Prank flash |
A prank flash is a Macromedia Flash movie in the spirit of a shock site. The term usually does not include clips that are simply humorous have surprising jokes near the end, but that are specifically designed to scare the viewer and induce a jump in their seat. The qualities of any shock flash may vary, although most have basic similarities. Other popular terms are screamers (which vary in length of time and contain a scream within the movie near the end) or ambush or sabotage flash (flash movies that deceive the viewer into interacting or watching intently before scaring them).
=Screamers=
Usually the movies begin innocuously, sometimes with a mundane image (such as the famous What is Wrong With This Picture#The Internet Prank ) or even a simple game or quiz designed to keep the viewer s attention on the screen. Sometimes the image is accompanied by audio which is kept at a deliberately low level, so as to persuade the viewer to turn up the volume on their computer. The image itself may be small to force the user to maximize their browser window. Another technique is to play a song, prompting the user to turn up the volume, with the lyrics of the song scrolling up the screen. In pranks that are disguised as games, there is sometimes a spurious recommendation on the page itself to turn up the volume, in order to hear a clue for the game.
After grabbing the user s attention, the movie is abruptly interrupted by an unexpected image, usually accompanied by a burst of sound, such as a scream or roar. The picture can range from a crude cartoon to an explicitly gruesome image, in which case the shock comes partially from the content of the picture.
Prank flash movies sometimes finish with a suggestion not to follow mysterious links from strangers. On many large, corporate-run message boards, it is against the rules to post links to a screamer without explicitly flagging it as such. Some people nonetheless still follow such links through curiosity.
Although Flash is the most prevalent medium for shock animations, there are others; there is an animated GIF showing a picture of an uncleaned room, and a ghostly lady walking into the room every 40 seconds [http://www.castleofspirits.com/hoax2.gif], and there is a prank video that pretends to be a car commercial, used by the German firm K-Fee for advertising purposes.
Also, parodies of such movies exist. One such uses a perfectly innocent smiley face as the shock object, and another involves an unmanipulated (but creepy!) photograph of Michael Jackson.
==Avoiding screamers==
*Avoid following suspicious or improperly described direct links to *.swf files (or html with a prominent flash movie loading up), especially from strangers. Many screamers posted at boards that allow comments will usually contain future posts warning of the nature of the flash. *Avoid the temptation and do not assume the flash could not be as scary as indicated. Many kinds exist. *Familiarize yourself with many of the more well-known screamers through the descriptions below, as some of them appear in many places. *If you feel the need, open the file in a window of reduced size with the volume muted . The screamer image is usually intended to fill the window and so cannot be totally seen this way; this small bit of the window may suddenly shift in appearance, indicating the presence of a shocking image. As many screamers are very loud, merely lowering the volume does not guarantee less surprise and headphones are never recommended. *There are bookmarklets that create a seek bar that works with most Flash applets (http://www.squarefree.com/bookmarklets/flash.html).
==Examples of screamers==
:WARNING: The following Flash animations are intended to shock and surprise and are not recommended for those with heart disease or who are otherwise sensitive to sudden and unpleasant surprises. It is recommended that you keep your volume down while viewing these.
===Kikia===
Link: http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/kikia.php
This is the first prank flash to be widely spread and thus provide inspiration for other similar creations. It originated on Taiwan s Kimo webhosting service from a person with the online username Netspooky .
There is actually a fanlisting devoted to this prank flash, titled simply [http://chains-broken.net/scream/home.php Scream ].
====Summary====
===Subliminal Messages===
Link: http://www.killsometime.com/animations/animation.aspID=119
Caution: Also contains suggestive sexual images.
This animation, sometimes known as Subliminal Music and Images , is considered by many to be the scariest flash animation on the Internet (compare with Rubber Johnny). It has been distributed to many websites since 2002. Several people claimed that, after seeing this flash, they had nightmare for days.
====Summary====
After loading, an advertisement for whisky is shown. After a few seconds, part of the image is highlighted and the word SEX is visible. An image for a flooring company appears, with a woman appearing to be touching her shoulder. The image is then flipped, so it appears the woman is masturbating herself. The song Dinner at Deviant s Palace by the band Cradle of Filth begins to play in reverse. The Lord s Prayer is heard along with strange noises. In the middle of the prayer, a loud scream is heard, along with a flurry of pictures; some of them are of a harlequin fetus.
=== Ghost TV ===
It is a scream flash that pretends to be a surveillance cam game to search for a ghost inside a house that was abandoned, you have an EVP monitor that will record a ghost message, sometimes you will hear Help Me . After searching a lot of rooms you will hear breathing and your screen will go snowy after a few seconds a ghost boy will appear and scream.
Link: http://sugarqube.com/Ecards/CardView.cfmCardID=1371&L1=186&L2=253&L3=0&Page=
=== Murder Investigation ===
This is a mystery game where you have to find clues to see how a family of three was killed. Once you get all the clues you have to find the killer: if you don t find the killer in time he will find you and kill you, when he finds you a whole bunch of pictures will pop up. No scream, but a screech will sound.
Link: http://sugarqube.com/Ecards/CardView.cfmCardID=1228
The walkthrough also features a brief blurry shot of a puppet that randomly pops up with a loud screech.
Link: http://www.sugarqube.com/siteinfo/Walkthrough/MurderInvestigation.cfm
=== Night Vision ===
This flash tells you to look for a hidden ghost in each picture it tells you to crank up your speakers and turn out the lights. After looking a few times, a girl with no face appears and screams.
Link: http://sugarqube.com/Ecards/CardView.cfmCardID=1120
===Urban Legends Series===
Link: http://www.jkcinema.com/
A popular series distributed on the internet, which show mini documentaries providing evidence of the paranormal. Most, but not all, of the movies usually stop for 5 seconds, then an image of a ghost appears suddenly, accompanied by a very loud scream. Urban Legends 3: Ghosts , is considered to be the scariest out of the series, and indeed one of the creepiest movies on the internet.
====Summary====
It starts off normally, with a warning, and goes on to show ghost photography, ghost videos, and ITC. The first screamer hints to the viewer that ghosts may be haunting their computer monitor. 10 seconds later, a ghost girl pops up very briefly and is usually unseen. The movie continues with ghost EVP, then ends with a picture of an uncleaned room. The author tells the viewer to LOOK CLOSER!!!!! and then a scary loud scream and another ghost girl pops out from the door (this is actually derived from the animated GIF mentioned above - when using a Flash seek bar bookmarklet, the girl doesn t pop up).
=== Paranormal Activities 6 ===
This flash pretends to be a paranormal activities video with ghosts and subliminal messages. It tells you that there was a death in the band Linkin Park. When it tells you to listen to one of their songs backwards, the song isn t very loud, so you supposedly have to crank up your speakers. After a few seconds a screaming girl will appear and also a picture of what looks like satan.
Link: http://www.kreepykingdom.com/pranks/pa6.html
===Other screamers===
====Collections====
=Non-screamers=
==Examples of non-screamers==
===You Are An Idiot===
Link: http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/you.html (beware, this is the prank itself!) http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/youare.php (the actual Flash file; does not cause popups)
Albino Black Sheep is one of the many sites hosting the popular you are an idiot prank. These pranks are usually not functional in browsers other than Microsoft Internet Explorer and are impaired by the presence of a popup blocker or a virus scanner. The popups can be avoided by pressing the back button on the browser rather than closing the window. Ending the IEXPLORE process in Windows s task manager via ctrl-alt-del also effectively quashes the pop-ups).
OH SHIT DONKEY NIGGA
===Red Room===
Link: http://www.geocities.co.jp/SiliconValley/4358/red_room1.html
Not a prank as such (there is no shock , it is simply a horror story), Red Room is a flash video, entirely in Japanese, about an urban legend called the Red Room . The protagonist in the video searches on the internet for proof of its existence, only for the results to go horribly awry.
This Flash is said to be the favorite of Nevada-tan, the girl who stabbed her classmate on 1 June 2004 in Sasebo, Japan.
Note: ensure you have Flash player version 7.0.19.0 [http://www.macromedia.com/cfusion/knowledgebase/index.cfmid=tn_15507 (click here to check your version)] or higher, or you will receive an error page in Japanese.
====Summary====
Two friends discuss a rumour about an Internet pop-up ad that asks Do you like it ( ). If you dare to close the pop-up, you die. The more skeptical friend does some investigation. At home, he looks it up on the web, but nothing happens, and he goes on to visit his own favorite sites... Suddenly, out of the blue, the message pops up. He tries to call his friend, but there is no answer...
After he clicks to close it the first few times, it keeps re-appearing. It then starts automatically reloading. Each time, a new part of the message is revealed, finally displaying Do you like the red room (). Then a website with all the names of the people killed shows up, with his friend s name at the bottom. He feels that there is something behind him.
The next day, some people in school talk about two boys from the next class who committed suicide, painting their rooms red with their own blood.
As a means of further spooking the user, a pop-up identical to the killer Red Room pop-up appears after the movie is finished playing.
===Other non-screamers===
=In the mainstream=
=See also=
*Shock site *Symphony No. 94 (Haydn) - Haydn s Surprise Symphony|
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