Phantom In Ice & Future Rooms

   Well, I'm finally back from vacation! There are a heap of updates since I left, but I won't post them. Today there is only one new item, the Phantom In Ice from last year. It's in Jam Mart Furniture:

   As a side topic, I'll talk about some places scattered around Jamaa that could lead to future rooms or lands. The first is in the Lost Kingdom of Zios, (I call it that since temple would mean he's a god). This door has been here since Beta Testing, it's on the far left of the land.

   This mysterious door seems like it might lead to the basement of the Chamber of Knowledge. It may lead to the same place as this:

There is also one in Sarepia Forest, near the center on the ground.

You might be thinking, "It's a log, so what?" But, in the teaser trailer of Animal Jam, released in Summer 2010, a rabbit hops right out of it! Of course  this just meant it lead to another land. Back the the paths leading to other lands were all mixed up. But who knows, some day it might get opened up again?

There is also a famous one in Coral Canyons, the Greely door, on the far left of the ground path.

Before Best Dressed was created, you could see the delicately carved memorial of Greely the Wolf Alpha.

Some say this is the entrance to Greely's home, others say it will lead to a secret slot canyon full of mysteries.

   There is one in Jamaa Township, and this one is very interesting. Back when we could do Flying Glitches, some Jammers found a hidden hut in the bamboo near where we meet Liza.

On the path that leads to Sarepia Forest, we see this:

   It leads straight to that hut! We may very well have found Liza's home. Someday, when we can interact with the Alphas, maybe we can visit her!

In Mt. Shiveer, we have two mysterious passages! The first is straight up from where you start in the land:

   But, in the Penguin Wallpaper released by AJHQ, we find it is open! I can almost guarantee we will be able to go there some day, maybe it leads to a Seal-only room!

The other is near the very top of Mt. Shiveer:

I always hoped this would lead deep under Jamaa, to an ancient mine!

Last, there is another popular one in Appondale, to the far left along the path.

   This one probably leads to a land to the left of Appondale on the map, though we can't see it yet. Maybe some day we will be able to scroll around the map.

I hope you enjoyed this post! Jam on!

~Gecko~

A History of Jamaa: 2010-2013

   The last day of 2012 has arrived, and a third year of the virtual world Animal Jam is just around the corner. What can we expect? Extreme changes.

   2010 was Jamaa's creation year. Most was spent in Beta Testing, a period before the game was fully released, and players could give feedback and advice. When Beta Testing ended on September 11, 2010, Jamaa was finally released. Most of the rest of the year was focussed on creating holidays in Jamaa, mainly Phantom Day and Jamaalidays. During those times, guides roamed Jamaa helping out Jammers. Updates came every Friday, normaly with four new items and a few other small updates.

   2011 was Jamaa's developement year. During the first half of the year, AJHQ put all their focus on new lands, animals, and items. Soon they were so busy that updates had to be every two weeks. With so many new items, old ones were always being removed from the shops. Jammers started calling these items "rare", and trading for them. But there was a problem, because the trading system hadn't arrived yet. They had to trade through sending items in Jam-a-Grams, which made scamming an every day problem. But AJHQ quickly released the trading system on April 30, 2011, the same one we use today.
    During the Summer of 2012, we have what I consider Jamaa's downfall. It started with two main things, the first being Crystal Sands. Before, Crystal Sands was a relaxing, exotic beach. But AJHQ turned in into a crowded water park! That was the start of Jamaa being humanized, but it didn't stop there. The new items that came out were no longer wild-looking natural items, but thing humans wear. The second problem was the reselling of rare items. New Jammers saw the rares we worked for and wanted them, so they asked AJHQ to resell them. AJHQ did just that. They started with Gloves, which were at that time the most wanted item. Soon almost every item from 2010 was resold. Until recently this didn't stop. Today, the only rare items from 2010 are Scary Bat Wings, the Founders hat, the Worn Blanket, and a few "beta colors" of items.
   With AJHQ so busy, they nearly forgot the Jamaa Lore that had started the game.

   2012 has been Jamaa's rebuilding year. It started with the Jammers who remembered a better Jamaa standing up and protesting. We wanted items to stay rare, and even more we wanted Jamaa's Lore. Jammers like Snowyclaw and I used our popularity to start a movement. Finally AJHQ listened to us, about half way through the year. It started with the Journey Book, a simple attempt to satasfy our want for the expeditions promised in 2010. Then the Summer Carnival came, also attempting to satasfy us. Along with that AJHQ started reselling items in new colors and giving the old colors a "rare" badge. But we kept asking for what we really wanted.
   AJHQ had been avoiding bringing back "Shamans" to the game, because people had been complaining it was against their religeon. In autumn, I posted on this blog why AJHQ can't bring back Shamans, but they can bring them back with a new name. That post post recieved nerly 500 hits and 100 comments, and within a few days AJHQ wrote about Shamans coming back with the name "Alphas". Soon enough AJHQ started creating the Alphas with new descriptions and looks. To end the year, AJHQ released a video saying we can expect adventures having to do with Alphas in 2013.

   That's where we are. We have come so far rebuilding Jamaa, let's use 2013 to finish that job. Alphas and expeditions are coming, we have that gaurunteed. But there are two things we still need fixed in 2013. The first is Zios and Mira. They were originally a god and godess. We can bring them back, as long as they are no longer gods, but a king and queen. The second is Crystal Sands. We need to let AJHQ know that we want the old look; we want an exotic beach, not a water park.
   So are you with me? We can make 2013 the best year yet, if we work together. Write to AJHQ asking for these two things. You would be surprised, they really listen to us.

~Gecko~

Christmas Break

I said this in a comment, but I'm on vacation and can't post until January 8th. If the other authors want to post, that would be great.

Gingerbread Men

Today's daily gift is 900 gems!

There is also a new item in Bahari Bargains, in Bahari Bay, the Gingerbread Man.

There are also some better, more interesting updates, too! There is a new Jam-a-Gram you can send:

And, even better, we can now chose whether we get buddy requests or not!

   I will still allow people to send me buddy requests, since I just deleted a bunch and still have space. But this is useful so that when I have 100 buddy I don't keep getting spammed. :P
   I kind of feel like I'm talking to a wall, since I never get any comments, and yet I ask for them every post. And plus for the past week half our hits are from people in Russia. That's confusing. Can somebody make me feel better and comment for once?

~Gecko~

Hat and Beard

Today's gift is new, the Cookie Table. Is the table a cookie, or is it a table for cookies? :P

I also found one new item, in Jam Mart Clothing, the Hat and Beard.

   This item really reminds me of 2010, it was one of my first clothing items. Surprisingly, it's still the same price. Can't you guys see how items like this are way better than the new items? At least AJHQ is making a move to make the items more like they used to be, but even the dens were better back then.
   Sorry I had to put word verification in the comments, but we kept getting bot spammed. Which is really annoying. But you can still comment, so please do!

~Gecko~

Sir Gilbert the Tiger Alpha

First of all, today's daily Jamaaliday gift is a Winter Window! I missed this last year, so I'm glad it's back.

   There are also two new wintery items for sale. On the left, we have the Reindeer Mask in Jam Mart Clothing, resold from December 2010 and 2011. On the right, we have the Stocking in Jam Mart Furniture, which is brand new.

 On more important matters, We finally have Sir Gilbert's bio by AJHQ! Read it here:

"Ever since he was a cub, long before he’d ever even heard of Jamaa, Gilbert has wondered what it must be like to be a monkey. Or a giraffe. Or a penguin, a shark, a rabbit… ALL of the other animals fascinate him. He’s been known to leap at an animal he’s never seen before and pin it to the ground with his terrifying strength, but only to ask them what their fur feels like when it rains. He’s always puzzled and disappointed when, as usually happens, the poor animal is too petrified with fear to answer him. Some of Gilbert’s best qualities are the very things that frustrate the more temperamental, impetuous Alphas the most. He is impeccably polite, quietly dignified, and (he believes) sensibly cautious. He takes the time to hear all viewpoints before making decisions, and in leading the Alphas against the Phantoms he is a wary and meticulous strategist. This drives some animals crazy, and more than once Gilbert’s carefully laid plans have turned into chaotic romps because Peck or Graham decided to “speed things up.” Despite his fearsome appearance and warrior reputation, Gilbert yearns for a quieter life. Perhaps that’s why he works so tirelessly to repel the Phantom invasion — he imagines a day when Jamaa is finally safe for all animals, and he can devote his time to studying the inhabitants of the world he protects."

   I like this, but it could have been more descriptive. Sir Gilbert is definitely my favorite Alpha. Which is yours? Tell me in a comment! And check out today's update in Jamaa, it's pretty cool. :)

~Gecko~

Candy Cane Items

Today's daily gift is kind of odd, a Marshmallow Chair.

   That's definitely new. On the left there is also a surprising new item in Jam Mart Furniture, the Candy Cane Lights! These were one of the daily gifts from last year. And in Bahari Bargains, on the right, there is another new item, the Candy Cane Tiara.

   And since I have nothing else to post, I might as well show you what the "daily gift" was in 2010. First you have to know that every day you logged in, a billboard would pop up with the latest news. Well in December 2010, when that would pop up there was a button saying to click it to get 100 gems!

   Back then 100 gems was a lot, more like what 1,000 gems is today. And back then everyone new who Mira was, unlike today. Happy Jamaalidays, and remember to comment!

~Gecko~