Poptropica 2011 – Year In Review

Can it really be that 2011 is now over? It was a pretty amazing year in Poptropica, with lots of new islands to explore, mini-games to play and special events and news. Here’s a look at all the major events in Poptropica over the past year.

January 2011

The New Year got off to a quick start with some new items in the Poptropica Store, including Dragon Followers. The big news of the month was the full public release of Cryptids Island (paid members had received early access in December). That was followed up at the end of the month with the announcement of Wild West Island, which was scheduled for a Valentine’s Day release in early access. Wild West’s sneak preview also arrived at the end of the month: it was a fun mini-game called Round ‘Em Up which featured an overhead view of the game where you had to corral cattle out on a ranch.

Here on PoptropicaSecrets.com, our special Poptropica Island Smackdown event reached the Final Four stage, with Time Tangled Island, Spy Island, Counterfeit Island and Mythology Island all competing for the crown as best island in the game.

February 2011

Anticipation for Wild West Island continued as players of the Round ‘Em Up mini-game were able to win special costumes each day. They included the Loaner, the Hombre, the Kid, and many more. And then as announced, Wild West Island was released to paid members on February 14. It featured a storyline where you arrived in an old Wild West town and had to track down and capture the Grande Gang, led by the notorious outlaw, El Mustachio Grande.

Our Island Smackdown Championship began on February 4. A few days later, following some intense voting by everyone here, Mythology Island was crowned as the winner. Would Mythology still hold up as the best island a year later? We may have to find out!

March 2011

March was a very busy month on Poptropica. It started off with a big rumor that the characters from Diary of a Wimpy Kid might be making an appearance in the game. The silhouette of Greg Heffley showed up in the Sneak Peeks section of Daily Pop. And then it was officially announced: Wimpy Wonderland would be coming soon. It was released for paid members on March 15 and then in a big surprise, became available to everyone five days later (we thought we’d all have to wait a month to play). Meanwhile, Wild West Island also became available for non-members to play in mid-March. It was a big month for Poptropica players!

The creators also started announcing plans to retire several costumes, starting with the Rock Star. Although some costumes were retired from the Store, a lot of old ones started coming back later in the year as well.

Here on PoptropicaSecrets.com, we launched the Forum! This has become a popular place over the past year and there’s always some great discussions going on. Check out the Poptropica Fashion section for advice on putting together great costumes, the Island Help section for assistance with any of the island quests, or just drop into the General Discussion to talk about anything in Poptropica.

April 2011

Another new island was announced in Poptropica. Red Dragon Island, which featured characters from the Magic Tree House series of books, takes place in ancient Japan. However, the island was scheduled to be released to members until the first week of May. So after a busy March, April was relatively quiet on Poptropica when it came to new islands to explore.

However, the sneak peek for Red Dragon Island featured a fun Sumo Wrestling competition, and members got a sneak peek outfit: the Red Ninja Costume. The Creators also kept us busy with rumors of player houses coming to the game, and then at the end of the month, the official Poptropica blog announced a favorite villain tournament, using a bracket voting system that we used here for the Island Smackdown.

May 2011

Red Dragon Island launched to a lot of fanfare to paid members on May 5, and it delivered with an epic quest that took you through time back to the ancient days in Japan. One of the highlights was ninja training, where you learn all the skills necessary to become a ninja and infiltrate the evil Samurai’s hideout. But Red Dragon is probably best-known for the incredibly difficult “boss fight” at the end, where you must stop the Red Dragon from burning down all the buildings in the village. The fight was so difficult that the Creators added an “easy mode” so that everyone could complete it.

Voting for the favorite Poptropica Villain was completed at the end of the month, with the Binary Bard being crowned as the favorite villain in all of Poptropica. It was a tough battle. The final four also included Zeus, Captain Crawfish, and El Mustachio Grande. Here at PoptropicaSecrets.com, we were a little surprised that Dr. Hare got knocked out in Round 2.

Speaking of Dr. Hare, he showed up on the official blog at the end of the month in a screenshot from 24 Carrot Island. He was standing next to the mayor, holding a plush doll. This turned out to be a sneak peek of the Poptropica Toys that were announced later on, but also kicked off the return of the evil rabbit, who at the end of 24 Carrot Island was blasted off into space. During the summer, Dr. Hare began an epic quest around the globe!

June 2011

The month kicked off with Red Dragon Island released to the public to play. The next day, the Creators announced another new adventure, Shrink Ray Island, which became available to paid members in early access at the end of the month.

The Poptropica Toys were also officially announced in June. They included 6-inch and 3-inch action figures and 7-inch plush toys. The 30-inch inflatable Poptropica blimp was also announced for later in the year. Yeah, I bought them all. How about you?

The official Poptropica blog also showcased the 20 rarest items in the game. These are items that only a small portion of Poptropica players had in their inventory. They included obscure but relatively easy items to get, like the Brain Hat (#20) or the Viking Suit (#19), as well as extremely rare and no-longer-possible to obtain items like the Poptropica 3rd Birthday hat (#1).

A fun mini-game was released as part of the sneak peek for Shrink Ray Island. Known as Shrink Shot, it took place in a small bedroom and your goal was to launch yourself across the room and attempt to hit several green bubbles to get the highest score possible.

July 2011

Summer arrived in Poptropica with a new feature: island restart. Now you could replay islands that you had previously completed by clicking the restart button on the island map. Although few people would likely choose to replay some of the more epic quests like Astro-Knights or Mythology, it’s a great tool for having a little fun with some of the original islands like Early Poptropica or Shark Tooth.

I got a little recognition in mid-July when the Creators highlighted me as one of the Poptropica Superstars. It was an incredible honor and I think 5 months later I’m still blushing over it. Other Poptropica Superstars included Grumpy Icicle, Grey Icicle, Quiet Boot, and Sporty Boa.

Dr. Hare began his incredible tour of the world. In a series of posts on the official blog, he traveled to all the major continents on the globe. Was this just a promotion for the Poptropica Toys, or is Dr. Hare planning a triumphant return to Poptropica? Only time will tell.

At the end of the month, Shrink Ray Island became available for everyone, and the Creators also announced the next new island: Mystery Train.

August 2011

August is usually a slow month in Poptropica, since it’s the height of summer vacation. This year was no exception. Most of the news focused on Mystery Train Island, which didn’t actually launch until September. But during August, players were treated to the sneak peek mini-game for the island, D.C. Diner.

Dr. Hare also continued his travels around the globe, showing up in London and on the coast of Maine. And the creators announced a special in-game video guide to Astro-Knights island, one of the most difficult islands in the game to complete. It’s also one of the most popular island walkthroughs here on PoptropicaSecrets.com!

The end of the month went out with some big excitement as Poptropica began its 4th birthday celebration a little early. It featured a similar theme as the previous year, where balloons filled all the multi-player rooms in the game. If you got lucky, you’d find a special blue #4 balloon, which would give you the exclusive 4th birthday cake costume.

September 2011

Mystery Train Island finally launched for paid members in Poptropica at the beginning of the month. In this adventure, you went on board a train heading for the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. Shortly after the train departed, someone sabotaged the plans for the star attraction, and it was up to you to solve the whodunnit.

Also, Poptropica began re-releasing rare and discontinued items into the Poptropica Store for a limited time. These included classics like the Light Ninja, Robin Hood, Paper Boy and the Skullduggery Pirate.

The next new island was announced: Game Show Island, which featured a future setting where robots had taken over the planet by winning money on game shows. Robots became a big theme in the Fall of 2011. They appeared again later on when Legendary Swords was released. Someone at Poptropica really loves robots!

At the end of the month, the sneak peek mini-game for Game Show Island was released. It was called Money Ladder and it was a game show done in the style of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, where you answer increasingly difficult multiple-choice questions. In addition to getting the top prize, players got a Robot Costume, Robot Dance special move and a Binary Rain effect.

October 2011

At the beginning of the month, Mystery Train Island became available for everyone to play, while anticipation for both Game Show Island and Legendary Swords continued to build. The Official Poptropica Guide book was released to bookstores on October 13, and the Poptropica Blimp floated into toy stores on October 23.

At the end of the month, Game Show Island was released to members.

November 2011

After a ton of hype and promotion, Legendary Swords arrived on 11/11/11. This special new game in Poptropica was different than a typical island quest and involved combat and action. In the game, you use a series of legendary swords to battle robots led by a mysterious villain named E.Vile. The initial launch of the game featured several levels but ended with a teaser for more to come soon. We’re eagerly awaiting the next installment of Legendary Swords!

The Creators also announced Ghost Story Island, the final island to be released in 2011. In Ghost Story, you explore a small New England town called Hemlock Harbor, which is haunted by several ghosts. At the end of the month, Poptropicans were treated to a fun sneak peek for the island called Spook Central. In this mini-game, you traveled all over Poptropica to track down and capture five famous ghosts, including the Headless Horseman, Sweet William, the Bell With, Deogen, and the Brown Lady. The end of the mini-game had a surprise twist and when you completed everything, you won a very cool Ghost Hunter suit. However, only paid members were able to capture all five ghosts and complete the sneak peek.

December 2011

Ghost Story Island launched on December 15 for paid members. As with the last few islands, non-members were able to play in a demo mode and complete the first part of the island. This new island featured a detailed storyline that was revealed as you progressed through the adventure. It has its share of spooky moments, including the really creepy part when you’re looking through the telescope in the old house (shiver!)

Right before the Creators left for the holidays, they announced another new island: S.O.S. Island. This new quest, which will take place on a doomed ship in the North Atlantic, borrows heavily from the story of the Titanic and will be the first new island of 2012!

Well, that wraps it up for 2011 on Poptropica. It was a pretty eventful year! Thank you for making PoptropicaSecrets.com your home for all the Poptropica cheats, news and help. We’re looking forward to seeing you more in 2012.

Happy New Year!