging on Poptropica’s previous expressions of interest to do so. But there are other ways to play!

How to play the old Poptropica islands with Flashpoint

The tutorial for using Flashpoint starts around the 2:15 mark in this video and uses idk’s Old Island Directory, though the guide links below are more updated. As of 2024, deviating from the video, you’ll want to download Flashpoint Infinity instead.

The hottest solution for accessing the classic islands is with Flashpoint, the Flash game preservation project. You can find instructions for Windows computers 🪟 in this guide by Light and Prof Robin.

For Mac 🍎 users, follow this guide to download Flashpoint, then this guide to download the files for old Poptropica. Keep in mind that Flashpoint for Mac may take a while to download and require more troubleshooting, particularly if running on a newer MacOS or device.

Snapshots from classic islands (pics: Invisible Ring)

The Flashpoint curation of Poptropica includes a couple of downloads and clicking around a bit to set things up. Once you have it ready, you can play through all the classic islands, and even some mini-quests!

It’s safe and free, so you can use it without worry. Plus, there’s a Save Data Converter that lets you import your Pop account’s data (such as island progress) as a file into Flashpoint.

You may encounter the following terms that refer to different island eras by the name of the Flash-based programming language they were built with: AS2 refers to islands from 2007–2013, from Early Poptropica to Back Lot Island, while AS3 islands were released in 2013–2019, from Virus Hunter to Reality TV: Wild Safari.

AS3 islands are also those found in Poptropica’s paid, Windows and Mac-supported Steam bundle, which also includes the sandbox game Realms.

The PHB’s capacity to offer tech support is limited, so if you’re having trouble, try watching the video above for a clear visual of what to do. Be sure to download Flashpoint Infinity rather than Ultimate.

You may also seek help in the Poptropica Club Discord server, which is not affiliated with the PHB and is only for ages 13+.

Whether you’re playing on Haxe, Steam, or Flashpoint, there are tons of Poptropica islands to explore! And the PHB’s got Island Guides for all of them, so you can keep those handy as you play along—or simply revisit the guides for nostalgia. Enjoy! 🏝✨

~🐠