Movie & Game Hub Updates Part 3
We updated the movie and game hubs on Wednesday. If you want to change the default tab for a hub (featured, latest, popular or last browsed), do so on your Content Settings page. You can also manage what users and tags will be blocked from results.
This update has been one of the more polarizing changes in recent years, with a mix of people missing smaller thumbnails, pagination and/or missing the page that summarized several categories. One immediate improvement is that more content will be getting featured, now that it can have a second life in the hubs, whereas before things that vanished from the front page tended to vanish completely. The hubs as they existed before weren't getting much engagement, so we’ll see how things go with the new format.
I’d like everyone on a desktop to try something:
Go to the Latest Movies listing.
On the first item, click the play button that appears in the lower left corner when you roll over the thumbnail. This will launch the in-page player.
If you’re not into the movie, hit the right arrow key to advance to the next movie.
If the movie has a slow intro and you’re not sold on what you’re seeing, try hitting the 2 key to jump to 20% and see what the movie is like, or 5 to jump 50%, etc.
You can very quickly check out a ton of movies this way, including on the under judgment list. The majority of users weren’t watching ANY of these movies previously, so the hope is people will scan through more stuff.
There are things missing; ideally you will be able to vote on the movie via the video player, as well as favorite the movie or open a review lightbox. It would also be handy to have a rollover title you can click on to visit the movie page, as well as a marker of which movie is currently playing below. Like everything else, this is a continued work in progress. First step is getting people to actually watch more stuff and find artists they like, next is to keep improving interactions with that stuff.
Please Vote!
We’ve been getting a lot of uploads this month and need help with the judgment process! Every new movie and game uploaded to NG goes through a judgment phase where it stays or gets removed based on audience votes.
To vote on under judgment entries, browse the purple column in the Classic Portal, or visit these dedicated movie and game listings.
I wrote some more on this topic yesterday! If you’re thinking of uploading a two frame animation demo or something with a song you heard on the radio, please read that post.
The Most Wonderful Time of the Year
Be sure to play Tankmas ADVENTure and get today’s gift, art by @Boomnm:
There’s also a new game in the ADVENTure arcade!
@larrynachos has announced a holiday event in Newgrounds Arcade:
Today’s Drawing Tablet Recipient
Today’s tablet recipient is @Wizardism!
Wizardism has a tiny tablet that is uncomfortable to work on, so he tends to draw on paper with pencil and then trace over it with a mouse. We’re hoping the new tablet will help him draw directly to digital!
Today’s Featured Flash (without Flash)
The Reincarnation series by @LiLg had a great voice cast, including the likes of @andyopus, @D-Mac-Double and @TomaMoto. Each game sends you on a new point and click adventure as a demon tasked with killing corrupted souls, before they achieve reincarnation and leave hell forever.
There are a bunch more episodes but they aren’t all ready for Ruffle just yet!
I also can’t mention @D-Mac-Double without revisiting this gem:
About Ruffle and Flash Preservation
Most of the content shared on NG nowadays isn’t Flash; you can share your HTML5 games and any sort of original animation you’ve made in video format, as well as art, music, voice reels and podcasts. As the original Flash Portal we continue to host both old and new Flash content.
Newgrounds sponsors the development of Ruffle.rs, to run Flash content in the browser without Flash. Flash will be removed from browsers at the end of the year but thanks to Ruffle, we can enjoy Flash forever! Ruffle doesn’t support everything yet, which is why we have Newgrounds Player as a desktop fallback until it does.
Ruffle was created by @Mike as an open-source alternative to the Flash plug-in, free of all the legacy problems associated with Flash. Lots of smart people have gotten involved with the project and you can sponsor it with money or help as a Rust developer.
For the remainder of the year, I’ll be making regular posts highlighting both drawing tablet winners and classic Flash content that is now supported by Ruffle.
About the Drawing Tablet Giveaway
Newgrounds is hosting a 2020 Drawing Tablet Giveaway, inviting artists to apply for the chance to receive a drawing tablet. Applications are still open, however you must be US-based (tablets are sent directly from Amazon) and your chances will greatly improve if you have examples of your art or animation here on Newgrounds.
We’ve received generous donations from @Egoraptor, @AnonymousAlchemist, @SinclairStrange, @RonDMC, @SaucySaucepan, @Afro-Ninja, @Jonas, @NCH, @Sabtastic, @Squidly, @MSGhero, @Rarykos, @Straqt, @kleinerjunge, @DevAesthetic, @NickSenny, @Zombie-Pimp, @Ronald-McDonald-LoL, @MrChambers, @53xy83457, @AKA-38CAUTION and @Wegra. As a result, this will be our biggest tablet giveaway ever!
Community News
@Everratic is hosting a Video Game Music Challenge!
@VoicesByCorey is looking for people who would like to join the 2021 Voice Acting Collab!
Read Monday’s edition of The Tank Tribune!
The top-ranked game based on original material in December will win $250, with $100 each for 2nd, 3rd and 4th! The top-ranked animation based on original material will also win $250.
Flash Forward Jam
NG is hosting a Flash Forward Jam. We’re gonna surprise people with a bunch of new interactive Flash creations, running in browsers this January thanks to Ruffle, after Flash has been officially removed. Over $2,600 in prizes!
Pixel Day
Pixel Day will be January 23rd and there will be prizes for the best animation, games, art and music. If you are down to sponsor Pixel Day, use the donation option on the Supporter page and PM me a heads up you donated towards game prizes.
Current Pixel Day sponsors are @JohnnyGuy $200, @AnonymousAlchemist $200, @SrPelo $100, @53xy83457 $50 and @1DarkVoid $50, with NG tossing in $400 to bring the current prize pool to $1,000; more than double what it was last year, with room to grow!
