Couple of questions...

1. Is this game still active? I am playing this and 2 other games similar and am trying to determine which 1 to stick with...so is this game still pretty active? I am hoping to put some money into one of the games so I am trying to see how active this game is...I am leaning towards this game because it has the VIP system....but I rarely see anyone on and the Pal system doesn't seem to work for me and won't link to FB or anything...

2. How can I tell if I am playing "The Lost Tower" or just Haypi Monster? Because it seems like they are both the exact same?

I would recommend you to stay here as this game has a friendly community and since they merged servers (unlike the old haypi monster), you will always find someone active to chat with.
As for the Pal System , it kinda sucks for me, but you can still tell your friends to put your pal code so you don't really need to send a link.
The Lost Tower is like a 2nd version of Haypi Monster , and I believe they created it because they knew the f*cked up the old version making the previous version p2w, so basically the more money you invest on the game the more odds you will be the top player on your server.Speaking of server,this is also another disadvantage of the old game as there are like over 60 servers which has a limit of players playing in each server and it's pretty now because of that reason, only few people stayed in that game.The main difference between the two games is that "Haypi Monster" makes it easier for players to achieve their goals , while in "The Lost Tower" you have to grind for epic monsters and stuff..
I played this game since its release and I think I never missed a day without opening the app!

Also tell us what are the other 2 games?

How can I tell which one I am playing...because when I open the app they both look the same and both say the lost tower on them?

One app (the one I have played the most and am lvl 15 on says "Haypi Monster: The Lost Tower for Venide")
The other one says "Haypi Monster: The Lost Tower"

The other two games arent' really "The same" but they all take energy/stamina/etc and I can't continue to keep up with all of them constantly because it's just too much time lol. When I spend time on one, I feel I am losing time on the other and it's becoming too much of a hassle.
Hello Hero was the main game I was playing and spent some money there but luck and just the fights taking so long now has made me have a rough time keeping up...the other one is Elemental Kingdoms...which I like a lot as well, and might could handle having both Elemental Kingdoms and this game together.

[Shadehawk]

The better one is The Lost Tower (no venide junk or anything, venide is a separate company)

what Shadehawk said , venide is really slow in updates and activities , i don't see any convincing reason to play on venide version.