Club Penguin Island

Zift Advisory

Club Penguin Island is the mobile version of the popular G-rated social networking and gaming site, Club Penguin. Club Penguin Island is rated users 9 years of age and older. It can be found in both the App Store and the Google Play Store and contains advertisements and in-app purchases. This app is safe for kids.

About Club Penguin Island

What is Club Penguin Island?

Club Penguin Island is the “new and improved” version of the popular G-rated social networking and gaming site, Club Penguin, brought to the mobile age (the previous version was only available on PCs).

Club Penguin Island is rated users 9 years of age and older. It can be found in both the App Store and the Google Play Store and contains advertisements and in-app purchases.

However, the overall user complaint of the new version is that it lacks much of what was great about the original and requires a monthly subscription fee to navigate. With a paid monthly subscription, users can chat with existing friends, as well as meet new virtual friends.

Club Penguin Island members hunt for treasure to receive special rewards, run, jump, swim, play and dive in three different world zones.

Club Penguin Island requires a Disney account for registration purposes, so parents should know that they will need to use either their existing Disney account, or create a new account to get started with the game.

Once registered, kids design their penguin and choose their penguin name (username) and enter into the Island world to socialize, play games, complete daily tasks and hunt treasure.

It’s important to note that Club Penguin Island is free to download, but non-paying members are unable to navigate throughout the app without a membership -- making this a pay-to-play app. Club Penguin Island offers a 7-day free trial membership, after which the monthly subscription cost is $4.99.

Club Penguin Island creators say that “most” in-app features require the paid membership, but the reality is that “all” in-app features require a subscription. Users report the inability to even dress and style their penguin character, which is a big part of the app, if they are not paying subscribers.

Once users subscribe, they’re able to outfit their penguin avatars, showcasing their own unique style. However, assorted clothing upgrades come in the form of in-app purchases, so parents should ensure that in-app purchase expectations are discussed prior to game play.

Game play is motivated by daily challenges, which encourage users to login daily. Daily tasks can include fixing zip lines and water slides, repairing a pirate ship, as well as finding the “lost city of Penglantis”. Once a task is completed, coins are awarded.

Is Club Penguin Island safe for my kids?

Club Penguin Island is a Disney property, so parents can feel comfortable about their children’s safety while navigating through the Island and taking part in adventures.

While the app does feature chat capabilities, Disney filters the chat and employs moderators to ensure that conversations remain G-rated.

Penguin names are subject to content filters, and the game's chat features offer several levels of safety. Anything a player says is subject to both real-time content filtering and may be observed by human moderators, many of whom actively roam the Club Penguin Island environment as avatars (either overtly or disguised as players).

The majority of Club Penguin Island's content is only available to paid subscription members and children will be frequently prompted to upgrade their membership. The limited free content and upgrade prompts are common complaints in many online reviews of this title.

A seven-day free trial is available, if you'd like to test the paid membership features before committing.

Parents should be aware that users, familiar with both the original Club Penguin and Club Penguin Island, have expressed frustration with the pushy way the developers are going after in-app purchases.

Previous Club Penguin players say that Club Penguin Island does not offer as many opportunities to earn coins, as compared to the original, but that the game offers many more opportunities to spend coins; in this regard, players wishing to experience all aspects of Club Penguin Island are forced to purchase additional coins.

While Club Penguin Island offers players the ability to befriend one another and chat, parents should be also aware that the game offers safe interaction, however, it may still be wise to monitor interactions with other players.