Category Archives: Meta

MORE new items?!

Posted on April 12, 2026 by | Leave a comment

To celebrate the launch of HeroMachine 3 Phoenix Edition, which went way better than I even hoped it would, I’m launching another set of new items. They’re in a classic old-time lineart style that I wasn’t sure would work but I think they’re pretty cool. Give some of the planets a try, changing the lineart color in particular, it gives some wild effects. Let me know what you think of this approach.

Background Cityscapes

First up are some background items to help set the stage. The new wider viewport makes for a good way to test these mostly long and narrow items. And of course a whole new set, Companions Farm Animals, because why not!

Random Stuff I thought Looked Cool

We had a couple of skulls but the lineart style on these gives them a whole new dimension. Bows and crowns have also been shortchanged so I put in a couple of those.

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Posted in HeroMachine 3, Meta, New Item Releases, News & Updates

The New Hotness

Posted on April 8, 2026 by | 3 comments

Just a heads-up that while I’ll be out of town for the next two days I won’t be posting or responding much, but I’ve updated the HeroMachine 3 page with information about the Phoenix Edition, check it out if you get a chance. And thanks for being here!

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Posted in HeroMachine 3, Meta

HeroMachine 3 Preferences

Posted on April 7, 2026 by | Leave a comment

The Flash version didn’t allow you to customize the interface in any meaningful way, but the new version will:

Screenshot of the HeroMachine 3 Phoenix Edition app sjowing the preferences menu open.

Here’s a list of all the preferences you can set to tailor your HM3 experience how you like:

Continue reading →

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Posted in HeroMachine 3, Meta

HeroMachine 3 “Phoenix Edition” Progress Report

Posted on April 6, 2026 by | 4 comments

Can you tell I’m workshopping the name of this update? Anyway, I want to keep you all apprised of how the conversion process is going.

A screen shot showing the "Load" screen from the new HeroMachine 3 app.

You can now upload not just saved character strings but old Flash Cookie “.sol” files. For a long while that was the only way to save characters but it was tucked away in a hidden location that was hard to get to. Now if you have one from Back In The Day you can import it like any other file and all of your saved characters will be there, fully editable, without needing Flash at all. The test file I got from a long-time and awesome HeroMachine community member had 375 characters saved, and now they can all live again.

In addition I added an “Export All” button so you can keep your characters in a safe place outside of the site. I dread the thought of clearing your cookies and suddenly all your data is missing.

I’m also adding more new items under a central theme!

Continue reading →

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Posted in HeroMachine 3, Meta

All roads lead to … new items?

Posted on April 4, 2026 by | 4 comments

I’m not sayin’. I’m just sayin’ …

A set of illustrated roman helmets, sandals, and shields.

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Posted in HeroMachine 3, Meta

The Return of HeroMachine 3?

Posted on April 3, 2026 by | 10 comments

After way too many years, I can hardly believe that the return of HeroMachine 3 as a non-Flash, fully-functional character creator is not just very real, but quite imminent. Here’s a proof-of-life screenshot:

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Posted in HeroMachine 3, Meta

Requesting your characters’ XML saves (also hello again!)

Posted on March 30, 2026 by | 2 comments

::testing, testing … is this thing still on?::

Hey all, it’s been a long long time since there was any HeroMachine news of note, and I honestly don’t know if anyone is still around or interested. But I might have some pretty huge news to share in the very near future about getting HM3 working again. I will share that I have a working prototype built in native CSS, HTML, and JavaScript that will run natively in your browser without needing anything in particular extra. And definitely no Flash!
To help with testing, though, I am hoping some of you fine folks are willing to send me your saved character XML files from the past so I can test things further. My email address is afdstudios at gmail dot com.

If you are still here, THANK YOU! And if you can send me some saved character files that would be fantastic, so DOUBLE thank you!

I appreciate you all more than I can say.

– Prodigal Jeff

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Posted in Meta

HeroMachine 2 is back!

Posted on December 12, 2023 by | 1 comment

Thanks to a program called Ruffle, Flash content can now be shown in browsers again! Head on over to the HeroMachine 2 page and start creating your own character portraits like you did back in the day!

Make Your Own HM2 Character!

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Posted in Meta

How to Use HeroMachine 2 Locally

Posted on January 13, 2021 by | 39 comments

[Note: As of April, 2026 you can use HeroMachine 3 natively in your browser, no extra setup needed. If you prefer to use the Flash version, though, this article still applies.]

Hi all, with big thanks to HeroMachiner Eric Bowling, here’s how you can use HeroMachine outside of your browser. Adobe has said they’re going to be force uninstalling the Flash Player (the standalone player basically) but I don’t know that applies to this particular version.

Basically you download a local Flash Player application, then put in the URL for a .swf file (a compiled Flash object, which is what HeroMachine uses) and it plays. I’ve tried it on my Mac with HM3 and HM2 and it seems to work like a champ. You’ll still need an Internet connection but if this goes well I may bundle up the files and make them available online so you could truly run it all locally. We’ll just have to see, I don’t want to sell people something and then BAM Adobe force uninstalls the Flash Players and it no longer works.

Continue reading →

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Posted in HeroMachine 3, Meta, News & Updates, Tips & Tricks

Flash End of Life and maybe HeroMachine as well

Posted on January 12, 2021 by | 18 comments

Update: Check this post for instructions on how to keep using HeroMachine in a local Flash Player Debugger.

Flash has reached its End of Life and HeroMachine no longer works. Thank you for your support over the years and for your interest.

I have paid thousands of dollars and worked for 2+ years for a replacement but alas, it is not yet done. I’ve investigated replacements for Flash that would allow it to remain operational, but they haven’t worked out.

We’ll continue to work behind the scenes to see if we can complete the work that’s been done so far but clearly, my promises are worth very little right now. I’m devastated and so sorry that we weren’t able to bring this thing in for a landing in time.

I’m proud that for 20+ years, this site has enabled people to bring their inner creativity to life. I feel like I’ve lost a bit of my soul today and I am so, so sorry to have let you all down.

Check back occasionally and / or join the Facebook group (https://www.facebook.com/HeroMachine/) for any future updates.

All the best, and please keep on creating.

Jeff

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Posted in HeroMachine 3, Meta