Despite its lack of a grand scale, the Anniversary Party was always one I looked forward to. The fabled rare hats were a major reason. What were the colors going to be this year? Would there be a puzzle to find them? However, above that was the hope that one of my biggest wishes for the site would come true; that finally, this year, Club Penguin would expand the party into an island wide event. Wouldn't that be great?!
Little did I know, that the content I was getting back then wasn't the start of something bigger.....it was the peak before the downhill slide.
This year's anniversary party was set up to fail by default. With little advertising and no log in screen, there was virtually no hype to begin with. But that was the least of its problems.
I have come to the conclusion that Club Penguin launched at the worst possible time of the year. With Club Penguin's expansion of parties to two weeks, the anniversary party will always be overshadowed by the ongoing Halloween Party. While this is a problem to begin with, it gets even worse when you consider Halloween is the least compatible event for it; darkness and storm clouds don't exactly mix with cheerful, colorful banners, so they?
This wouldn't have been a problem if Club Penguin had launched on October 8th. It would have been a nice companion to the Puffle Party if it had launched in April. But, nope. October 24 is what we're stuck with and things won't be getting any better.
However, beyond even the juxtaposition of outside the Coffee Shop, this party had another huge issue; the party hat was revealed way too early. Now, personally, I really like the color scheme of this year's hat, but, that doesn't override my disappointment that it wasn't a surprise going in. To unveil quite possibly the most important item of 2014 two weeks before the party begins so blatantly is pretty irritating. Also: a small puzzle like in 2008 would be ideal next year, people.
The single room was a pretty big let down, too. With no interactive elements or easter eggs, things were pretty dull. The cake was also less interesting than in previous years. The Book Room could have been decorated as well, even if it was just moderately. I am glad that the outside wasn't decorated since the banners of the eighth anniversary party looked ugly with the rest of the Halloween town.
The yearbook was OK. The pages are put together nicely and the mascot comments are a nice touch. While I am glad hidden pins are once again back, they could have been hidden in less large areas of the images.
And that's it. Quite the celebration of a birthday.
Yes, that it what I feel is the biggest problem here. A milestone such as this should feel important; it shouldn't just be a side project that the artists do out of duty when they're not working on something of a higher priority. Players just can't get excited with this little to chew on.
My first anniversary party was the third one, which had five rooms decorated, a live stream of an event in New York City, a limited time frame, new music, no Halloween Party, and the launch of Club Penguin toys. That was something to get excited about. That was something I woke up early for. And that is gone.
The sad thing is that this almost certainly won't change. Year 10 is next year - arguably the most important milestone in Club Penguin. But I highly doubt it'll feel anymore special than Silly Hat Week.
Keep dreaming, grade school me. Keep dreaming.
Score: 3/10
I agree with your points. I remember the 5th Anniversary Party where it took place without meeting the darkness of the Halloween Party. To be honest, I would much prefer the Halloween Party to be 1 week.
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