Neopets as We Know It Is About to Be Obliterated
When Adobe Flash dies, so will your childhood memories
Sarah Closson’s Neopets routine starts with breakfast. She visits a massive omelette that’s served free eggs for nearly two decades, then collects interest at the Neopian bank and spins wheels to win prizes in Faerieland, Tyrannia, and the Haunted Woods. After that, she works on her long-term goals: Right now, she feeds the cat-like creatures called Kadoaties at the Kadoatie pound to earn a collectible avatar.
Closson, 23, has been playing Neopets for more than half her life. The site launched in 1999 and quickly became one of the most successful children’s properties online. For a time, millions of people visited the site to collect virtual pets and play online games. Now, only 100,000 or so people still log on every day.
While not much has changed in the world of Neopia over the past two decades, major upheaval is right around the corner. In 2017, Adobe announced it will kill off Flash, an outdated platform used to create interactive games and videos that doubles as Neopets’ lifeblood: Most of the interactive elements on the site require Flash to run.
For Neopets, Flash’s demise is very likely a death knell.
