Nintendo and Hatena announce their partnership
The two companies introduce the software and its online sharing service shortly before the Japanese release. [1]
About Flipnote World
Flipnote World is a place to learn about Flipnote Studio, meet the people working with it, and build things together.
For people who make, study and enjoy Flipnotes
Flipnote Studio has a community of animators, collectors, programmers, researchers and people returning to work they made years ago. Their interests overlap: a player needs a file-format reference, an archive needs reliable tools, and a new creator needs somewhere to ask questions. Flipnote World brings those conversations and resources together.
The site is developed by RexiMemo. It has its own accounts and community spaces, and you can also use a linked RexiMemo account. Everyone with an interest in Flipnote is welcome, whichever tools or sharing service they use.
Documentation
Detailed developer guides cover Studio's editor, files, graphics, audio, storage and online client. Sources and evidence limits are included so readers can check a claim and build on it.
Read the guides →Forum
Ask for help, discuss animation, share a finding or show what you are making. A discussion can include playable Flipnotes as well as images and audio.
Join a discussion →Projects
Find community players, libraries, editors, servers and preservation work. Submit a project so others can discover it, with staff review before it is listed.
Explore projects →Git
Keep source code in repositories, discuss issues, propose changes and publish releases. The same account connects your forum activity and development work.
Browse Git →What is Flipnote Studio?
Flipnote Studio is Nintendo's animation and drawing application for the Nintendo DSi. In Japan it is called Ugoku Memo-Chou. You draw a sequence of pages with the stylus, then play them at a chosen speed. The original application combines a 256 × 192 image with two ink layers, a small colour palette, microphone recording, music and sound effects. [1][2][3]
Its limits are part of the way people work with it. Artists use patterns for shading, repeat or rearrange pages for timing, and combine drawing with recorded sound. Native .ppm files preserve the editable animation and its sound rather than only a rendered video. See the PPM guide for the technical details.
The Nintendo 3DS sequel, Flipnote Studio 3D, introduced three layers, six pen colours and stereoscopic depth. It uses a different native format, .kwz. The two applications share a creative tradition, but their files and online services have different behaviour. [5]
A short history
Studio and sharing-service milestones above; community projects and tools below.
Flipnote Studio launches in Japan
Ugoku Memo-Chou arrives as free Nintendo DSiWare, with Hatena providing a place to publish and watch creations. [1][2]
2008
Japanese version 2.1
Nintendo releases the later Japanese version of the original DSi application. [2]
Flipnote reaches more regions
Flipnote Studio and Flipnote Hatena launch in North America on 12 August, followed by Europe on 14 August. [3]
2009
Flipnote Hatena closes
The original DSi online service ends. Flipnotes already saved on a DSi remain usable in the application. [4]
Flipnote Studio 3D launches in Japan
The Nintendo 3DS sequel adds three drawing layers, stereoscopic depth and a larger pen palette. [5]
2013
Sudomemo launches
Austin Burk's independent DSi service gives creators another place to share Flipnotes after Hatena. [6]
2014–2016
hatena-server and Hatenatools
The public GitHub repositories record PBSDS's replacement server and associated format tools. These dates describe the repositories, rather than every earlier stage of development. [9][10]
Flipnote Collective documentation
The documentation repository begins a shared reference for the application, its formats and online behaviour. [11]
Kaeru Gallery
Project Kaeru launches a community online service for Flipnote Studio 3D. [12]
Flipnote Gallery: World closes
Nintendo ends the Japanese sequel's paid online gallery. Offline drawing and viewing remain available. [7]
2017–2018
FreeNote is announced
Founder Tyler Hartman announces a public beta of another community DSi Flipnote server. [13]
Flipnote playback in web tools
The flipnote.js and Flipnote Player GitHub repositories are created. The library decodes Flipnotes; the player makes playback and conversion available in a browser. [14][15]
2021–2022
iPGFlip
Contemporary discussions preserve another part of the DSi server community. Its original launch date has not been verified here. [16]
Flipnote Archive launches
Sudomemo and the wider development community publish a collection recovered from the DSi Library, nine years after Hatena's closure. [12]
RexiMemo launches
Rekushi opens RexiMemo as another independent Flipnote community service. [8]
2023
RexiMemo relaunches
RexiMemo returns with a renewed service for DSi and web users, followed by continued development of browser creation and community features. [8]
2026
Flipnote World
Documentation, discussion, a project directory and Git collaboration are brought into one independent community site.
This is a selected history, rather than a complete list of every creator or project. Repository dates are labelled as such; an unverified launch date is never substituted with a guess. Share a sourced addition or correction in the forum.
Take part
You do not need to be a programmer to contribute. A clear question, a reproducible bug report, an accurate historical source, a translation or a useful guide can all help somebody else.
Documentation suggestions and project submissions are reviewed by staff. Technical findings should name the software version, distinguish observation from inference and include enough information for another person to check the result.
History sources
Dates below are backed by public announcements, project records or direct confirmation from the project's owner. Nintendo and Hatena sources describe the original products; community projects are credited separately.
- [1]Nintendo — Flipnote Studio and Hatena partnership announcement, 18 December 2008
- [2]Nintendo — Ugoku Memo-Chou release information
- [3]Hatena — North American and European launch announcement, 13 August 2009
- [4]Hatena — notice of the original service's closure
- [5]Nintendo — Flipnote Studio 3D release and features
- [6]Sudomemo — its history and launch date
- [7]Nintendo — Flipnote Gallery: World closure notice
- [8]RexiMemo founder — launch on 10 July 2023 and relaunch on 2 September 2026, confirmed for this timeline
- [9]GitHub — pbsds/hatena-server repository record
- [10]GitHub — pbsds/Hatenatools repository record
- [11]GitHub — Flipnote Collective documentation repository record
- [12]Flipnote Archive — history of Studio, Kaeru Gallery and preservation
- [13]Tyler Hartman — FreeNote announcement, 6 January 2017
- [14]GitHub — jaames/flipnote.js repository record
- [15]GitHub — jaames/flipnote-player repository record
- [16]Contemporary iPGFlip discussion, October 2021; evidence of the service's existence, not its launch date
Flipnote World is an independent community project. Flipnote Studio and Nintendo DSi are Nintendo trademarks. Nintendo and Hatena do not operate this site.