Newgrounds and The Golden Age of Flash Animation

[@SlushTV]

The hardest part about making this video was re-watching my old Flash animations. Discord: discord.gg/st6YfP2 Twitter: twitter.com/SlushTV_ IG: instagram.com/slushtv_/ Patreon: www.patreon.com/OfficialSlushTV

[@masternobody1896]

dude your under rated you deserve more attention

[@masternobody1896]

one lesson i learn is that passion and never gave up mindset makes new evolution of human lifes

[@emperortrevornorton3119]

Tom got to be on the set of my second favorite movie toxic avenger part 4

[@ledgererik2637]

i guess im randomly asking but does anybody know of a method to log back into an Instagram account? I somehow forgot the login password. I would love any tips you can offer me.

[@ericamir6737]

@Ledger Erik Instablaster :)

[@KrinkelsNG]

Incredible retrospective, my man. Thanks for documenting the rise of a giant.

[@SlushTV]

Thanks dude, means a lot coming from you! You were one of the users I looked up to back in the day.

[@DarkSentinel52]

Hello mr.madness boi

[@nevadacitizen2891]

Hello Mister

[@seancat948]

Or in other words, “Interesting thought my man, thanks for sharing.”

[@beanboi5634]

Oh, hello, Krinkels!

[@Blordow]

I wish we could go back to that era, where creating content online was all about having fun and never about how much money you could make, it was all about paying tributes to your favorite games or expressing your creativity in more unique ways, and the community aspect of it all brought it together where you truly didn't feel alone in your creative endeavors and felt inspired to keep making the stuff you loved. Nowadays you put effort into something you have to be extremely lucky for it to gain any traction in terms of views and the feedback you get on your videos just isn't the same like in the glory days of Newgrounds. Also honored you showcased some of my old stuff on this video!

[@SlushTV]

I don't think it will ever get back to that again, but at least we were lucky enough to be a part of that era in some way. Especially you haha, you made front page a few times back then.

[@theoneman2084]

@@SlushTV I'm just happy i got to experience the era all throughout my childhood.

[@stumpyalex503]

Its not GONE. Newgrounds is still there and people can still make that kind of content if they really want to.

[@ayylmaotv]

real shame that youtube is a hostile place for animators with how punishing the algorithm is for people who cant upload daily

[@blood_boi6900]

WHAT

[@ciarangallagher3504]

youtube sucs

[@IAm-zo1bo]

Nigga what u doing here

[@trendingverge]

They limited my account said I upload too much and got technical about it too sending me my server allocation information I requested

[@trendingverge]

So yes. Your data and how much you upload costs them money. KZbin isn’t “free” even if you use it for free. Bandwidth limiting and limiting users who upload a lot is a way to recover how much energy and data you used in the system that no one ultimately views anyways because of the algorithm that KZbin has created where there’s actual people that sit in rooms and vote on who will be the next up and coming KZbin stars and a little below that automated systems check for agreeable and likeness it’s a whole scale they use on every person on the platform. New grounds you just posted shit. And hoped for the best. Now it’s all rigged. I proved it on my Facebook when I hacked Facebook itself the app code.

[@tfdxstudios1265]

Newgrounds was my childhood. I remember coming home back from school when i was 9 years old, and the first thing i would do is hop on my computer and play a bunch of random flash games. Just thinking about those times brings back a lot of memories and this video was very nostalgic for me. Awesome video dude.

[@kakyoinsluv]

SAMEE

[@theoneman2084]

Yayyyyyyy!!!!

[@PortSDG]

Hell yeah NG will forever be the best piece of the early 2000s internet

[@jimpa7011]

Newgrounds is more KZbin then KZbin will ever be.

[@user98xp]

All our base had belong to newgrounds at the time. Back before the internet was SERIOUS BUSINESS.

[@tiddylord6664]

No boundaries shit was great

[@isakayyik966]

@@tiddylord6664 why is that your youtube anem?

[@ikhebschijt99]

I legit never really got into KZbin like I was with Newgrounds for thus reason. I miss being able to browse the dark depravity of society... and then play stupid light hearted games all in one place. Newgrounds was fucked in the absolute best way.

[@Im2lazy4thisCrit]

I feel like that’s an insult to Newgrounds

[@CosmicG777]

I miss the days of unrestrained creativity. The wild west days of the internet where the people wouldn't have to worry about stepping out of line, look over their shoulder, having to appease big soulless corporations.

[@mrconroy4672]

Sadly, I don't think Newgrounds is safe from them. It is only a matter of time before they shut them down permanently.

[@DR---]

And those soulless corporations are obeying the government.

[@fauux3872]

You missed the chance to say, " It might be gone, in a "FLASH." "

[@Eg-yf3lu]

Puns at its finest

[@Kmac2021]

man, this video is so great. Got me feeling very nostalgic for things I had forgot about a long time ago. well done!

[@mrdismount1982]

Your verified dude!

[@markus.574]

i miss the old internet

[@four-en-tee]

Me too

[@doubledownpleasegosubtotte4274]

@@four-en-tee sounds like Rome

[@trogdortheburninator3621]

I don't miss dial up

[@CosmicSphincter]

Because it was made by people. That’s long gone.

[@Pixelcraftian]

Sprite animation will always be amazing in my eyes. Even today, sprite animation is amazingly done, but not like then. Also, RIP Randy Solem :(

[@3stanc]

RIP Randy Solem he was such a G

[@ashhunt8510]

The old Newgrounds animations give me such nostalgia

[@Gokanaru]

Damn bro that was a clean intro Edit: Wicked tie-in to modern day youtube struggles! Thanks man :]

[@hengloosfan.webcom4149]

cool

[@volico72]

I have a lot of respect for Newgrounds as a platform. In an age where Google has completely broken KZbin animation to the point where its unprofitable, This website matters more now than ever, not just for the animation/videogames industry, but for internet culture as a whole.

[@OldQueer]

Oh no I didn't realise Randy died. I loved his stuff on Newgrounds in the 2000s. What a legacy he left behind. Such a shame he passed so young.

[@Rossifer_666]

KZbin's view of what is and isn't acceptable content for the platform seems to get narrower and narrower every year. It's nice that there's still places like Newgrounds that just want to be a space where artists can make the kind of content they want to make. Great video, man.

[@yaoimandel1293]

This inspired me to logon to my old Newgrounds account from when I was 14. My reviews were simultaneously cringy and hilarious. There was one point where my space bar was apparently broke so I prefaced every review with "SORRY_MY_SPACE_BAR_IS_BROKE_PLEASE_BEAR_WITH_ME".

[@NOOB4306i]

lmfaooooooooooooooo

[@raak4070]

That's awesome

[@Pupppeteer]

This is brilliant. I missed the whole newsgrounds era and early KZbin so it's good to get information about how it all happened. Outstanding work on this one.

[@Pupppeteer]

Newgrounds* will admit have been drinking tonight haha.

[@kingofallbugs7]

@@Pupppeteer A

[@PilotHardy]

Just reinforces the fact that censorship kills creativity. God I miss it.

[@zaddyimage]

Is it weird that I teared up because its hard to feel that freedom we once had? thanks for putting this together. I am really grateful to have live through this time. whats up everyone !

[@Shadowii2]

In general Newgrounds was a fun place to meet and connect with other people, and I even managed to get onto Newgrounds front page a few times back then, and got included in couple of the site-wide collabs. Unfortunately, due to various circumstances I don't have the best of memories about the animations I made back in the day, but well, fair few people enjoyed them, and I guess I should be happy about that. Rest in peace Edd and Randy.

[@KogashiwaKai]

God I miss this era of internet. And I also was/am Legendary Frog fanboy Newgrounds also introduced me to hentai too, so theres that as well

[@doubledownpleasegosubtotte4274]

@Aguilera de Gaona David Uriel some dude talked a x animated movie and a very successful one

[@thebombingsoda]

This is better a history video than most brief history videos

[@twistedtick]

Can we just give KZbin to Tom Fulp, please? He would fix this mess.

[@KennethSee]

I’d sign that petition and donate to that cause in a heartbeat.

[@angellovezss122]

@@KennethSee Me too!!!

[@mayamaliceart]

@@KennethSee Same here man

[@KennethSee]

@@PrincetoonsYT look up Elsagate. It’s too late for that.

[@PrincetoonsYT]

​@@KennethSee I saw those cartoons before and they were horrible

[@daenysskates]

I have to say thank you very much for making this video. I grew up on a lot of animation videos that are originally from Newgrounds but were posted on youtube. I remember watching Rise of the Mushroom Kingdom, one of my favorite sprite videos. I even got into animation myself as a kid. I originally started with legos and a camera. Eventually I learned how to use Pivot Animator and Flash. I even got into sprite animation too. Just recently ive been wanting to get back into it and watching this video is just a sign that I should :)

[@AlbertKimMusic]

Exactly the same for me too, from newgrounds flash animations to lego animations, pivot stick animator haha great times.

[@Mark6O9]

Only a matter of time till Salad Fingers gets turned into a FNF mod

[@youtuberapologies868]

well shit

[@noname788]

I miss the old internet, it was the true internet, where freedom of speech and creative products was on the air. Looking back makes me kind of sad, it went from you can do anything you want to extreme censorship. Before you could say and do what ever without worrying that you’ll be canceled 10 years later, or getting harassed. And this ties into KZbin as well, old KZbin was the best KZbin, they lost its creator passion it had before. People make content for money now and not for their passions and creative thinking.

[@SlushTV]

I miss the old internet too but there are still plenty of creators doing it for the love of making content and not the money.

[@KpopStan2009]

I feel the same. When I was little, being on newgrounds was very surpising back then, like there was almost no censorship at all and now when I grow up suddenly everywhere there is censorship, it's ridiculous. I feel like back then there was more freedom and it was much cooler. I thought all those extreme things you could find was really cool and felt like a new experience everytime, it felt like experiencing a new world. Now everything became boring bc of all the censorship, nothing is cool or exciting anymore and everyone became like babies, so many people back in the day would say anything they think to anyone without any problem now you gotta worry about everything you say, it's very exhausting. I'm glad I could at least experience that amazing thing even tho it was shortlived.

[@spritefan2]

17:40 - Thanks for the wonderful ode to sprite animations of that era. It's what got me into creating content as well. Rest in peace Randy.

[@TheHex12]

15:06 Thanks to you I have finally found a way to see those animations I saw as a child again, I just found this video looking for it and I clicked here to see if you were talking about this animation by chance.🥰

[@TheHex12]

By the way, I think I remember an animation of a muscular man with a blue/grey skin tone and a skull face, I think he also had a shovel... by any chance, wouldn't what I'm saying sound familiar to you? 🥺

[@SuperToastytoast]

Just so you know, a video with no views was in my recommended. and I aint mad

[@maxwellslice5933]

I got the first comment

[@Lolotrixx]

Man this takes me back. Its crazy to think that their was a time where my only prioritie in life was to come home from school and hangout on Newgrounds. I miss this periode of the internet, we will probably never have a more wild and creative time.

[@redacteddata]

Man I just, the nostalgia. The hours spent watching late at night, bailing on life etc to live in this fantasy land.

[@ThrashTrash120]

Hi! Clockcrew member here. It's funny as hell to see us mentioned in this, but we were HUGE.

[@SlushTV]

I will always remember the night I discovered Clock Day when in a matter of minutes the Portal was suddenly spammed with submissions.

[@WiseOldMandu]

The send off really hit me hard. Damn. You literally can't put out a bad video man. Keep doing you.

[@nicholasbourgeois8024]

Dude, the fact you brought up VGDC.. thank you. I loved that site so much

[@hyperionsama]

Great video! 4 years later, and this is still being appreciated by new eyes. Thanks!

[@nicogrande6583]

Glad you made this- super glad- but you almost made me cry near the end. Newgrounds was really important to me as a kid and I met people there who introduced me to music and art I still hold dear today. This was a much needed spotlight on a place that I see everyday in little ways everytime I open up KZbin. Thank you. Sorry those dudes stole that one video of yours.

[@NoobHammer]

I remember when I was a kid I watched The Rise of The Mushroom Kingdom. I cried so hard that night.

[@jssekyl]

RIP Randy Solem. I remember seeing that mushroom kingdom video when it was fresh on the front page. I remember thinking that flash animation was growing in a big way when I saw that. That period of the internet seemed to last so long but was so short. I must have been a NG junkie 04-09. Felt like I experienced whole lifetime of chatrooms, animations and music in that short timeframe. Nostalgia is a funny thing. Thanks for the upload.

[@dandastardly2792]

Great video. I havent seen a newgrounds documentary that was so deep. I hope you go viral with this one!

[@loungegod]

God damnit, always videos like this that make me upset that I wasn't born early enough to experience the old ways of the internet

[@KennethSee]

It was a fantastic time. Seriously, back then the internet was 200% better.

[@scruffyjanny555]

Holy crap dude! This brought back a flood of memories from my high school days. My best friend and I were obsessed with Newgrounds. I remember getting disturbed by Salad Fingers, laughing my ass off at the latest LegendaryFrog video and waiting in anticipation for the next installment of Rise of the Mushroom Kingdom. I had no idea he passed away a decade ago, and at such a young age, really hit me a lot harder than I thought it would. Just wanted to say you did an awesome job with this retrospective, and I'm glad I had a chance to walk down memory lane and been there when the site was at its peak. Thanks dude, you rock.

[@istrumguitars]

Newgrounds was a purer time on the internet, back when everything we consume wasn't bought and sold.

[@valarya]

I was just thinking about Newgrounds today and found this video. (gaaah, the internet is reading my mind now). I'll be 40 this year so this shit BROUGHT ME BACK!!!! Love your content :D

[@TakoiKadoozle]

You, sir, just earned yourself a sub. My past shapes my future and I actually started crying when I watched the death of one of my favorite newgrounds animator. Thank you for the nostalgia

[@EXsoldier141]

Thanks for this. Brought back a lot of old memories. There will never again be a time quite like when Newgrounds was the king of creativity. A shame really.

[@Stegallproductions]

Really good stuff man. I had never heard such an extensive history on Newgrounds before. I'd say this certainly deserves way more views.

[@webbophone3377]

Interesting, touching, and personally nostalgic. Great vid!

[@codenamesped]

What a great trip down memory lane. I remember watching Newgrounds animations in the computer lab in high school (as well as downloading emulators and roms to play games during downtime in accounting class). Seeing all these animations and games from my youth was heartwarming. One thing that has to be mentioned is the audio portal that was brought in to Newgrounds as well. A whole other form of creative expression that just encapsulated the Newgrounds spirit. And finding out that the soundtrack to Castle Crashers was made entirely from submissions to Newgrounds makes that game one of my all time favorites. All in all, this is a wonderful, nostalgic look back and thanks. Hell, I may have seen you on the old VGDC forums during the initial rush of Rise if the Mushroom Kingdom. So cheers.

[@rubenbenavides490]

Bro you just made my day with this video. I was 12 around 2004 when I discovered Newgrounds. Man the internet was different baxk then

[@gertytk5528]

RIP Flash. God I miss the old Internet.

[@Bloodhoundbone]

Newgrounds animations will always have a special place in my heart

[@grimcity]

Fam, this was a great visit back in time! I had a Daily Feature back in Sep. 2000! The stuff I learned back then (mostly a sa keyframer) had a huge impact on my career. Love this.

[@hy6rus]

best notification ive gotten all day. thanks for being great slush

[@KennethSee]

Loved the shade thrown at Ebaumsworld.

[@opadrip]

I miss when there was a time you can make an indie fanfic sprite series on KZbin or anywhere, use copyrighted characters, music, sound clips, etc. and people wouldn't complain about how you "stole" something.

[@JohnnyFromVirginia]

Absolutely interesting bit here friend. This was really cool. I remember those flash videos. It’s crazy to think all of that was the predecessor to KZbin as I’ve always thought of them as two separate entities. Very neat stuff.

[@ShinyHaunterSJ]

this video really deserves more love man, keep up the great videos!

[@MilkLadsForever]

I love Newgrounds. They have so many classic games and animations. My favorites are the Henry Stickmin Series, Rawest Forest, and Super Mario 63.

[@mrdismount1982]

Super Mario 63 was the best flash game ever in Newgrounds history!

[@zetandpeligaming]

This is such a cool video. I remember a good chunk of the stuff you've talked about. I remember when I first downloaded Flash MX and felt I'd found my calling. It's nice that it's easier to see the crossover from Newgrounds to KZbin. Thank you :)

[@RegisCartoons]

What an awesome retrospective! ❤️ I'm a huge fan of Newgrounds and some of my flash creations (under the same nickname) still keeps getting new views 15 years later ;) it was amazing to remember some of the greatest series on Newgrounds. Thanks for your work!

[@anthonydeadman]

The future sucks. Bring the days of flash back.

[@codyparliament1772]

Great video! It was a real trip down memory lane, and I learned a few things. cheers!

[@DiskG]

That was a great video on Newgrounds and the history of flash animation, big trip down memory lane for me. Also thank you for that tribute to Randy, we all miss him...

[@apex_prey]

Man, I miss those days.

[@aight329]

Me too bro, me too.

[@AlbertKimMusic]

my absolute childhood...

[@manofonetitle]

Wow, what a trip down memory lane. Thanks for making this, loved every second of it.

[@abder200]

I renember that mario vs sonic animation Good memories...

[@backlashD]

This was an undetected Nostalgia trip. I remember all of this, geeze. VGDC was the place to be

[@TkyoSam]

This video was awesome! Refelt all these feelings I had from that time. And that was a touching tribute. Had no idea the creator of Sonic vs Mario had died.

[@theoneneolink]

Great job, dude. Good primer into the wild west of content that was the Flash age. Obviously really appreciate the VGDC section in the end.

[@patikiah]

This made me go back and watch a bunch of flash animations. I missed the prime of new grounds as KZbin had just started getting big when I started using the internet around 2007. Although I knew of most the new grounds people mentioned I did NOT know dunkey started there too?! Brilliant video, keep up the good stuff Slush!

[@DirtCobaine]

This era birthed people like Psychicpebbles and OneyNG and all those others at sleepy cabin and the people in that same orbit who are equally talented in their own right like David Firth. It’s crazy to think that now they all work on and even have their own cartoons on huge networks. These guys were paid literally pennies for years yet they continued honing their craft to ultimately become legitimately the best cartoonists, voice actors and video game developers in the modern era. They all have their own extremely recognizable styles like any good artist should. Basically my point is these guys are absolutely inspiring as an artist myself and it goes to show that artists who put in the work and stay dedicated will eventually find their own success.

[@kalenavis4282]

Bruh I remember watching Mario bros z back when newgrounds was in its prime

[@undoingruin4203]

I remember when you had to click the screen to read the next text instead of it being automatic

[@iLegionaire3755]

Randy is a video game community pioneer and Rise Of The Mushroom Kingdom is one of the greatest sprite animations ever made. Most of my digital content in high school was fundamentally inspired by his work! Randy will be sorely missed. RIP.

[@deartahir80]

5:15 Recognition 6:54 More works 10:23 David Firth and Saladfingers 15:10 Adam Phillips 18:48 Sprite Animation

[@ALostPeople1]

Man. NG was the best. That Mario v Metal Sonic series was epic back in the day. And that game Dad and Me. Spent hours in the NG chat threads. Those are some of my earliest memories of being on the internet. Thanks for the trip down memory lane, cheers to you mate 💪🏾💯 If you’re reading this, the cake is a lie and you just lost the game!

[@MrAlec1995]

People don't understand how much of my 7 to 11 childhood how huge this was

[@pierrebidkhanian3135]

This voice to me will always be the story of mango, i didnt even have to look at who the youtuber was to know. Mango and the “reasons” story, mango was banned for “reasons”

[@treiz01]

Thanks for the flashback! I was there, wayy back when Newgrounds was super basic. I saw it rise and recognized many of the flash films you featured. Those were good times :)

[@12USHED]

this was so nostalgic! great vid!

[@loboqueso5392]

What Newgrounds did what DeviantArt doesn’t have was quality control. The amount of Fill-In memes, AI “art” was OFF THE WALLS compared to the former. Even NG’s critique system was more sophisticated than DA’s.

[@ikhebschijt99]

Thank you for this video. I was just looking for a throwback to the great viral videos of Newgrounds.... but I found this video instead. Loved it.

[@kanik7757]

at those times earth was still the same. just you were innocent

[@BlastedMaster]

5:15 I grew up with the guy who made these kermit fight flash animations alongside other Sesame Street parodies. For example, a flash where Bert and Ernie were getting high with Kermit. NeptuneCircle I believe was his NG handle. From East Boston MA. He was always flash animating in his spare time. He was also a real black belt in Kempo Karate. Awesome dude. His name's Rocky. I remember him designing his other production alias' logo, Pinnacle Productions, too.

[@SlushTV]

Super cool that you know Rocky. Kermit Kombat is a staple of my childhood

[@videogametropes4251]

Amazing video. Such nostalgic moments, I also began watching Newgrounds thanks to Randy Solem.

[@AlbertKimMusic]

The rise of the mushroom kingdom YES thank you. The memories oml

[@dualscreen8789]

Man, I remember watching the Rise of the Mushroom Kingdom when I was 10. I never knew he passed away...

[@SSB_Seal]

It’s always a fun time to reminisce on the internet of decades past. Your personal connections and insights are appreciated!

[@yaoimandel1293]

Well this was very nostalgic, I'm going to go watch some David Firth, I remember watching him back in the day and really enjoying his content, it's been a few years since I've watched anything by him and I'm really interested to see what I missed.

[@MattRoszak]

Great video! It was the wild west of the internet, before everything was sanitized and corporatized. I really miss those times! But hey, I'm still making Flash games in 2020, so I'm keeping the dream alive, at least a little bit.

[@CaptainFrisby]

You Epic Battle Fantasy series was a defining moment in flash RPGs. I remember how Newgrounds always loved the shit outta your games whenever they came out, myself included. I'm glad you're still involved in your crafts!

[@vincentskater]

Okay so you are now officially one my fav KZbinrs. Not just because of the amazing content and video, but because I saw ANIMAL COLLECTIVE'S - FEELS IN THE BACKGROUND OF YOUR RECORD COLLECTION LETS FUCKING GOO HAHA

[@SlushTV]

I adore that album and AnCo in general

[@ultraspinalki11]

Thank you for the trip down memory lane. It was amazingly nostalgic.

[@GhostSamaritan]

Albino Blacksheep is a certified hood classic

[@cloudedarctrooper]

Dude I miss flash I want it back ;-; I'm not even a full minute in and it's starting to make me emotional for some reason, idk I'm overdramatic I guess.

[@drpseudo]

What a nice time travel! I also LOVED the VGDC series (the website was in my bookmarks for YEARS back in the day) And omg Kazaa... this was like unprotected s** with the internet....

[@DaMemeManDan]

Holy crap I watched that Mario vs Sonic animation when I was little.

[@quarteratom]

We had vector graphic videos and we threw it away.

[@WanderingSoul7000]

Oh my god. The happy face animation really takes me back.