this post was submitted on 10 Apr 2025
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[–] abcdqfr@lemmy.world 3 points 3 days ago

We used to get video games in the captain crunch box or in exchange for tokens on the crunch boxes or something to that effect... anyway that was essentially just a flash game but equally if not more interested. Got a lot of mileage out of that crunchwrare game in the 90s

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 5 points 6 days ago

I'm sympathetic to the "Why does everything have to require a fucking login?"

But come on. So many of those games were just inferior reskins of classics. If you want to play Pac-Man, then play Pac-Man. You don't need to go to Lays.com and play Cheeto Crunchers, where a giant Chester Cheetah floating head chases snack foods through a maze.

[–] RagingRobot@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago (1 children)

My website has a game on it still lol

[–] agentp@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 1 week ago (1 children)
[–] RagingRobot@lemmy.world 3 points 6 days ago

Jmilstead.com

[–] MudMan@fedia.io 135 points 1 week ago (29 children)

Oh, wow, we're there now?

Like, the online hellscape of endless Flash applets and browser shovelware games is retro now?

You get what that means, right? In twenty years you GenZ Tumblr nerds will be in some online forum recoiling in horror at some kid waxing nostalgic about back when you could just play a free gacha game full of anime waifus and where have all the good phone games gone?

It's happening and you're not ready.

Well, either that or Thunderdome. We'll see.

[–] Opisek@lemmy.world 70 points 1 week ago (8 children)

Ok but where have the good phone games gone. I'm horrified watching a 10 year old or so relative playing games on his phone only to spend 90% of the time watching unskippable ads.

[–] BossDj@lemm.ee 22 points 1 week ago (4 children)

It's worth it to pay 1 to 5 dollars for a no ad mobile game for the kid. Even if they play it for a week, it's just like any other $5 toy they may have gotten and got bored of.

[–] jjjalljs@ttrpg.network 24 points 1 week ago

Can also get an emulator and enjoy all the classics of yore. Chronotrigger holds up, for example

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[–] noodlejetski@lemm.ee 106 points 1 week ago (2 children)

I see you don't appreciate the "click all traffic lights" minigame on every single website in existence

[–] edgemaster72@lemmy.world 35 points 1 week ago (1 children)

All right, bonus ambiguous motorcycle level!

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[–] nailbar@sopuli.xyz 78 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (6 children)

I actually made a random game you can play without login or tracking or anything. Dunno if it's any fun, though 🤔

And you need a keyboard to play. Otherwise it's just a screensaver.

https://nailbar.io/proj/miniduel3/

Sorry about the plug, but I am kinda proud of it.

[–] Jerkface@lemmy.world 21 points 1 week ago

I mean, that's a pretty badass screensaver.

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[–] Lycaon@lemm.ee 48 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (9 children)

Issues with Flash and the actual quality of those games aside, what I really miss from that period of the internet was that children could use it safely. There's no spaces for children on the internet anymore and I think that's really sad, nine year old should be playing Hannah Montana dress-up not get eating disorders from TikTok influencers

Edit for clarity: I didn't mean to come off as though I think the internet was ever safe for unsupervised children because that's not what I believe. What I was trying to say is that the loss of spaces made for children, with adequate content curation and moderation, pushed children on social media which is awful for them

[–] MudMan@fedia.io 34 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Oh, you sweet, sweet child.

I'm just going to say I'm very glad you discovered flash games before you discovered IRC.

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[–] ogmios@sh.itjust.works 26 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (3 children)

what I really miss from that period of the internet was that children could use it safely

Uhh... my largest grievance with how the Internet has been designed is that it was never safe for children to be on it, yet children were thrust onto it en-mass long before adults even really understood what it was. And still people are ignoring the massive problems it continues to cause, specifically for the healthy development of children, as society is circling the drain.

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[–] Sho@lemmy.world 34 points 1 week ago (15 children)

Ebaumsworld.com

Newgrounds.com

I miss those days so much, never forget what they took from us.

Remember Notdoppler!

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[–] ZagamTheVile@lemmy.world 32 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

I was thinking about old flash games the other day. Swords and Sandals and Line Rider ate a lot of my time.

[–] GreenPlasticSushiGrass@moist.catsweat.com 37 points 1 week ago (3 children)

I apologize in advance for any decrease in productivity or wasted time.

http://www.flashgamearchive.com/

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[–] RedStrider@lemmy.world 31 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (5 children)

I opened lemmy to procrastinate working on my web game and this is the first post I see.

I can take a hint internet.

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[–] lowspeedchase@lemmy.dbzer0.com 31 points 1 week ago (9 children)

I'm on a Macromedia kick this morning but the internet really died when adobe bought flash, turning point for me personally lol

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[–] CoffeeJunkie@lemmy.cafe 29 points 1 week ago (3 children)

Yeah, I miss it in some ways, too. It was more of the Wild West of internet.

I would argue today's internet is fully optimized for control over people (when desired) & profitability. Unless there's some Earth-shattering backlash where idk people kill all ads & they purchase NOTHING online unless they very specifically search for it....this is the internet, perfected. The internet is free, our attention & wallets are the product. Traded, tracked, bought, and sold.

It used to be a whole weird wide world. Then the corpos got a hold of it, and now it's 5 giant spyware websites filled with screenshots of the other 4. Say what you will about the old web (NO HTTPS!) but at least it was human.

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[–] Skullgrid@lemmy.world 23 points 1 week ago (3 children)

I remember playing King of the Hill paintball Shockwave plugin game.

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[–] redwattlebird@lemmings.world 22 points 1 week ago

Itch.io game devs unite! There's still hope. I miss Ebaumsworld, New grounds and Miniclip too but I think there a small part of the Internet that still has this charm.

Here's my game dev contribution:

What's in my sanga?

[–] 3dmvr@lemm.ee 22 points 1 week ago (5 children)

Am I misremembering or would corporate websites randomly have branded flash games

[–] MoonMelon@lemmy.ml 21 points 1 week ago (2 children)

We got a free, breakfast-themed Doom total conversion .wad in boxes of Chex. Truly a golden age.

[–] Zagorath@aussie.zone 1 points 4 days ago

Most Aussies of around my age can remember getting (or at least knowing someone else who got) a full copy of Age of Empires on a CD contained in Kellogg's cereal. That was truly a great time.

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[–] LovableSidekick@lemmy.world 21 points 1 week ago (8 children)

I miss the era where most pages didn't have ads.

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