Blue Reviews: Project: Super Secret

Hello, everyone!

After seeing the title of this post, you may wonder why I am reviewing a project and not a party. The reason for this is because I want to give my opinion on a lot of things, regarding Club Penguin. I always enjoy reviewing Club Penguin parties so I thought that it would make sense to review other aspects of Club Penguin. After all, this is a blog entirely based on opinion and thought.

Today, I would like to talk about Project: Super Secret: the mysterious and highly anticipated future of Club Penguin. To sum up, this project has, so far, lead to the development of a new app called Disney Mix. This app allows users to communicate with Disney fans in a unique way; “Chat, Share & Play” is the motto! This is the first time Disney Mobile have ever released a messaging app and it incorporates Club Penguin within it, along with many other popular Disney franchises. According to Spike Hike, this app is only a fraction of what Project: Super Secret is, entirely! Originally, however, Disney Mix was the main focus until the team decided that it was time to revive an old game.

That’s right! Club Penguin is getting a makeover and you have – most likely – heard this already. Not will this be a “makeover”, this project will be a brand new game, built from new technology! It will be in 3D! But what does this mean for Club Penguin, currently?

As of now, the team are not too sure what will happen to Club Penguin in the near future. Apparently, Adobe Flash will retire from internet browsers by sometime in 2017. Club Penguin is built on Flash which means that it will have to be put to an end before Flash no longer exists on the web. Though sad this may seem, all games have to come to an end, eventually. Club Penguin (by the time it stops running) will have exceeded – an amazing – 11 years of life! It is haunting when we think about all of the stuff we may lose but Project: Super Secret shines some light onto the situation. Only some light, though.

It has been confirmed that all of our items will be lost when Club Penguin ends. Nothing will be transferred to the new game except for our penguin names. Although this may sound like terrible news, it is actually something commonly sensible. It is annoying, considering that there is a new game ahead but what if there weren’t? We expect to see some continuity but the team are working hard to focus on bigger aspects, such as customization. With customization playing a big role in the new game, who needs their old items when we can make our own ones?

Don’t get me wrong, I also feel sad about this news. However, I have hope for the new game and I trust that the team will make the most of their time to make other aspects of the project even better! On the other hand, I am not too bugged about this due to some bigger news.

The new game will be for mobile only.

The rumours were true. Mobile technology seems to be the horizon of potential for future games. Using new technology may result in new advancements and changes. For frequent PC users, this news may hit you hard in the stomach (it did for me) and all we can do is respect the decision that the team made. If the game will end up being better, we must let it be. The only inconvenience caused by this is whether some of the audience own mobile technology that will be compatible with the new game. I, myself, have no intention of buying a new phone in order to play the new game which means my Club Penguin passion may die out sometime soon. Unless I manage to get my hands on newer technology, I cannot support the new game. This may be a common scenario for other people, too, and all you have got to evaluate is whether the game is worth it. Is it worth buying a new phone/tablet in order to play a new game? 

The Mean Project

Hello everyone!

Yeah, the truth hurts a lot of the time. Club Penguin seems to be routing a course which a lot of the community will find difficult to follow. If you haven’t heard the news, Project: Super Secret will not allow us to transfer our history to the new game. That means we cannot keep our coins, our clothing, our items, our stamps and our buddies. Although it may not sound that bad  (because we get to keep our names, apparently) it is quite depressing to hear. Especially when Club Penguin, on the PC, will shut down soon because of issues with Chrome not supporting Flash and probably because Project: Super Secret means a “new start”. As a result, all the things we have earned along the previous 10 years have become a lot more sentimental to us and now we know that we will lose them once Club Penguin comes to an end. It really is a sad thing to hear.

To be honest, I knew that Club Penguin will be ending anytime soon and I was preparing for what to expect. I mean, 10 years is a great lifespan of a virtual world and soon after its 10th anniversary, I was slowly anticipating the news to break out that Club Penguin will be reaching the end of its journey (on PC). It turns out that in August 2016, Spike Hike confirmed that Club Penguin will be discontinued – online – at some point but the team are discussing the broader picture.

The thing that really bugs me about all of this news is that Club Penguin isn’t leaving the world with a bang. Now we know that we will be losing all of our items and inventory, it makes it even worse and it annoys me especially since the Club Penguin community have pushed Club Penguin this far, yet it feels like our dedication to this game hasn’t been valued. I understand that Club Penguin are trying their best to do what’s right for the community, but it really feels like they are focusing on the younger audience too much. Little did I know that Project: Super Secret appears to be mobile only. Apparently, a lot of the younger audience prefer to play Club Penguin on their mobile and that is why Club Penguin are abandoning PC. If that is the truth, all we can do it let it depress us but I feel that Club Penguin need to address the full details very soon.

I have been playing Club Penguin ever since 2008 and – most of the time – I have been a member. Almost 8 years of being a member should feel heroic but it really feels deceived and pointless now that we are going to be losing everything we payed for. I feel like no respect it being payed back; some of us will just fade away from the community with nothing to look back on because there will be nothing. From the looks of things, I will be one of those players which means that I will probably retire from Club Penguin and its community.

To prepare myself, I am going to be planning on what I can do with this website next. As of 2017, The Blue Blog will no longer support Club Penguin unless I manage to get a decent phone. Even then, it would be complicated to manage Club Penguin entirely off mobile which is an alien concept to me because I am much more attached to PCs. Therefore, I need new ideas to inspire content on my blog. Over the next few months, I will be thinking.

This week certainly has disheartened me. I have found out a lot of stuff that will mean a lot of life-changing events to occur soon. If you are wondering where my sources are to support the facts I have stated in this post, I advise you check other blogs. This post is more like a pure, on-the-spot reaction to the news that has bombarded us this week. I apologise that this post wasn’t very happy but it’s honest and truly what I have to say. To sum up: I am losing respect for a game which I trusted in making a comforting end to the game. It turns out that it will all be destroyed by what we thought would have been the resurrection of Club Penguin; Project: Super Secret. I think that we have all been deceived. It’s a real shame but all we can do, for now, is wait for a post from Club Penguin.

Instead of arguing with each other on social media, these times require some support from each other so that we can prepare – the best way possible – for our future. Also, it is a good idea to make the most of what we have left of Club Penguin. If you have the time, join in on community events to make memories before they are destroyed. It’s inconvenient but it is something we have to get through together.

Waddle On!

-Blue21102

Long and Lost

Hello everyone!

Have you also been wondering what has happened to Club Penguin’s merch? It is certainly disappointing that Club Penguin no longer seems to continue its marketing of toys, books and clothes for Club Penguin fans, well in the United Kingdom at least.

I felt that it was about time to raise this issue and discuss it with you lot. I think that it is a shame that Club Penguin no longer seems to mention anything to do with merchandise. When Club Penguin was popular, it was actually pretty good! I remember the time when Club Penguin was a total hit at my old primary school; we used to obsess over Card-Jitsu and play the official trading card game with each other. I think I have around 3 tins worth of Card-Jitsu cards long and lost in my house but I still treasure them.

Do you have any specific memories associated with Club Penguin merchandise? I can also recall my collection of plush puffles and penguins. To be honest, I was not the best collector. I seem to remember having an orange and a blue puffle plushie and a Squidzoid and a Medieval King Penguin plushie. I used to play with them a lot. There was also those strange “mix and match” figurines that were pretty cool. I started off with the igloo play set that featured a penguin and a puffle and I expanded the collection with more figurines such as Gary and his “trusty” Wheel Bot. These toys were probably famous on a lot of shelves in popular toy stores but now you never see them.

It’s Complicated…

Hey everyone!

Yeah, I know. It has been over a month since I last posted on this blog and – obviously – I am aware that not many of you may be reading this straight away. I think the best way to explain everything is to clearly state that it may be my time to move on soon.

Club Penguin has played a big part of my childhood and, for years, I have supported the team and even got more involved in the community nearly two years ago. I was 7 years old when I first took an interest in Club Penguin and there has not been a year where I have not played it. It has always been something I have been dedicated to. It was much easier to do this when I was younger since I had nothing else much going on in my life apart from school. Although school was much easier back then. So as you get older, some things decay like in real life: nothing lasts forever. For almost eight years, Club Penguin has stuck with me but I have been gradually weakening the bond every year. Not just because I am losing interest, but because I have no reason to continue my support.

When I look at the future of Club Penguin, I feel that I am no longer needed to drive forward the franchise. Exciting things are peaking such as Project: Super Secret but what I need to realize is that Club Penguin is a game for kids. Because I have paid lose attention to the game, it has become something more than it should have been to me and that happens to a lot of people who are afraid to lose something that they have known for ages. Club Penguin is a great virtual world but I feel that I have had that time to experience it at its best, for me. It may be heading for a brighter future soon but that is a part of gearing up for a new generation. If you think about it, most fans from Club Penguin who supported them from day one are now probably adults. I think that Club Penguin is on the verge of jumping to the new generation with a fresh community of penguins who think of the game in a different way. As it edges towards new technology, it suits the current generation by upgrading what is required to please kids of this age in time.

And – obviously – I am not a dinosaur like many other community members but what Club Penguin has done for me so far is something that I have cherished and now I feel like I have accomplished that journey. As I continue life into: exams, jobs and more opportunities in the big bad world, I feel that I no longer need Club Penguin to assist me as I am now ready to move on and do new things. That being said, I feel that Club Penguin is starting to limit me when it shouldn’t be and that is why I believe it is time to let go and carry on life.

What I am talking about is Club Penguin: the game. My involvement in the community has had a similar impact on my life; if not, a bigger impact. This is all because of this blog and my interaction with the community on Twitter. My interweaving hiatuses are indications of more important things going on in my life and very soon it would have surpassed my dedication to the Club Penguin community. Even though my dedication is dying, it does not change the fact that Club Penguin will forever remain a solid memory inside my mind. I mean, how could I forget the game that changed my childhood? So as Club Penguin moves on, I am sure to find the slightest amount of time to check in on its life and I may find the time to see my old buddies from Twitter. I am very happy to see a brighter future for Club Penguin. In the past few years, it has declined and that is only due to the fact that it requires an upgrade. I am sure that sometime this year, many of us will witness that upgrade and see Club Penguin soaring off into its new generation for new people to enjoy and support.

I think it is a shame that I only started blogging for nearly two years now. I have been more endorsed into the game whereas my spark of interest for the community, that surrounds Club Penguin, only occurred back in May 2014. I have made many new friends since then but I am sad to say that it is time for me to fade away. That does not mean I will fossilise and never see any of the community again; there will be days where I want to check in on my pals to see how everything is going.

So is this goodbye? I am not too sure at the moment. It is not a “see you again” but it is more like a “catch you later”. Thank you for being very supportive to me and my blog. In a month’s time, I may be holding my “The Blue Blog: Two years old!” party but only because I think that it is important to reflect on my followers over the past year. I will keep in touch now and then. This website will be up for as long as I can imagine as I don’t pay for it and I will check my Twitter from time to time as well.

Thank you for everything! 🙂

-Blue21102

The Third Journey

Hello everyone!

Have you ever thought of what the future of Club Penguin may turn out to be? For over 10 years, Club Penguin has been able to change lives and help people become stronger in the community online. For achieving this, Club Penguin deserves the recognition it has. But remember that Club Penguin has not actually been at its peak in quite a long time. If I correctly recall, Club Penguin was able to hit record breaking traffic all because of the legendary Operation Blackout party, in 2012. Since then, Club Penguin traffic has receded but people have struggled to work out why. Obviously, it follows a trend: a video game eventually completes its life cycle and dies. Club Penguin is either on the verge of plummeting to its end or the lack of its popularity is all because of the team’s intentions with this game.

For a while now, Project: Super Secret has been hyping the community for something bigger than Club Penguin. Some people believe that this new project has caused the focus on Club Penguin to drift off into a new horizon that hardly any of us are aware of. But people have been guessing. What could Project: Super Secret potentially be? It is still unknown yet we have been given several hints and sneak peeks from the team. The real question is: How will it affect Club Penguin?

Like I mentioned earlier, the decline in traffic on Club Penguin could be as a result of life. However, almost everyone gets the impression that Club Penguin has been lacking some quality for the past 2 years or so. What I mean by this is that the monthly parties seem less spirited and the overall buzz that surrounds the community seems to die a little every year. The Club Penguin blog has changed. The Club Penguin Times have changed. We have changed. Without a doubt, this has affected the popularity of Club Penguin and we are still unsure of where it is heading. The team have become much quieter too. Formerly, we could engage with them much more often however the connection has become weaker and the overall vibes are become more and more fragile.