The Joy of Flash (or "The head! Shoot them in the head!)

It's funny how Flash is what drew us to the web almost a decade ago. The idea that the web could be engaging in that way, that it could move about and play music - as opposed to simply rendering text for you to read on you 15" CRT - doesn't sound that revolutionary now, but it was a huge step in the evolution of the web.

During the 90s flash was also responsible for those horrible loading pages and intro movies (how many times have you had to click to skip one of those) that, combined with dial up and this thing called Google and the beginnings of search engine optimisation), led to flash getting a very bad name in some circles.

We've always felt that there's a time and a place for flash and if it's deployed sensibly to enhance the web experience then it's win-win. Every now and again we also get to do something that's flash heavy, like Holy Smoke for example, and here it's a perfect platform to deliver some real personality and character.

Recently the stars have aligned again for flash. It seems that even technology isn't immune to "coming back into style", and whilst some people still decry flash from the fringes a one word answer generally shuts that down pretty quickly - Youtube. Thanks to Youtube, Flash is finally commonplace on web browsers, and is emerging as crucial in the development of the mobile "web" landscape - Apple what are you thinking?

Did you know more people in America watched Youtube videos than conducted searches on Google in September? The verdict is in - the masses want video, want interactivity, and want to be entertained. Here in New Zealand we are slowly getting the broadband that allows us to take advantage of just that (although if you want to see how good your ADSL2+ Telecomstrafonehug connection really is spend an afternoon browsing the FWA... America's broadband must be on steroids compared to our " John Key endorsed plans).

When I saw these two examples of how flash ads can be used to disrupt audiences and really create a buzz I had to share them. They have been unleashed to wide acclaim and whilst part of the creative is in being first to partner with the serving sites - Youtube and Gametrailers.com in these cases - I think there's room to produce similar creatives with equally exciting results...

But why am I being so vague? You'll have to watch and see, no "Sixth Sense Bruce Willis Is A Ghost" spoilers here!

Click through to view:

Resident Evil Trailer on Gametrailers.com Here

Warioland Shake It Gameplay video on Youtube Here