With Adobe ending support for Flash in 2020, you’re probably here looking for a good Adobe Flash Player alternative. Flash applications were the early leaders in enriching web content with videos and animations. However, the folks behind the Adobe Flash multimedia platform never seemed prepared to continuously ensure that it was secure and could keep up with the times.
As a result, the technology started losing favor with the tech industry. The writing was on the wall for Flash from the time Steve Jobs declared in his famous letter that Apple would stop supporting Flash on its devices. Soon other technology partners like Microsoft followed suit.
Eventually, Adobe announced End of Life (EOL) Flash in 2020, and ceased distribution and support for Adobe Flash Player.
But leaving aside the security issue, Flash was a powerful technology with amazing multimedia features. Some Flash lovers still wish to access the engaging content created with Flash, such as games, animations, rich web applications, and PowerPoint presentations.
8 Top Flash Player Alternatives For Windows
We have compiled a list of the best Adobe Flash Player alternatives in 2024 that will enable fans to continue enjoying existing Flash content.
#1. BlueMaxima’s Flashpoint
BlueMaxima’s Flashpoint is a non-profit software with roots in the desire of Flash lovers to preserve existing Flash videos and animations, after Adobe started the deprecation process in 2017.
The project has garnered considerable international fame for the superiority of its products. As a result, BlueMaxima’s Flashpoint is our best pick for Adobe Flash Player alternatives in 2021.
They offer users two versions — a web-hosted one and a locally installed version — in place of Adobe Flash Player.
Flashpoint Ultimate:
Users can download and install the Flashpoint Ultimate repository on their machines and enjoy this Flash player in a completely offline mode. The package is around 532GB after extraction. Playing Flash games and watching Flash animations with the Ultimate version is a smooth and lag-free experience as the content resides locally.
Flashpoint Infinity:
Infinity is the web-hosted counterpart of Flashpoint Ultimate, and features the whole of its functionality. The initial installation is only 2GB, but the package bloats up with time when you download more content.
This replacement for adobe flash player offers the advantage of not needing to download it and thus save space on your local disk drive. On the flip side, you will not get the same high-quality viewing experience of the Ultimate version because Flashpoint Infinity streams content in real-time from the Internet.
Here, we would like to point out that Adobe Flash Player never downloaded anything locally and hence offered a more superior performance. With no other equally robust alternatives available, BlueMaxima’s Flashpoint is currently your best bet.
BlueMaxima software initially only supported Windows, but it is now also available on Linux and Mac.
Here are the installation instructions for Windows 10:
1 – Download the Installation File by either visiting the BlueMaxima Website (bluemaxima.org) or by using one of the links listed below:
Flashpoint Ultimate and Infinity Download Link
2 – Extract the downloaded Package into a separate Folder.
3 – Launch the Flashpoint Package by clicking on the shortcut.
4 – Choose from the options on the Home Screen.
5 – Enjoy your favorite Adobe Flash Content from over 7,000 animations and 70,000 games provided by this application.
We must mention here that this product is far from being finished. The Flash ecosystem evolved and several new formats and technologies were introduced over its lifespan. Hence, you might not be able to play ALL legacy Flash files with Flashpoint currently. However, the developers are constantly incorporating support for more Flash applications. So, you can hope for it to soon have all the functionality available in Adobe Flash Player.
#2. Ruffle Emulator
This open source project started by Flash lovers to keep the legacy alive is the Ruffle Emulator Project. The developers have chosen to code Ruffle in the Rust programming language to plug the security issues in the original Adobe Flash Player using the advanced security features of Rust.
The Ruffle team welcomes more volunteers to join them in this passion project and constantly tries to add support for more Flash APIs. Additionally, Ruffle runs natively on your machine, working as a fantastic Adobe Flash Player alternative.
To install the Ruffle browser plugin, follow these steps:
1 – Go to Ruffle’s Website (ruffle.rs) and navigate to the Downloads tab (ruffle downloads).
2 – Select the extension suitable for your browser and download it. (We are using Google Chrome, and so we will choose the extension for Chrome.)
3 – Extract the content of the downloaded file into a Folder.
4 – Type the following into the Google Chrome Address Bar to access the Extensions section.
Chrome://extensions
5 – You can see the list of Google Chrome Extensions on your screen. Toggle the Developer Mode button in the top-right corner to turn on the option.
6 – Click the Load Unpacked button on the left, toward the top of the window.
7 – Browse the Folder in which you extracted the files for Ruffle Flash Player Emulator.
8 – Select the installation folder and click Select Folder.
9 – The Extensions section now shows the Ruffle Emulator Extension enabled on Google Chrome.
10 – Visit any URL on the Internet containing Flash content.
11 – Click Play. You can enjoy videos and seamlessly play games.
#3. Lightspark
Lightspark, an open-source, free Flash Player, is also among the best alternatives to Adobe Flash Player. They have plugins for Chrome and other web browsers too, as well as standalone desktop apps.
Lightspark is written in the close-to-hardware C++ coding language and hence displays excellent performance in speed and memory management. In addition, the developer team continuously releases updates that support other Flash APIs to make it as comprehensive as Adobe Flash Player.
This particular replacement for adobe flash player is available for both Windows and Linux. Lightspark released this software under an LGLPv3 License, and if you are a developer, you can customize the source code to add other rich functionality.
To install Lightspark for Windows:
- Go to their GitHub repository here.
- Navigate to the downloads section by clicking on the link provided.
- Click on the Windows Installer suitable for your machine (32bit/ 64bit). Linux users need to build Lightspark from the source code manually.
- Run the Installer to have the Lightspark alternative to Adobe Flash Player installed on your system.
You can now watch Flash media by opening it with the Lightspark standalone player.
#4. SuperNova Flash Player
SuperNova Player is also one of the most robust alternatives to Adobe Flash Player. SuperNova Flash Player launches .swf files in a new window from within your browser.
Several popular Flash gaming websites embed the SuperNova Flash Player engine to enable you to play many online games natively. Alternatively, you can download the SuperNova Flash Player browser extension from the developer’s site.
To download SuperNova Player to your system, follow these steps:
- Point your browser to the SuperNova Player site here.
- Head over to the downloads section by clicking on the Download Player button on the top of the page.
- As of now, SuperNova Player only provides a Windows installer. Click Install Now to download the Installer.
- When you download the Installer, it automatically loads the Chrome extension and prompts you to confirm and enable it. When you do so, you will find the SuperNova Flash Player Extension in the list of Chrome extensions.
- After having confirmed the Chrome Extension, run the downloaded SuperNova Player Installer to install SuperNova Flash Player on your system as a standalone app.
- You can now open local downloaded Flash files with the standalone app as an alternative to Adobe Flash Player. You can also use the Google Chrome extension to enjoy Flash games and other animations online.
#5. Shubus Viewer
Shubus Viewer is an all-inclusive tool that lets you view Flash applications, Flash games (.swf files), as well as Macromedia Shockwave Files (.dcr extension). Shubus Viewer also integrates with most browsers to use as a suitable replacement for Adobe Flash Player.
Shubus Viewer even lets you run Flash content in email by providing an extension for your email client. You can also open formats such as text files and Unity3D games since Shubus Viewer does not restrict itself only to supporting Flash software.
#6. CheerpX HTML5 Emulator
HTML5 is among the most promising Adobe Flash alternatives, and looks likely to become its natural successor.
CheerpX is a powerful virtualization technology product that lets you play all Adobe Flash Platform content in an HTML5 emulator in the browser. The ideal solution for legacy Flash content is to convert it into HTML5 (as happens with most old code bases), and CheerpX provides one of the best alternatives this way. Furthermore, you do not even need to hire web developers to rewrite the old code.
The case of HTML5 and Flash is a classic example of a common occurrence in the tech industry when plugins add exciting functionality, but the platform later subsumes them by providing this functionality natively.
Similarly, the latest Hypertext Markup Language standard provides full support for rich vector animations natively with SVG, Web GL, canvas, and many other elements. HTML5 has fewer security vulnerabilities than Adobe Flash presented. As a result, web developers and game designers like to use these technologies and find no need for Flash anymore.
You have to pay for the CheerpX service by signing up on their website here.
Special Mention 1 – Flash Supported Free Browser for Windows PC: Lunascape
Suppose you were a hard-core Flash fan and willing to take the security risk that comes with it. The news that browsers are ending Flash support, including Microsoft, which had done so in both the new Microsoft Edge and the old Internet Explore, must have hit you hard. You might consider switching your browser entirely to one that natively supports Flash.
Lunascape is a remarkable, free web browser with Flash support built-in and one of the best Adobe Flash Player alternatives. You don’t even need to give any special permissions or turn on a setting.
You can download Lunascape for Windows by visiting their site.
- Click on the Free Download Button to download Lunascape to your local Windows PC.
- Click on the downloaded file to install Lunascape.
- Launch the Lunascape Browser once the installation completes.
- Navigate to any URL with content created in Flash and see the magic of this excellent substitute for Flash Player Adobe!
Special Mention 2 – Flash Enabled Browser for Android – FlashFox
With Flash losing favor with the entire tech industry, Google is also withdrawing support for Flash. On the official Play Store, FlashFox looks like the only browser available that still plays Flash content. You can download several other browsers that support Flash, but they are not present in the Play Store.
FlashFox is one of the fastest Android web browsers, but you may get irritated with the many ads it displays. In spite of that, it is a popular alternative to Adobe Flash Player on mobile devices. If you accept the security risk, FlashFox can be an excellent choice.
We are sure our list of replacement for adobe flash player will provide you with enough options to view old media after the End-of-Life Flash in 2021 and hopefully, beyond that too.
The story of Flash is a lesson for all tech teams – security is more critical than ever before. Perhaps the reason why the Flash team erred had to do with the timing of this technology’s debut. Flash developed in the early days of the Internet when security was much less of a concern. As a result, throughout its journey from Macromedia to Adobe, the developers could not successfully plug the platform’s many security vulnerabilities.
It is best if developers do not get carried away by the lure of exciting technology, and compromise on reliability and security. We end this article with a few helpful answers about the way forward after Flash Player Adobe ends.
FAQs:
Q. What will replace Flash Player in 2020?
A. We have provided a few options above that are great alternatives for Adobe Flash Player after End of Life Flash 2020. Feel free to use these as standalone apps or use their browser extensions to view Flash.
Q. What can replace Flash?
A. HTML5, the latest standard of Hypertext Markup Language, is the new technology that will replace Flash until there’s a better option. The rich functionality provided by new HTML5 features such as the canvas element, SVG, Web GL, and Web Assembly, powers modern web animations and online games.
W3C, in particular, and the entire tech industry are encouraging content creators to switch over to HTML5. Developers are rewriting a lot of existing Flash content in HTML5. A good Flash Player emulator like CheeprX can quickly help view Flash files as HTML5 without manually rewriting them.
Q. What is the best alternative to Adobe Flash Player?
A. BlueMaxima Flashpoint is the best alternative. The open-source software is developed with a mission to preserve the legacy of Flash and the Internet, and their developers release regular updates to provide support for more Adobe Flash APIs. Users can utilize their desktop app, Flashpoint Ultimate, or the browser-based Flashpoint Infinity software to access old content.
Q. What can I use instead of Flash Player for Chrome?
A. You could use any of the extensions on our list above to replace Adobe Flash Player for Chrome. The browser extensions of SuperNova, Ruffle, and Lightspark are excellent for viewing Adobe Flash videos and animations.
