Tag: rumpelstiltskin

PHB Specials

The Poptropica Island Eras Tour 🏝️🗺️✨

Slanted Fish

Poptropica has given us a lot of adventures to go on over the years, since the game first began in 2007. To celebrate the game’s legacy, in this post we’re going to go on a tour of its island eras! 🏝️

Compilation of islands on map by idk

This Poptropica Island Eras Tour, as some of you may have swiftly guessed, is inspired by another iconic Eras Tour — the 2023 concert tour of pop queen Taylor Swift, whose music career has also spanned a similar timeframe as Poptropica over the years. An enchanting connection! ✨

Speaking of Taylor, let’s kick this off with one of her hits! The PHB came out with “Backspace”, a parody on “Blank Space”, back in 2021 to petition for the return of old islands that have disappeared from the game since the end of Flash in 2020. Enjoy:

And now, let’s meet the Poptropica Island Eras…

The Classics (2007–2013)

Welcome to the beginning! The Classics are the earliest islands to have popped onto the map. These OG islands from 2007–2013 came with small screens and almost no sound. They were built with AS2, a Flash-based programming language, and are now only playable via Flashpoint.

Bonus Tracks — these mini-quests from the Classics era were not quite islands, and a couple were released on consoles besides the computer.

Episodic (2014–2015)

After years of solid standalone stories, Poptropica decided to shake things up by introducing episodic islands, breaking up an island’s story into a series of episodes. This Episodic era only lasted a couple years from 2014-2015, but brought shorter but more frequent releases.

Flashier (2013–2016)

Starting from 2013 and encompassing the Episodic era, Poptropica used a newer (but now still outdated) Flash technology, AS3. These Flashier islands came with more sound and bigger screens. These adventures can be found in AS3 Flashpoint as well as Poptropica’s paid Steam bundle.

Worlds (2017–2018)

With the looming demise of Flash, Poptropica Worlds was introduced as a new platform for the game’s future development. From 2017–2018, Worlds brought a handful of 3D adventures. Sadly, it remained inactive until it was quietly discontinued in 2022, and is no longer playable.

Haxe (2019–2023)

While Worlds went dormant, Poptropica continued updating its original platform. In 2020, Poptropica rolled out Haxe to replace the Flash build. This current era is characterized by islands that are shorter and simpler than in years past, along with a curious trend towards Roblox.

Like Taylor reclaiming her music by re-recording her previous songs, Poptropica has also since re-released some of their old islands after they were lost to Flash. The Flashier era and a few of the Classics are recovered on Steam, but we can only hope that more adventures join them someday. Until then, we also have the unofficial Flashpoint.

Anyway, that’s a wrap for the Poptropica Island Eras Tour! We hope you enjoyed this journey through Pop’s many storytelling eras of 16 years and counting. Share your favorite era with us in the comments! ✏️

Poptropica, it was enchanting to meet you.

~ 🩵 the PHB

Baron's Airship, Fairy Tale Island, Home Island

Red Queen looking for a Green Fiend 😈

Purple Paw

Red October is upon us! Board the Baron’s airship unless you want the Queen of Fairytale Island herself on your case — ahem, if you’d like to partake in some Halloween shopping. You know, casual.

That’s right. The infamous Red Queen, the very one mentioned time and again throughout this Fairytale Island extended story, has arrived at last, guarded by dark knights and cats. And she’s on a mission!

She woke up and chose violence.

Things aren’t looking too good for the green weasel in question. Rumpelstiltskin escaped the airship before the Queen arrived — possibly taking the Baron and her faithful monkey Ack with him, but neither of their whereabouts are known. No Baron’s Crusade this time!

There’s also an interesting bit of dialogue from the Queen that mentions Astro Knights. Could this beloved lost island be reentering the plot?

In response to our question, “Where are you returning from?”
Who’s gonna tell her that we players and the King freed Rumpel 😬

With these new revelations, we’re left with more questions than before. What are the 7 systems the Red Queen speaks of conquering? How exactly does she plan to defeat Rumpel with that hammer (and do we want to know)? Where’s Rumpel hiding? Is the Queen planning to save her daughter the Baron, or is she after Rumpel for personal gain alone?

It also makes us wonder if Rumpel may not have been Fairytale’s true villain all along. With the introduction of the Red Queen, he’s no longer a menacing shapeshifter but a victim on the run. Will we as the player end up helping him? Whose side are we on?

On a lighter note, the Baron’s absence isn’t hindering her shop’s success: as announced, six new fan-made costumes (one designed by yours truly) are now available in-game for free! Personally, I’m pleased with how my “Jellyfish” was interpreted. The other five look fabulous as well!

You might find these pieces useful for your entry in the PHB’s Halloween costume contest, which is open till October 29. Besides the Red Queen and green fiend, don’t forget to pop in a bit of blue as well. Good luck!

Besides the costumes, you can also pick up two styles of jack-o-lanterns for 50 credits each, and a Rumpel-ized Baron Plushie for 200.

By the way, while Ack is nowhere to be seen, you can still earn credits by playing the Clear the Skies mini-game on the airship, which has been refreshed with a new skin to match the Red October mood!

Meanwhile, Amelia is no longer dangling under the clutches of Baronstiltskin, but back down on Home Island operating an autumnal sale of her own. She makes no mention of what she went through, but you can pop by Adventure Outfitters for hoodies and Halloween decor!

Whew! It’s certainly been an eventful day. There are many different directions the story of the royal family could take, all of them equally intriguing. I’d love to read your thoughts and theories — drop ’em in the comments below! Happy Red October, everyone. 🎃

The Queen’s Batman-like cats are watching…

~💜

Thanks to Dizzy Feather for contributing to this post.

Baron's Airship, Fairy Tale Island

A Remarkably Red Rumpel-ween 🎃😈✨

Gentle Dolphin

Greetings, adventurers! Yes, as teased in our previous post, the Baron’s airship just docked on Home Island — unusual timing.

Previously, players were concerned about the Baron’s well-being after she twitched with excitement for a Rumpelstiltskin-inspired collection then suddenly disappeared. Now, the Baron now bears a striking resemblance to Rumpel himself! I guess he couldn’t keep up the charade much longer. Baronstiltskin invites us little adventurers to climb aboard her his airship. Let’s see what awaits us this spooky season!

Baron? You look a little green.

While the ship has kept its shape, the surrounding sky is purple and sparkly, like the appearance of Rumpel’s magic. Baronstiltskin is unashamed of their new identity, and Ack has followed suit!

The Cabin of Curiosities is full of surprises this month. Let’s ease ourselves in by checking out the two free winning costumes: Candy Girl by Fast Leopard and Jester by Blue Bones! 🍭🤡

Moving to the right, we see Amelia dangling from the ceiling while Baronstiltskin is eating grapes served by Rumpel-fied Ack. The three are surrounded by a pumpkin couch, candy bags, a jack-o’-lantern lamp, a black cat clock, and a cemetery painting. Despite being an aviator-apprehending antagonist, Rumpel offers all of these Halloween furnishings for the low price of 10 credits each.

Rumpelstiltskin reveals that he possessed the Baron and gave Ack an illusionary makeover. As for why he’s doing this, he alludes to how he became trapped on Fairytale Island then says that he is inviting the Baron’s mother over for tea.

Rumpelstiltskin confirms that the Red Baron has ties to Fairytale Island’s royal family, as shown in new dialogue options presented after completing the Baron’s Crusade quest (Thanks to Dizzy Feather for the screenshots!). Accounts from Rumpel and Fairytale’s prince paint the Baron’s mother, the Red Queen, as a destructive woman obsessed with cats and conquering. Why did the queen trap Rumpelstiltskin in the first place, and how can we fix this mess?

It makes you wonder if all of this was in Fairytale’s original pitch for the Create Your Dream Island contest. The Creators mentioned that the pitch had a full storyline and intrigue, two things that felt missing when Fairytale Island first released. Since then, the sheer amount of quests, clues, and cameos relating to Fairytale Island, Rumpelstiltskin, Amelia, and the Baron seem like they’re leading up to something big.

Will we finally get some answers for last Thanksgiving’s teaser?

I predict that we’ll see a new quest that will tie all of these storylines together. It’s hard to believe that it took almost two years to wrap up Fairytale Island’s story, which is bizarre to say the least. What do you make of all of this? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Thank you for reading, and have a good day!

—Gentle Dolphin 🐬

Fan Art Features

Airships, Artistry, and Blimps in the Air

Slanted Fish

Hey Poptropicans! A much anticipated Baron landing has finally made its way to Home Island… but we’ll get into that in our next update. 👀

In the meantime, let’s catch up on the fan art features from Poptropica’s Instagram stories in the past week! That first figure looks awfully sus…

Rumpel by @_frog._.paste_
Meme by @pinklightningmc
Meme by @happyclonetrooper
Jennifer (Pop OC) by @mysticsunni
Golden Brown Leaf Cookie (Pop OC) by @_leviroyale
Shell (Pop OC) by @pinklightningmc
Raven by @_frog._.paste_
Short Socks (Pop OC) by @pinklightningmc

Welp, we’re nearing the end of September, which means it’s almost time to wake up… for spooky season! Get ready for the PHB’s annual Halloween costume contest coming up in October! 🎃

And though Poptropica has spent the entire month ignoring their big milestone, we’ll go ahead and say it: happy 15th birthday, Poptropica. Wish we had something special to go with it in the game, but like our beloved Balloon Boy, it seems to be up in the air. 🎈

~🐠

Creators' Blog Guest Posts, Fan Art Features, Monthly Costume Contests

Get Ready to Rumpel with the Poppies 😈🏆

Slanted Fish

Hey Poptropicans! Between the Baron’s suspicious behavior and the beginning of the Poppies, it’s been a busy week. Let’s kick it back a bit! 🌴

Along with the Baron’s Rumpel remarks comes a heavy hint for what’s brewing. On the official blog, the Pop Creators have promised that a members only adventure is about to be unlocked for all next week involving an “expedition across the islands.” Fairytale followers can probably figure out the quest in question: Rumpel’s Challenge! 😈

Rumpel takeover at the Baron’s
Rumpel’s Challenge

We’re super stoked and honored to have the Pop Creators shout out our Poppies event! 🏆✨ As they shared on the blog, we’re calling all players to nominate their faves in a variety of categories for our Poptropica fan awards. Comment on our Poppies post by Wednesday, July 13 and check back later for the voting round and deets for a can’t-miss party! 🥳

Illustration by MaryannTheConqueror

Speaking of fandom fanfare, this week also marks the launch of the next monthly costume contest, which is open until Friday, July 22 at 8pm PST.

Plus, guest writer Dizzy Feather is also continuing her fanfiction The Pink Knight (which debuted here on the PHB!) with a sequel called Poptropican Heroes over on the Creators’ Blog — the first part is up now!

Monthly Costume Contest
Pink Knight
Purple Galaxy

Last but not least, this week has also brought some stellar fan art features to Pop’s Instagram stories, including an animation featuring the power of a Hamburger Hamburger, scenes from the Baron’s latest visit, and even a comic based on events from Spy Island. 🍔🕵️

Poppies 2022 by the PHB (@poptropicahare)
Happy Pride by @frenzylaughs
Dr. Hare planning to take over the world (animation) by @bubble.wasp
Oh… Baron by @nyanpawss
Rumpel Dr. Hare by @bubble.wasp
Twitching Baron by @invisible_b0nes
Rumpelstiltskin & Red from Fairytale Island by @emelyn_is_trying
Spy Island: Director D Treachery (comic) by @krazytalez

Oh, and Poptropica’s keeping it real with their IG reels. Check out this carousel of iconic villains (if only they could really be starter characters!):

Thanks for popping by! Go nominate in the Poppies!

~🐠