Adobe Animate is a software for creating animations. The main publishing format is HTML/JavaScript. Earlier versions of the software were known as Adobe Flash Professional. For a long time, Flash animations were the most widely used format for animations on websites.
The focus of the program is on 2D animations. The user interface is similar to an illustration program. Individual images can be combined into small animation sequences using a timeline. Terms such as “key frames” and “tweens” point to conceptual origins in the cartoon sector.
Interactive animations can be created with JavaScript programming. The integrated code editor provides access to the open source program library CreateJS. For example, CreateJS offers the option of executing drawing commands based on events.
Adobe Animate is part of Adobe’s Creative Cloud and can be used as part of a subscription.
Adobe Animate has undergone a profound transformation with the switch from Flash/ActionsScript to CreateJS/JavaScript. However, it was unable to hold its own in the dynamic environment of game development. Despite some technical disadvantages (e.g. an outdated code editor, framework without WebGL support), Adobe Animate can still be used today to create appealing graphic assets and animation sequences.