BOTM + Irritating New Item + Glitch

Hey Jammers! This is going to be a long post, so I hope you have time to read! 

After exhaustedly looking through every freaking shop in every land of Jamaa, I turned to other blogs to help me. Yes, there is a new item today, and of course it's in that cursed Eagle-only shop.

It contains a whole load of sports equipment! But I guess only monkeys or pandas can really use the stuff. They're the only animals on AJ I believe have thumbs! (IRL, pandas DO have thumbs! The more you know.)

I'm seriously sorry for waiting til the VERY LAST DAY to post the Buddy of the Month. And yes, later today I will update Berry the Koala! I don't have a typed draft yet, actually– I write everything on the spot. But this time.. THIS time, I  give my word that the day won't pass with Berry going un updated.

So here we go, the Buddy of the Month! *deep breath*

Start clapping for...

Balaur!

Also known as WaterGazelles, Balaur is a relatively new friend of mine. I added her a while ago and we haven't stopped talking since! She's kind, outspoken, and really fun to be around! 

Thanks for being my friend, Balaur!

For more information on Buddy of the Month, go to the BOTM page in the tabs!

And now a notice regarding my Buddy List: it's becoming too full. I'm sorry to say this, but for a while I will not be accepting random buddy requests. I'll accept if I see you, of course, but not a random Jam a Gram request. Sorry!

In other news, I've discovered a weird glitch with the maps while navigating to the new item:

This needs some information to go along with it: I'm in Epic Wonders. I click the button to the far right, and I'm still in Epic Wonders. I click the button that says "you" and STILL I'm in Epic Wonders. AJHQ hasn't weeded out all of the glitches, I see.

AJHQ has weeded out a lot of things that made AJ what it was. It weeded out absolute free chat's complete availability, it weeded out the animal facts that were once evenly spread through the lands– and it even took away things that didn't need to be taken away from nonmembers.

Some people say AJ isn't what it used to be. Some think AJ is improving. Some just don't care. 

Overall, it's safe to say that AJ is improving. There are more things to do, more places to see, and more eyes to see them with. Although, whether AJHQ is getting better or worse is up for debate. Money-wise, they're improving. Audience-wise, they're expanding. AJ used to be that secret paradise, and now I walked pass a girl in the library playing Pest Control.

But what makes a game really good? What are the factors? Are they listening to what the audience has to say, or are they relying on their own imagination for everything? Are they forcing learning and education, or letting everything go bye easily with learning being a choice? It's all up to opinion.

I'm curious about you. What do you think makes a great game? What are the building blocks for the widespread success that AJ got? 

Tell me in the comments!

The Leaves are Red

Hey Jammers! At least in the Northern Hemisphere of the world, Fall is falling down upon us in the form of cool weather, tree nuts, and a wide array of amazingly colored yellow, orange, red, and burgundy leaves. To celebrate the fall of Fall, the new item:

It's the same leaf pile from last year, except with the addition of a steel rake. Did you know that to produce these colors, trees go under a lot of stress? The deepest richest reds are produced with the most pressure on the tree to preserve them.

Next up, a notable post from the Daily Explorer:

Keep a lookout on AJ's official blog to hear about the diamond challenges!

But as much as AJHQ would like to think that diamonds are a great addition, in reality they're not really catching on as something people like. Maybe many animals crowd up the Diamond Shop every day, but really, that's not going to take away the fact that these items are not rare in the least. They're just akin to regular shop-bought items now, regardless of how hard it is to get diamonds. They're up there, but they're not rare.

I don't trade much, I don't have many rare items– but despite the frivolousness of them, they were always a major part of AJ. Definitely not the biggest part, but all the diamond shop does is take away from a big part of AJ, and that's never good.

Ideally, here are some things that I think would really improve Animal Jam and build upon it's main factors:

1. AJHQ being honest about Rare Item Mondays and never actually rereleasing them again.

2. A portion of the Jamaalidays where nonmembers can do things like go on member adventures, buy member animals, and change item colors.

3. Releasing word of a new animal only maybe once every six months or so at least. This will induce more hype about them than if they continue being put out almost every update.

4. Typed Jam-a-Grams finally going out of "member only testing"

5. Maybe open up the diamond shop for only a limited time, like seasonally– or just outright closing it down to undo the damage once and for all.

6. The pet wash has literally no reason to be member's only anymore.

7. There is ALSO no reason for the nature facts to have ever left. I'm pretty sure AJHQ has enough money to bring them back to make the game more educational, at least.

I keep talking about this, but feel free to add on to this list and at some point I will write an email to AJHQ about this.

 And yes, it will probably work. Back in 2012 my friend emailed them about my idea for a Conservation Center, and look now: a conservation center.

That's all I have for today, Jammers,
see you in Jamaa!

Buried Treasure...

Hey Jammers! There really isn't much in these few days before the Night of the Phantoms. I keep saying that. But look here at today's marvelous new item...

A chest of gems! As expected, it's interactive. Open it and close it to find a rainbow variety of polished gems! You can't ACTUALLY store gems in there, but wouldn't it be cool if you could? Hmm...

Here are a few more variations of nonmember Night of the Phantoms costumes:

From top to bottom: Vampire, pumpkin, eyeless ghost, and cool alien. Not that great, I know– but it's something, isn't it?

Some quick notices before I close off this post:

1. Berry The Koala entry coming very soon!

2. Buddy of the month chosen and will be posted sooner!

3. Codes page updated!

4. Rarity page will be updated too.

That's all for now,

see you in Jamaa!

Post coming later today

At around 4:00 EST!

Caged Phantom

Hey jammers! In the days before the actual Night of the Phantoms, news is going to be pretty lazy aside from the new item. But think of it as a firecracker; a bit slow at first when you're lighting it up– and then it explodes!

AJ is just rereleasing rare items into the diamond shop. Here's a tip: do not ever trade too much for a seasonal item at any point in the year. Seasonal items keep coming back, so there's no use sacrificing your actually rare items for something that'll just come around again next year.

Sadly, I don't have any other news for today. I hope you can hold up until the Night of the Phantoms next Thursday!

– DoomyPanda

Posting Late!

I will post later today!

Go, Platypus, GO!

Hey Jammers! Sorry for not posting yesterday. If I did, I would be late!

Before I officially begin the post, I'd like to apologize for not realizing the item I posted on Sunday wasn't the NEW item. According to the comments, it's pretty old. Why was there a nonmember item that I had no idea about when it came out? I'm usually pretty vigilant about this stuff! Strange.

The new item today marks the beginning of the preparations for the Night of the Phantoms!

Hmm... this item seems familiar. Maybe a past item rereleased? Not to be rude to AJHQ, but this is really typical...

Next up, a new animal video is playing in Sarepia Theater, featuring one of my favorite animals, the platypus.

:') beautiful.

Sorry for the short post, but I have a lot of homework. 

Thanks for reading, Jam on!

– DoomyPanda

NEW Quilted Blanket

Hey animals! I'm really excited today about the new item! Wanna know why?

Because after all these years, a new nonmember item is finally being sold in the Shiveer Shoppe!

Some may think these two items are too similar– and they are, but I just love the default coloring on the quilted one! It reminds me of a clear night sky in Winter. 

For those who don't know, the Shiveer Shoppe is the coat rack in the Cocoa Hut where you can buy warm clothes to protect against the cold wind. Funny story; when I was new, I thought the Shiveer Shoppe was a stand-alone room where you could buy things. I was slightly disappointed when I realized it wasn't, haha.

I would post a cool Nonmember Clothing idea to go along with the quilt, but there is a lot I have to do today so you all will have to wait a bit! Sorry!

That's all for now, Jammers,

see you in Jamaa!

Glitches and Glitch Instructions!

Hey jammers! Sorry if this was a late post. I got carried away playing AJ with my friends and never really looked at the time, you know?

Anyway, the new item of today is sold in Treetop Gardens, Sarepia Forest.

Pretty! For those who have never seen one, here is a quote from Wikipedia about the Banyan Tree:

"A Banyan (also Banian) is a fig that starts its life as an epiphyte (a plant growing on another plant) when its seeds germinate in the cracks and crevices on a host tree (or on structures like buildings and bridges). "Banyan" often refers specifically to the Indian banyan or Ficus benghalensis, which is the national tree of the Republic of India."

Cool! You learn something new every day.

In some glitchy-related news, a dolphin has been spotted in Jamaa Township and is doing just fine on land!

We were wrong; the land/water glitches are still here! Just very few and far between. There are still floaty seals and dolphins– and just when you thought you were on land and safe from sharks, one MATERIALIZES right next to you!

But let's be clear on one thing: sharks aren't that dangerous. Sharks would really prefer to eat some fish. Humans aren't very tasty! Seriously. You're more likely to die in a vending machine accident than in a shark attack. Honest.

Back to the topic of glitches, me and my friend Catlover25 figured out a way to somehow get around the Zios glitch preventions and have a small taste of what it was like to carelessly walk on walls back in 2012.

So here's how you do it: you go to the very corner where Cat is in the 2nd screenshot. Next, you click the RIGHT bar of the phantom sign, then really quickly, click a game on someone else's player card and CANCEL! Next, super quickly, switch animals!

It's complicated, but if you manage to end up where I am in the 2nd picture, DON'T MOVE! If you move you'll just be sent back to land.

And the last segment of the news today is the new renovations of the Medical Center!

I really love the medical center. It's kind of dusty with some nice muted colors, just like the beta Medical Center! Now it has what appears to be a video center and some framed animal photos. Nice!

That's all for now, Jammers,

see you in Jamaa!

HALLOWEEN THEMED ADVENTURE!? SPOOKY!!

Hey animals! This is going to be a looong post. Well, not too long– but longer than yesterday.

First order of business, the new item:

Hmmm... pretty. Although, shouldn't it be the September birthstone? Maybe a mistake.

Speaking of mistakes, AJHQ made a HUGE mistake and gave away almost all the details to a big new adventure they're working on. Here are some very rare, and very precious screenshots. Treat them like a pretty jewel. They are sourced from Animal Jam Spirit.

Fig. 1: pumpkin patch

Fig. 2: MAGIC!

Fig. 3: Phantoms! Spooky! *cough*not*cough*

Fig. 4: Difficulty

This looks to me like a Night of the Phantoms or Halloween-themed adventure! And judging by the "enable cheat" button which isn't found in any other adventure– it's about to get difficult. 

It's all a work in progress, yeah, but these baby screenshots are PRECIOUS. Precious, precious little babies. 

But maybe– maybe they're not. Maybe just like the otter glitch before otters came out, AJHQ is just giving us a predictable tease again. By now they probably know that there are 1 million+ viewed AJ blogs that JUMP at every future-telling glitch to further promote it. Maybe blogs are helping AJHQ along and they're agreeing with it.

It's smart, I'll give them that. But in all honesty AJHQ is getting more and more predictable each update. There's word of a new animal at least once every four updates. There's a new adventure in the same range. This is all, I know, because of AJ's success which is good. I'm convinced in a few years everyone will stop playing Clubpenguin and transfer their focus to AJ.

Sorry for mentioning Clubpenguin in a blog post.

But really– all of this money being used on new animals that cease being popular so quickly can be used on something to get universally excited about. That is, Alpha Sightings and a special once-a-year Nonmember Week.

Just so you know, Nonmember Week was something I came up with. It's like the Jamaalidays in a sort, but for one week Nonmembers can play Member Adventures, change colors of nonmember items, and send typed Jam a Grams. (If you like this idea, comment and I'll send an email to AJHQ.)

In conclusion– we know NOTHING is going to happen unless we say something about it. I keep talking about emailing AJHQ, but truth be told at the end of the day (I hate that phrase, don't get me wrong) I'm either too occupied or convinced that AJHQ already has a plan and my email would just be annoying them. I don't even know anymore.

Well, that's all for now. See y'all in Jamaa!

– DoomyPanda

Finally the Star

Hey animals! Guess what day it is today? Update day! Update day happens every other Thursday, so don't miss out!

Fall has finally FALLEN in Jamaa. Haha bad pun. The Jamaa Journal haunts us with news of the impending Night of the Phantoms! Look forward to many new spooky items coming to the Township Shops.

I'll just list out the new things that AJHQ has brought us this update for your convenience!

☆ Pet monkeys are being sold in the Diamond Shop. 

☆ A new animal-spotting game called Spot On is now in Kimbara.

☆ Pandas are confirmed to be coming back.

☆ There is a new video in Jammer Central featuring a panda. Finally, after all these years.

☆ There is also a new video in the Conservation Museum showing the otter that was adopted by AJHQ!

☆ New item sold in Treetop Gardens.

That's all for now, Jammers,

see you in Jamaa!

– DoomyPanda

Candles and a Nonmember Clothing Idea

Hey Jammers! I'm so excited today! Wanna know why? Because tomorrow is the update and pandas are coming back!

But there's a whole lot of other news to talk about before we even get close to tomorrow, so let us get to the new item!

Mmmm... not as good as the last item, but it's something! The fact that there are items every day shows that AJHQ has money and time to update the game everyday. While I don't care much for the success of many big corporations like AJ, this shows that the game will be around for a whole lot longer.

Not much else today, so here's a very blue Nonmember Clothing Idea!

The items involved are only a blue flower and a blue candy necklace!

That's all for now, Jammers,

Look forward to tomorrow, because a lot is gonna happen!

– DoomyPanda

Predicting The Future

Hey animals! The new item today is... unusual, for Animal Jam at least. You be the judge!

This actually might grow on me! It's nonmember, which makes it all the better. Brb, I need to go raise my pathetic amount of gems so I can buy it.

Wait, hang on a minute...

Look at that penguin's hat! This RIM post is from yesterday. I knew today's item looked familiar!

So I'm concluding that AJHQ likes to give out hints on the Daily Explorer. If you're a blogger and like to post earlier than everyone else, now there's a way to post before the item even comes out! 

Moral of the story: check the D.E. every day!

...Unless your browser is incompatible with the new layout, like mine. -_-

And to go with the fabulous new item, a nonmember clothing idea:

Just a bandana and a fez. Both in Jam Mart Clothing, both default colors. :)

Well, that's all for right now.

See you in Jamaa!

~DoomyPanda

No Post Today!

I have to catch up on schoolwork today. I'll be back tomorrow!

I Need Your Advice!

Hey Jammers! The new item is sold in Jam Mart Furniture, so you're probably guessing it will be Egypt-related.

...And, you're right! It's a lion Sphinx. It doesn't really look anything like the actual Sphinx statue– which is a combination of a feline body and what looks like a man –but you get the idea.

Next, some blog notices...

1. I'm very sorry, but I do not have time for a blog party. You can still stop by my den at any time. I'm online a lot.

2. Berry the Koala updating shortly.

3. Buddy of the Month in the process of being chosen.

And finally, the main point of this post: I need your help.

Even though it may be kind of aesthetically pleasing, we can all agree that my den is BORING. B-O-R-I-N-G! I keep seeing all of your fantastic dens, so why not give me a few of your ideas in the comments? I'll probably make a stand alone post later crediting all of your ideas on this post and trying them out!

You can make them broad, too, so others can get ideas for their own den. :)

Thanks for your help!

~DoomyPanda

Best Dressed Tips

Hey Jammers! No official post today, I'm afraid. I can't seem to find the new item! Could you help me out and comment it's location?

For now I'm going to be talking about my AJ friend Balaur's amazing beach-inspired den!

If you're having trouble seeing it, just click to enlarge the screenshot. It's a beach made of pillows, mats, and plant life! Cute! :)

The next thing I want to talk about is what I learned playing Best Dressed; a tip, and a kind of glitch.

First off, if you look at the color palette in Best Dressed, you'll notice the color expansion update hasn't affected it in the least! There is no pale pink or light lavender!

Secondly, a tip: If you want to win in Best Dressed, vote for the person least likely to win. That way, you wont contribute to the person with the better outfit who would have won! It's so simple, how has it took me up until now to figure out?

That's all for today, Jammers,

see you in Jamaa!

~DoomyPanda

Autumn-themed Nonmember Clothing Ideas!

Hey jammers! It's been a while since I've done a post wholly dedicated to themed Nonmember Clothing ideas, huh? Well lucky for you, I've put together a whole Autumn-themed collection (haha) of clothing ideas for you to steal!

Autumn. What an annoying word. It's a pretty name, yes, but "Fall" is much more phonetically pleasing as a word. "Autumn" sounds so dry, but Fall is much better, in my opinion. 

All of these clothing ideas are very simple and very rarely have a rare item involved. I keep things simple with this, so they're doubly accessible but pretty, (at least in my opinion) too.

Steal away!

–I forgot to mention; I give each one a really stupid name.

"Midnight Warrior"

"Cool Daylight"

"Sugar Pumpkin"

aCTUAL PUMPKIN"

"Sunset"

"Halloween"

Which one was your favorite? Comment and go outside to enjoy the cool weather.* ^_^

~DoomyPanda

*Sorry if you live in the Southern Hemisphere