I'm really surprised that "Final Fighting Fantasy Chapter 13: Showdown" didn't make it to the top 20. I would have expected more bleed-off from the people that voted for 8-Bit to have also voted for that. It's one of the first, the longest running Final Fantasy epics on Newgrounds plus it's more original, with MUCH better animation, unique music and an incredible storyline to it. How did this fantastic flash end up so marginalized?
I'm happy that 8-Bit won though. It's script is also not stolen. It is an adaptation that was made with 8-Bit Theater's author's (Brian) complete approval. They are long time fans of 8-Bit. Just because the original author isn't making the movies doesn't mean he can't let someone else do it for him and that ALSO doesn't mean that they can't get donations for making it or the prizes here on NG for doing it. Brian is happy for them and if he has no objections... Really, why should you?
They might not even have even put this or other flashes on Newgrounds if it wasn't for the fact that, due to copyright suing concerns (and the fact that animations have been stolen from them and put up here before, I remember that incident clearly. Meddos soon started posting his 8-Bit VS flashes here soon after) Brian won't let 8-Bit animations be hosted on his website anymore.. NG was picked because it's one of the few places that gives the author full ownership over his stuff. This is NOT going to go to a rip-off site like ebaums. The money is nice. The fans are nice but this was done primarily for Brian and to expose his wonderful comic on a different kind of way.
No one has really talked about "under the mistletoe". The song for that was just as original as "the ultimate showdown" was, it fit in with the Christmas season and the animation was much MUCH better then Ultimate's was. I had really hoped that such a quality work would have made it. Maybe it was just too mushy for too many of the NG audience to manage. Ah well.
PS: Congratulations to the winners.