Poptropica on Flashpoint is a fan-made curation of the original browser game that uses a local server to emulate how the original Poptropica game server worked. I used Flashpoint files as a base in Legacy because it had less bulk (unnecessary files) than the 3GB live server rip that I have of the original Poptropica server - Flashpoint’s version includes only the files necessary to run Poptropica. The modifications that were used in Flashpoint were sparsely used in Legacy, but those modifications were still present in the files themselves (though unused).

I reached out to Prof Robin on 11/30 to ask if they would like to be credited for their work on the Flashpoint curation, which they declined, and I (incorrectly) assumed niko also wouldn’t want to be associated. I saw (and still do see) very little wrong with using the Flashpoint files as a base as the changes made to the original game were minimal (see below).

When niko aggressively and publicly demanded I remove their code from Legacy, I apologized and complied, offering attribution AND compensation. They refused attribution/compensation, and was (aggressively) firm about me removing the code. The current version of Legacy does not include their modifications, despite their “rights” over the modifications they made being legally grey to begin with, as their code was modifying an existing protected work.

elevate.exe

They then began to spread blatant misinformation about Legacy including “elevate.exe” in the game files, which is an open-source UAC helper commonly bundled with Windows installers and Electron builds, and is a standard inclusion in other apps – including Flashpoint! **That's right, Flashpoint includes Elevate.exe!** Despite this, niko claimed that I was bundling malware with Legacy in an attempt to smear the reputation of the project.

On the scope of Flashpoint modifications:

Niko's document claims they "built the house" while I merely "changed the paint color." I'd encourage anyone to read the actual Flashpoint changelogs (AS2changes.txt and AS3changes.txt) and judge for themselves. The AS2 changelog contains roughly 15-18 changes across 12 files. These include: moving a button 10,000 pixels offscreen so it can't be clicked, fixing a squished font, making Ned Noodlehead hold a hotdog immediately instead of with a delay, and fixing a one-pixel line in a border. The AS3 changelog is larger but consists mostly of disabling online features (ads, multiplayer, common rooms) and redirecting saves to local storage.

This is legitimate compatibility and preservation work - but it's not "building a house." Poptropica's original developers built the house. Flashpoint installed offline plumbing. Legacy is adding new rooms: 60 FPS support, a larger viewport, a custom sound system, desktop integration, and a full Electron wrapper that lets you run the game natively.

I never claimed Flashpoint's work was worthless - I offered credit and compensation. But the characterization of these modifications as the essential foundation without which Legacy couldn't exist is not supported by the changelogs themselves.

AI Use

On top of this, there is a claim that Legacy has been “vibe coded” by AI coding agents, so I’d like to make this clear: AI coding agents were involved in its creation, but they did not singlehandedly create the project – much of the work was done manually. This is different than a large company replacing workers with AI to increase profits - I am a single indie developer using AI as a tool to create something that no one else had yet attempted. Legacy is supposed to be a gift to the community, not a cheap get-rich-quick scheme, and that should be evident in the care that has gone into making it. I've spent a lot of time on this project.

Niko has also claimed that the various bugs are due to “vibe coding”, but this is not the case - the bugs that exist currently are due to the many large changes I made to the base game (60 FPS, large viewport, etc) that broke special hard-coded portions of island quests and must be manually patched.

All this taken into consideration, I believe it's fairly obvious that these claims have not been made in good faith, and it's very opposed to the spirit of Poptropica & our community. Anyone who genuinely loves Poptropica will see the value in having something like Legacy - it's preserving and restoring what we should've gotten all along. I love you guys