How Flash games shaped the video game industry

[VinnyVideo]

Thanks for sharing - that was a good article. I knew Flash was very influential, of course, but I didn't realize that endless runner games and escape rooms got their start from Flash.

Personally, I didn't play a lot of Flash games - I played a lot more fangames/indie games that I downloaded and played. I never made any games, animations, or anything else in Flash, though it's something I once thought about trying.

I understand why there was a push to move away from Flash - it wasn't very secure, and it didn't always play nice with mobile devices. Still, I agree with several people quoted in the article who said that Adobe could've done a better job of supporting it.

The moment was especially ideal for newcomers and outsiders, who now had a low barrier to entry and no industry gatekeeping.

This was well-said - Flash and other game-making technologies of its era tended to be user-friendly with a very low barrier to entry, especially for students and beginners. Flash certainly wasn't the only tool that people on varying experience levels can use to make creative, experimental games, although I think the technology was conducive to making that kind of game. I worry that newer game-making tools (think HTML5 instead of Flash, or GM Studio 2 instead of previous versions of GM) often have a higher barrier to entry than their predecessors and are harder for new users to get started in.

Course clear! You got a card.