Poptropica

Poptropica is a massively multiplayer online game and virtual world in which children ages 6 to 15 can travel, play games, compete in head-to-head competition, communicate safely with each other, and complete "island missions" and get medallions. Poptropica was developed by the Family Education Network[1], a division of Pearson, which also owns kids’ site funbrain.com. Poptropica.com has a traffic rank of 9,956 by Alexa Internet.

Characters / Citizens / Poptropicans

When players first arrive at Poptropica, they are given a character avatar they can either customize immediately, or modify while playing with the Costumizer tool which is a tool that give you clothes like the citizens in the island.[2]. Once a player enters Poptropica , they choose an island to explore. Currently, there are six known virtual islands in Poptropica: Early Poptropica, Shark Tooth, Time Tangled, 24 Carrot, Super Power, and Spy Island. Spy Island is not released at this time. Each island needs help. On every island players can visit multiplayer buildings to chat or battle with other human players. A "pre-scripted chat" is used where player chooses a question out of three questions to ask another player.

Items

In Poptropica, the player starts off with clothes he/she chooses in the beginning. The player can then get various items and outfits from quests on different islands. Players will get a special medal for each time they solve an island's problem. To view one's collected items, click on the backpack icon at the top right corner which serves as an inventory. The player can also customize his/her character with the Costumizer tool by finding a character who has clothes he/she desires, clicking on the Costumizer icon, then clicking on that character. Once the player is in the Costumizer tool, he/she simply clicks on the clothes he/she wants to put on their character to replace what they already have. Clothes are not usually part of the inventory.

User Safety

Poptropica uses safe, kid-friendly, pre-scripted chat, which allows players to communicate without sharing personal information [3]. It also keeps the communication free from profanity.

Character names are also pre-constructed[4] to prevent any profanity or personal information from entering the virtual world.

Island Synopsis

Early Poptropica

Early Poptropica was the first island created for Poptropica. Players encounter the original settlers of Early Poptropica who are in distress. They are 80’s style characters[5] who are missing items from their village. While finding the various objects, the player encounters, among other characters, a giant and a very large spider. On Main Street, there is an art museum with works by artists such as Leonardo Da Vinci, Vincent Van Gogh, and Georges-Pierre Seurat.

Shark Tooth Island

Shark Tooth Island was the second island released in Poptropica. The scenario revolves around the inhabitants of the island that are being troubled by a fierce shark. The player must help the citizens by exploring within the island's ancient temple ruins and subduing the giant shark, called Booga, with a special concoction. The player then has to rescue a boy and a professor from an island formerly separated from the mainland by Booga.

Time Tangled Island

Time Tangled Island is the third island released for Poptropica. The scenario revolves around a malfunctioning time machine made by Professor Pendulum that has distorted history. It is the player’s job to go back in time and set things right. During the quest, users encounter major historical figures such as Thomas Edison, Lewis and Clark, Leonardo Da Vinci, etc. Once the player has restored the future, they can go forward in time to see what the future holds as well as a version of themselves 50 years older. This island was created in conjunction with the editors of Fact Monster to maintain historical accuracy.[6] Professor Pendulum can be found on Shark Tooth Island in the Tourist Center.

24 Carrot Island

24 Carrot Island is the fourth island released on Poptropica. The Poptropicans on 24 Carrot Island are in trouble. Someone has stolen all their carrots, citizens are disappearing, and the economy is in ruins. The player also has to face an antagonist named Dr Hare and his giant robot bunny inside the factory. The user must solve the mystery of the missing carrots and citizens in order to restore the island to its former greatness.

Super Power Island

Super Power Island is the fifth Island released for Poptropica. A giant meteor has crashed into Super Power Island's county prison freeing six hardened criminals from the prison and giving them super powers. Now they are wreaking havoc on the island. Only a true superhero can save the day.You get the flying ability after defeating all the villians except for Betty Jetty.[7]

Spy Island

Spy island is the sixth island released for poptropica. A new sinister menace has been discovered by Poptropica's top three spies, but now the spies have vanished! The player will need skills of a cunning spy to rescue them. It's up to the user to save the day and be a new spy. The site is currently down for maintenance and will be back up by 6 AM Eastern time on August 6 2008. It is rumored that this is to put on Spy Island.

Multiplayer Buildings

Each island on Poptropica has a building on its Main Street that offers multi-player games and chatting between players.

• Soda Pop Shop/Arcade - Early Poptropica
• Coconut Cafe - Shark Tooth Island
• Party Time Tower - Time Tangled Island
• Cinema - 24 Carrot Island
• The Daily Paper - Super Power Island
• The Hair Club - Spy Island

Multi-player games

These are the multi-player games released for Poptropica. These are not in order for Appearance.

• Sudoku (Both single and multi-player)
• Switch (single-player)
• Sky Dive
• Hoops
• Paint War
• Star Link
• Balloons

External links

• Poptropica
• Official developers' blog