"YouTube. Flickr. MySpace. Wikipedia. Second Life. Bored yet? Probably. We've had the message of how these web phenomena epitomise the user-generated content revolution excitably rammed down our throats for what seems like years. Yet the sites that really kickstarted the movement hardly get a mention.
Newgrounds.com, the large Flash games and animation site that spawned Alien Hominid, has been accepting user-produced submissions since 1999. That it has been quietly spearheading for eight years what is only now being trumpeted about in the mainstream media is indicative of how overlooked the Flash games scene is."
-EDGE Magazine (UK), July 2007
EVERYTHING BY EVERYONE ®
I grew up making home movies and text adventures that no one ever saw or played, so it was really exciting when I got web access in 1995 and started Newgrounds. My first games were point and click adventures, followed by some more interactive javascript concoctions. In 1998, I picked up Flash and my life changed forever. By 1999, Newgrounds was so popular that other Flash artists wanted to showcase their movies and games here too. There were so many submissions that we automated the process in 2000, being the first website to offer real-time publishing for games and movies. It was like a big party.In 2003 we added the Audio Portal and co-authoring system so artists could team up with musicians and credits could be better represented. The collaboration has continued to grow ever since, with the addition of an Art Portal, Writing Forum and numerous events and jams.
Anyone can play a role here at NG, whether you're submitting original content or writing a review to give some constructive feedback. Feedback is the fuel that keeps us going.
Newgrounds has been self-sustained since its inception, free of investor and corporate interests. If you like what you see and want to help keep the engine running, become a supporter and browse with minimal advertising!
We have also expanded beyond Flash! You may now upload animations in video format (ie MP4) and can upload HTML5 games.
We're striving to create and maintain a unique outpost on the web.
-Tom
For a more comprehensive look at NG, check out these pages: