Flash games are computer games that are created using vector graphics with actionscript programming using Adobe Flash software. Flash web game are very popular among Internet users and come in a wide range of categories including sports, action, puzzle, adventure, arcade, word search and educationalal. Different types of flash web game have been developed to satisfy players of all ages.
In the past, computer games usually have high CPU and bandwidth requirements because of the use of large size bitmap images. With the increasing popularity of web based games in recent years, Flash has become the mainstream of web game development tool.
There are several benefits of using Flash to create web games versus using other types of software. One important advantage is that Flash games load a lot faster than games developed with other software programs because it is 100% vector based. Flash also comes with many built-in animation effects, which makes it easier for developers to program a colorful, fast loading, smooth running gaming experience for players. Flash compiled animations use very little memory and bandwidth, without compromising on the quality and features of the games. The Flash developer kit from Adobe is also relatively inexpensive as a professional game development software. All these factors have made Flash the best web game development software for web programmers, and made web game easy to develop and addictive to play.
Online web games are not just for kids. According to Casual Games Market Report 2007, an estimated 200 million consumers play casual games online every month. Many of them are working adults who do not regard themselves as fans of video games. Casual games typically are a flash mini game, played on a personal computer online in web browsers. They are usually extremely simple gameplay, like a shooting or golf game that can be played entirely using a one-button mouse or keypad, the overall difficulty of the game is much lower than a traditional game. Players should be able to able to open and play the web game without reading a lengthy introduction to the product. This simple aspect of casual games has helped grow the industry rapidly.
Flash is a great authoring tool for developing an interactive a web game or casual game. An experienced flash animator can develop a mini flash game within several hours with high quality image and animations. Another advantage is that flash player is available for all types of browsers on different operating systems including PC, Mac, or Linux, through a web browser or standalone (e.g. on a 3G phone)
How to make a flash mini game if you are not a game design artists? You can consider create flash games using available flash game templates. Flash game templates are pre-designed flash games with full source code (FLA) files. These flash game templates can be customized, modified using Adobe Flash. So you can easily add your own name, logo, text, link or even replaces the graphics. You can buy flash game templates from commercial websites or search online forums for open source flash game source code samples.
Many flash games are developed for free distribution in order to drive traffic to a website and increase a website stickiness. For example, a sport website selling golf clubs, tennis rackets, fishing equipments can put related mini flash games on website for their visitors to play. When a website makes a free flash game available, it would attract a lot more people to visit the website and stay on the website longer. This can help website to increase customer loyalty, brand awareness, and potential to earn revenue from sponsor ads or product sales.
There are also many revenue potentials for flash games. Most casual flash game are distributed for free after development. And for some popular flash games, they are usually licensed to a large company base on sponsorship or ad revenue share basis.
