Flash back?

Dec 17th 2009 at 13:00 by Will Freeman

Be first to comment

Kongregate will host a window across its gaming pages through which site visitors can access the creations of developers; products far more advanced than their Flash equivalents.

With browser-gaming becoming increasingly prominent – thanks to technological advances and the fashion for ‘light-MMOs’ and social gaming – the time has come to ask; what now for Flash gaming? Could it be that the end is in sight for the framework as a gaming platform?

CasualGaming hopes the answer is no, of course. Flash classics like Boomshine remain favourite distractions, and portals like Newgrounds continue to inspire titles that go on to make it big on traditional consoles and handhelds, Alien Hominoid being a case in point. Flash also provides a fertile proving ground for the indie developers, hobbyists and students that hold the future of the casual sector in their hands. Tomorrow’s industry is today a glint in their hard drives, and a small acorn Flash can nourish.

But a recent survey by Mochi Media that polled over 1,100 Flash industry employees shows that under a third of Flash developers and publishers are currently working full time making games. Many are part time, and a huge chunk remain committed to a labour of love that brings in little or no money. That barely sounds like the foundation of a future proof industry.

Quite simply, Flash games need to make cash; to pay employees, to overcome the increasingly numerous marketing hurdles, and to re-invest in making more releases. Yet as the trend for virtual transactions gradually overshadows the in-game advertising revenue generation model, Flash, which is less well equipped to handle microtransactions and tailored game updates, could well struggle.

Mochi Media’s survey also suggests that well over 50 per cent of Flash developers and publishers make between $0 and $500 a month from their efforts. While the top end of that figure makes for a nice bonus for the lone games maker working part time, it’s still not quite the kind of figure on which successful companies prosper.

Of course, that doesn’t matter right now, as Flash Professional CS5 is on the way. What that means is Flash is coming to iPhone. Developers will be able to build new games in Flash, and sell them through the App Store. According to the webpage of Adobe, which makes the development platform, CS5 is due in beta from the end of this year. When it arrives, it could re-instate Flash as one of the most exciting places in the casual industry. And Blackberry, which manufacturer RIM is currently trying to promote as a consumer handset as well as a business phone, is also set to up the ante with its support of Flash.

It’s also worth considering the fate of our friend the music industry at this point. iPhone has wreaked havoc there too, and MP3s have changed the business, management and marketing of music forever. But kids still play guitars, even if it is just at the end of their beds.

Like a tatty old six-string, Flash is the instrument of an industry; a fundamental tool and an object of affection. The young and the brave will be cutting their teeth on Flash for a long time to come, and while new homebrew devices like the Pandora offer a tempting distraction, it is Adobe’s platform, that can run games and applications across an increasingly diverse and popular range of platforms, that will remain the bastion of entry level game development. And thanks to CS5, it looks like Flash is on track to start earning even more money for studios and publishers. Maybe we'll even see others enjoy the wealth that the one per cent of Mochi Media survey participants who earn over $25,000 a month from Flash are privy to.

Far from falling under in the wake of browser-based gaming, Flash could be about to undergo its most significant evolution yet, which is very good news indeed.