As most of you know, browser support for the Flash plug-in will be ending in 2020. When this happens, you will no longer be able to start up Chrome or Firefox and play Webkinz. At the end of 2017 we made a small announcement that we were developing a desktop version of our mobile application to deal with the end of browser support. That application was completed, but we weren’t very happy with it. Screens designed for small phones don’t look great when blown up on a large monitor, and more importantly, what was going to happen to great sections like the Curio Shop, Wish Factory and the Clubhouse that aren’t in our mobile version? We knew we could do better. So we dug deep, got creative, and we can now show you this…
This is the new Webkinz Desktop. This version includes everything that Webkinz has to offer – all the games, items, and features – because it IS Webkinz. Webkinz Desktop still uses Flash – do not delete the plug-in! – but doesn’t require a browser to play the game.
And Webkinz has never looked better! You’ll be able to play Webkinz full screen to see your pet’s rooms even closer. Complete challenges, enjoy all of our events, join friends in the park – it’s all there!
Webkinz Desktop is nearing completion. To ensure that we haven’t missed anything, we will be running a small private beta test in about three weeks. Once that is complete, we will release the application to everyone! Webkinz Desktop is currently for Windows only, but we do plan to make a Mac version available soon after.
We are very excited for the release of Webkinz Desktop, as it will allow us to continue to provide a great Webkinz experience for years to come.
This looks great, but I have one question: Will you guys be making a version for Chromebooks? I only have a Chromebook and don’t have the money for a Windows or Mac computer. Thanks! :)
The desktop application is for Windows 7, 8 or 10 only. We will then be working on a Mac version. There are no plans for an Android version.
Ok, thank you, Sally! I guess I’ll have to start saving!
So everyone who only has a chromebook (and no foreseeable way to change that) is — at this point — officially confirmed out of luck, thanks for playing, see ya, we don’t want your support anymore.
why disregard and throw to the wind all the android users? low income people cant all afford mac and windows machines.
This is wonderful news! Was this the big announcement that Steve mentioned a week or so ago? Very pleased to hear that the Curio Shop, Wish Factory & Clubhouse will be included. Curious whether the Adventure Park & Vacation Island will survive the transition too. I can’t wait to get the app & try it. Very happy to hear about full screen viewing capability, that will help me out a lot when making videos. You guys just made my day, thanks!
I saw that too and was eagerly awaiting the big announcement! I am so glad to see this news as well!
Very very exciting news! Thank you for making sure Webkinz can continue!
I am so happy! I was so scared we would loose so many beloved things that we have now on Webkinz World. Seeing this made me very happy today. I am so glad to know that we have workers like you guys to help keep Webkinz the way we love and enjoy it. This relieved a lot of stress about this issue for me as i was unsure what to expect. Thanks for all your hard work!
One of the things I’ve loved about being able to use a browser is having multiple windows open… then I can watch for floaties (like Fashion Week bags) on more than one account at a time. Will this be possible with the app? If not, could that ability be developed? Thanks in advance for any help!
Yes! usually if you press ALT+Enter (while in the game) you can minimize it to make it not full screen and it will look almost like a browser page with an exit button on the top right as well. I don’t know if webkinz will have this but i am pretty positive considering other games made similar like this do. I am worried about this as well as i like reading newz and doing peek-a-newz stuff as well but i am pretty positive this will be the case!
Only one instance of the application can be open at a time, so it will not be possible to have multiple accounts open at once.
Oh i only have one account so i don’t know about using multiple accounts and have them open at the same time. I must have read over what PJ_ said but as far as using webkinz news to do peek-a-newz i am sure you can minimize the window and still be logged in to do so!
Well this is a horrible turn of events. Will we be able to switch accounts within the game or will we have to relaunch for every account we have? Can’t tell you how disappointed I am that you are still relying on flash when other game developers know how to program without it. Will you EVER move away from flash? Not keen on the full screen mode either. This sounds like a very lazy fix.
something as expansive as webkinz might not survive on html5 or unity. those dont have nearly the chops that flash has.
I do this all the time with different devices. I usually wait for floaty-clickies on my tablet while doing activities for a different account on my laptop. If you have two devices, like a computer or laptop and tablet or phone, maybe you could wait on two accounts at once for floaties. I love the fact that there’s a Webkinz mobile app and I can do this multitasking.
Ooo sweet!! I’m so happy that you guys made sure Curio Shop, Wish Factory, and the Clubhouse and Park are still here. Oh my goodness, I’m so relieved. This sound really cool! While I would still enjoy having these things on the Webkinz mobile version too, I’m really excited to know everything will be pretty much the same, including look basically the same, on the computer. Thanks for your hard work, Webkinz! I look forward to trying it out! ^-^
Wow! I cannot imagine the work that went into that! Looks like you have a winner on your hands, and even though there will be bumps along the way, it’s probably going to be great. For those of you who are scared – Facebook has an app for gaming now. You can go through a browser or through the app. Both work equally well.
if the new desktop version doesn’t require a browser, how do we get to it?
If you have an older PC or Mac desktop, then you might not have discovered apps for desktop yet. Windows 10 relies almost exclusively on apps. You download the app and it will do the rest without a browser. Apps for PC are probably the wave of the future to get around browsers not using flash.
We will provide a link to the application installer on the home page when it is released.
Ah, Sally, I have a question. Would “Webkinz Desktop” work on my Chromebook?
I’m thinking you could still play in a browser, Flash just won’t update anymore. So that means you would be vulnerable to any malware that some creep might put into Flash.
This desktop application is for Windows 7, 8 or 10 only. We will then be working on a Mac version. There are no plans for an Android version.
Oh.. I must say that’s a bit disappointing. I hope I have my own laptop by 2020 the, because I really don’t like using our desktop computers very much!
:o WOW! Great work you guys!!! Looks fantastic, thank you all for working so hard on this critical transition, so happy! :D
Uh oh! Yeah, this is more terrifying than anything. I mean, glad you guys are trying to keep giving us Webkinz, but I am still traumatized by the whole nightmare of Webkinz X-hausting and painful.