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1[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mspa_square2.png]]
2[[caption-width-right:350:You're quite certain there has never been, and never will be, a pumpkin on this page![[note]]'''Clockwise from upper-left:''' ''Webcomic/{{Jailbreak}}'', ''Webcomic/BardQuest'', ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'', and ''Webcomic/ProblemSleuth''.[[/note]]]]
3
4-> ''"Who are you, and why are you throwing all this weird shit all up in our business?"''
5-> ''"My name is Andrew, and I have done some other stuff too. As for why I'm doing this, my objective is merely to make your day just a little more fucking awesome."''
6-->-- '''Creator/AndrewHussie'''
7
8'''[[JustForFun/DescribeTopicHere > Elaborate on faux-interactive media franchise.]]'''
9
10''[[http://www.mspaintadventures.com/ MS Paint Adventures]]'' is a catch-all term for several webcomics by Creator/AndrewHussie which were originally made in Microsoft Paint, but [[ArtifactTitle later switched to Adobe Photoshop, and later Flash]]. The TropeCodifier of the InteractiveComic genre, each is written in the style of an InteractiveFiction game, where each panel is accompanied by a text description, and the link to the next panel represents a player's command entered into a TextParser. It originated in 2006 as a series of games run on the Gangbunch forums, a small gathering of artists and miscellaneous people from the ''Webcomic/PennyArcade'' forums which later became the MSPA Forums, and were played by a group of Hussie's online friends; it graduated to its own site and effectively became a webcomic in 2007.
11
12Originally, ''all'' of the commands (barring "Next" and "==>" command continuations) were originally suggested by the readers back in ''Jailbreak'', but over the years this decreased and major plot events were generally planned out ahead of time, culminating in ''Homestuck'' simply closing off its suggestion boxes entirely. However, the readers still have a lot of influence on the story through the community discussion, with Hussie admitting he likes reading theories and employing ones which he likes and which make sense.
13
14It comprises four series:
15[[index]]
16* '''''Webcomic/{{Jailbreak}}''''' is the original adventure, where the player is a prisoner trying to escape from an incredibly illogical jail [[RunningGag that is completely devoid of pumpkins]]. Andrew Hussie began it as a forum game many years ago, and one of the rules was that he had to pick the very first suggested command for each move, no matter how unfunny or preposterous. One of its central gags (namely, that YouCantGetYeFlask because the game denies that the flask even ''exists'') reappears as a MythologyGag in ''Problem Sleuth'', where the game repeatedly insists that Problem Sleuth's gun is actually a harmless key, and vice versa. It was abandoned until September 2011, where it was capped off with an ending.
17* '''''Webcomic/BardQuest''''' is an experimental comic where each panel has multiple branching paths, much like a {{Gamebook|s}}. It is focused on a nameless bard who is tasked with slaying a dragon, though he spends most of his time messing around before actually heading out on his quest. While the story wasn't very long, it did expand on the idea of an overarching narrative aided by suggestion, as well as the railroading aspects of certain choices. It has been abandoned completely.
18* '''''Webcomic/ProblemSleuth''''' concerns the antics of three especially hard-boiled detectives (Problem Sleuth, Ace Dick, and Pickle Inspector) in their attempts to foil the dastardly plots of Mobster Kingpin and to escape from their offices. It parodies various point-and-click adventure and {{JRPG}} mechanics and tropes (such as StatMeters and TurnsRed) and features increasingly complex animated panels depicting {{Super Move Portrait Attack}}s, SummonMagic and {{Wave Motion Gun}}s galore. This is the one that made MSPA into a mainstream webcomic due to a sudden increase in popularity.
19* '''''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}''''' is the most recent series. It begins with 13-year old John Egbert, who's trying to get around to playing a hot new video game called "Sburb" while contending with a poorly-designed inventory system, and his father, but snowballs very quickly into an epic of children trying to survive AfterTheEnd in a world [[YouCantFightFate predestined to work against them]]. All dialogue is conveyed through chatlogs. While still happily displaying the energetic imagination and lightheartedness of ''Problem Sleuth'', it has increased focus on deep characterization and dialogue, dramatic moods and a wildly twisting plot. The entire story tends to rely on {{Stable Time Loop}}s. It was [[http://www.mspaintadventures.com/?s=5 initially done]] entirely in [[UsefulNotes/AdobeFlash Flash]] before Hussie decided to switch back to Photoshop because Flash is a pain to write comics in, though Flash is still occasionally employed for animated sequences and brief exploration games. Not counting the several hours of Flash, it's about four times as long as ''Problem Sleuth''.
20** '''''Literature/TheHomestuckEpilogues''''' serves as a follow up to ''Homestuck'', this time taking the format of an online novel.
21** '''''Webcomic/HomestuckBeyondCanon''''' is the official sequel of the series, continuing on after the events of ''The Homestuck Epilogues''. This features contributions made not just by Hussie and the writers of the ''Epilogues'', but other fan-creators, as well. [[invoked]][[FlipFlopOfGod As decreed by Hussie himself, the sequel is primarily more a continuation of the Epilogues than the main series, but it is the reader's decision to consider it all canonical or not.]]
22[[/index]]
23
24These comics are a stated favorite of Ryan North of ''Webcomic/DinosaurComics'', and Hussie and North tend to be [[http://mspandrew.tumblr.com/post/12963616983/land-of-souls-and-olives-a-conclusion-pasta-la-vista all about the incredibly silly hijinks.]]
25
26''MSPA'' has outstripped the much longer running ''Webcomic/KevinAndKell'' as the longest webcomic in existence in terms of page count, which numbers over 6000. However, the mixed media and the fact that several distinct stories are told leaves this fact somewhat open for debate.
27
28Has a sister site, [[http://mspfanventures.com/ MS Paint Fan Adventures,]] where most of the notable fan adventures are hosted.
29
30The site was later rebranded to [[SpotlightStealingTitle Homestuck.com]] after Creator/VizMedia bought the rights to the comic in 2018, though the other adventures are still hosted there (if not mostly relegated to the "read" section). Content related to the MSPA universe during and post-''Homestuck'' would later be branded under What Pumpkin Studios, with a subsidiary titled [[http://whatpumpkin.com/ What Pumpkin Games]] focusing on playable entries.
31
32It has absolutely no relation to ''Webcomic/MSPaintMasterpieces''. See also [[Creator/AndrewHussie Hussie's creator page]] for works not related to ''MSPA''.
33
34----
35!!> Provide examples of recurring plot elements.
36
37* AbandonedInfoPage:
38** The [[https://web.archive.org/web/20180304023102/http://www.mspaintadventures.com/?viewpage=new old New Reader page]] notes itself to be out of date. The claim that ''Problem Sleuth'' is 'by far the longest adventure' is crossed out and followed by "(Homestuck is now much longer)", and the section about ''Homestuck'' has a link to a more up-to-date primer at the top of the old description. As of the Homestuck.com update, the page has been deleted entirely.
39** [[http://mspaintadventures.com/unlock.html The secret page]] also counts, as it lists Andrew's Formspring account, which is now out of service. Its equivalent on Homestuck.com, the [[https://www.homestuck.com/info-more More page]], links to the defunct old domain for ''Webcomic/ParadoxSpace''.
40* AbortedArc: Both ''Jailbreak'' and ''Bard Quest'' end abruptly and are now abandoned.
41** ''Jailbreak'' subverted this by having an ending written for it years after it was originally stopped.
42** [[http://www.mspaintadventures.com/?s=3 A single panel]] exists of a standalone Midnight Crew adventure, with only the title (''Blood Spade'') known from the URL. The logo was eventually reused for ''Homestuck'''s in-universe ''Midnight Crew'' comic.
43* AcronymAndAbbreviationOverload: From Problem Sleuth onward, to the point where the wiki has an [[http://mspaintadventures.wikia.com/wiki/Acronym_Cheatsheet acronym cheatsheet.]]
44* ArtEvolution: From the first panel of ''Jailbreak'' to ''Homestuck'', the art has increased dramatically. However, all of the art in the comics has always been below Andrew's skill level, and in fact he's ''lost'' some of his skill simply because he never uses it anymore. Nonetheless, the writing and pacing have increased by magnitudes.
45* ArtifactTitle: The only image on the entire site to be drawn in MS Paint is the very first image in ''Jailbreak''. Andrew Hussie very quickly abandoned it for Photoshop due to MS Paint's inherent limitations. The story also hasn't been under fan control ever since ''Homestuck'' became a breakout hit in Summer '10. See also NeverTrustATitle.
46* CerebusSyndrome: Very noticable over the course of the comic. ''Webcomic/{{Jailbreak}}'' was driven completely by user suggestions without regard for quality, and as a result is completely nonsensical and gag-driven. ''Webcomic/BardQuest'' and ''Webcomic/ProblemSleuth'' were still largely user-driven, but managed to incorporate characters and a plot (albeit a comedic, cartoon-y one). ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'' has a pre-planned story arc and serious themes mixed in with its humor.
47* CharacterBlog: In ''Homestuck'', Dave Strider briefly kept a [[http://dstrider.blogspot.com/ Blogspot page.]] He (and the real-life page) stopped updating when the plot interfered.
48* ChekhovsGun: Any object, character, feature, gesture can return in a plot significant way.
49* ContinuityPorn: Liberal use of ChekhovsArmory and numerous {{Running Gag}}s and {{Call Back}}s to minor details. ''Homestuck'' also adds {{Recurring Riff}}s and repeated art elements.
50* DarkerAndEdgier: While still being pretty comedic, ''Homestuck'' is ''much'' darker than the other three "canon" adventures, partially due to the fact that it actually has a story and plotline (''Jailbreak'' was just RuleOfFunny without any over-arching plan, and while ''Problem Sleuth'' and ''Bard Quest'' do have plots, they're completely goofy and aren't treated seriously).
51* DiegeticInterface: Before the site's 2010 redesign, menu elements were represented by items on the top of the page. The adventure map, for example, was represented by a literal map, while the posting log was represented by a sheet of paper. Elements of this were retained for the adventure maps made for ''Problem Sleuth'' and ''Homestuck'', which respectively marked chapters like locations on a map and had a chapter select resembling a menu in ''Sburb''.
52* EldritchAbomination:
53** The "loathsome beasts" of ''Problem Sleuth'' are grotesque creatures that appear when the energy powering portal windows is cut off. A high-ranking enemy, Fluthulu, is even said to reside in a "black realm" when not awakened.
54** ''Homestuck''[='=]s Noble Circle of Horrorterrors are lovecraftian elder gods at the edge of time-space that are responsible for creating aspects of the universe.
55* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin:
56** ''Jailbreak'', as one would expect, is about a prisoner attempting a GreatEscape. Becomes an ArtifactTitle in the second half, as he leaves jail early in another timeline's version of events.
57** ''Bard Quest'': while it's not quite a grand one, the Bard begins and sticks to an appointed quest the entire run.
58* HollywoodBoardGames: Did anyone seriously expect a PlayerInventory system called Pictionary to be a reasonable way to fetch items? This is one of Jade's Sylladices and is a SymbolDrawingInterface. To catalog an object, it requires her to tag it with a drabble. Likewise, to recover an item, Jade has to draw the drabble associated with it. As expected, this is a very unreliable way of retrieving stuff, leading to the same problems players encounter when playing ''TabletopGame/{{Pictionary}}'' (the board game). She has Sylladices based on ''TabletopGame/{{Jenga}}'' and ''TabletopGame/{{Memory}}'' too.
59* IndecisiveMedium: At its core, this is a webcomic series that pretends it's a collection of adventure games. Each installment after ''Jailbreak'', however, adds a new element to the list:
60** ''Bard Quest'' adds minor tabletop roleplay elements.
61** ''Problem Sleuth'' exaggerates it and switches between webcomic, adventure game, EasternRPG, and party game (if Death's segments count).
62** ''Homestuck'' incorporates all previous elements plus web animation, music, and actual playable game interludes. The Epillogues take it further and incorporate WebSerialNovel ''and'' faux fanfiction into the fold.
63* InteractiveComic: The TropeCodifier, using audience inputs to drive character actions for each new panel, even if the character doesn't react completely as expected.
64* InteractiveFiction: Technically it's fake, but it has all the trappings.
65* InterfaceScrew: "What pumpkin?"
66** ''Webcomic/ProblemSleuth'' has this as a major element in the form of each character's weapons, which are also mundane items like a ring of keys or a lipstick tube. Most of the time, referring to an item as its counterpart seems to get around this (e.g. using the keys on the door shoots it with a gun), except when working normally would be [[RuleOfFunny more frustrating and funny]]. It's explicitly described in-universe [[BreakingTheFourthWall on [=GameFAQs=]]] as a bug, though considering how some later puzzles and battles are resolved, it may have become an AscendedGlitch in "development".
67** ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'' does the same thing with the Midnight Crew's decks of cards / storage items, along with troll Kanaya Maryam's lipstick / chainsaw.
68* InterdimensionalTravelDevice: ''Problem Sleuth'' and ''Homestuck'' feature powered windows that characters can use to travel around. In the former, these are fake windows powered by electricity that can somehow connect to the Realm of Imagination, while in the latter, Fenestrated Planes can take the user to any location.
69* MythologyGag: By nature of the comic, any RunningGag throughout MSPA doubles as a Mythology Gag. None of the four comics are in-continuity with one another, but that doesn't stop pumpkins from disappearing throughout each and every one of them.
70* NeverTrustATitle:
71** The comic used to look like it was made in MS Paint (see [[http://www.mspaintadventures.com/?s=4 the first page]] of ''Problem Sleuth''), but by [[http://www.mspaintadventures.com/?s=4&p=000924 a couple hundred pages later]] the style has evolved and it's quite a bit more complicated, to the point where being able to draw such things on MS Paint would be pretty amazing. Then, around a year later, we're at the point where we have interactive flash pages, elaborate animations, and almost every page in full color. The truth is: the comic was made in Adobe Photoshop from day two. The author does say right in the FAQ that only the very first page of ''Jailbreak'' was made in MS Paint. Everything else has been made in Photoshop and/or, starting from ''Problem Sleuth'', with Flash.
72** Not only that, but the titles ''Webcomic/ProblemSleuth'' and ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'' only reflect the initial circumstances of each adventure, and don't give a very good glimpse into what the actual story will be like. In ''Webcomic/ProblemSleuth'', no cases are solved, clues found, or culprits apprehended instead, the plot evolves into sort of a pastiche of {{Eastern RPG}}s, culminating in a final battle where the entire universe is at stake. On the other Hand, Problem Sleuth was the protagonist, so the title at least made some sense.
73** ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'' was nearly an aversion. Andrew had at one point considered naming the series ''Sburb'', which [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin is what the series is about]], but decided it wasn't nearly as distinctive. The name "Homestuck" is basically a nonsense word that only describes the initial conditions of the protagonists, as mentioned above, as a ShoutOut to old-school Adventure games. It also is sorta-synonymous with ''VideoGame/EarthBound1994'', which had an enormous influence on ''Homestuck''.
74%%* NinjaProp
75* ObfuscatingStupidity:
76** Andrew is a very intelligent author. He spends most of his time talking to the fanbase trolling them.
77** [[http://www.mspaintadventures.com/?faqs=science He also]] wrote this, and writes recaps from memory.
78* OneManArmy: In ''Problem Sleuth'', Andrew did all the work himself and posted around 5-6 pages per day for a year. In ''Homestuck'', he does the majority of a workload for an entire ''animation team'' and manages to keep the 5-6 pages average ''per day''. While there is now a dedicated art team which assists him in the [[AnimationBump Flash animations]], there are still the hilarious moments in which he says he'll be slowing down for a while... and posts 80 pages in the span of a week.
79* OrphanedSeries: ''Jailbreak'' (until September 2011) and ''Bard Quest''. ''Bard Quest'' much more so than ''Jailbreak''; most fans have never even read ''BQ'', but ''Jailbreak'' gets a fair number of call backs.
80* RecurringElement: Over the years, some elements have stuck out as more than gags:
81** The inclusion (and [[YouCantGetYeFlask narrative denial]]) of pumpkins, which when acknowledged are actually fairly useful to the characters.[[note]]The pumpkin-based puzzles in ''Jailbreak'', Schema Pumpkins in ''Problem Sleuth'', and varying uses for pumpkins in ''Homestuck''.[[/note]]
82** The "game" {{reset|Button}}ting at some point, and the occasional changes made to the story because of it.[[note]]The game over/continue sequence in ''Jailbreak'', the code machine in ''Problem Sleuth'', and the Scratch in ''Homestuck''.[[/note]]
83** The inclusion of ''Webcomic/{{Jailbreak}}'''s Suicide Stump.[[note]]A prisoner and Ace Dick kill themselves there in ''Jailbreak'' and ''Problem Sleuth'', and the Land of Stumps and Dismay in ''Homestuck''.[[/note]]
84** An innocuous item or event being recognised as something vulgar.[[note]]Drilling in ''Jailbreak'', bratwursts in ''Bard Quest'', painting/[[{{Pun}} stripping]] in ''Problem Sleuth'', and buckets, dancing, and chaste romance in ''Homestuck''.[[/note]]
85** [[OffWithHisHead Severed heads]].[[note]]The guard's "proper burial" in ''Jailbreak'', The Bard's bad endings in ''Bard Quest'', the skull puzzles in ''Problem Sleuth'', and a whole bunch of decapitations in ''Homestuck''.[[/note]]
86* RecursiveCanon:
87** Starting with ''Problem Sleuth'', the recurring MSPA Reader character is able to read the comics as their events are happening.
88** The one-page ''Midnight Crew'' comic apparently exists in full in the ''Homestuck'' universe, with the pre-Scratch kids being able to read it, along with the "real" Midnight Crew on Alternia (who the in-universe comic is a reflection of) being able to read a reflection/parody of ''Homestuck''.
89* ReTool: The site was eventually folded into Viz's Homestuck.com page, putting ''Homestuck'' at the forefront while trying to work around flash capability in the new layout.
90* RunningGag: [[http://mspaintadventures.wikia.com/wiki/Ongoing_gags Several]], but most notably the "What pumpkin?" and "Quickly retrieve arms" gags. The former is a version of YouCantGetYeFlask where any time a command comes in to interact with a pumpkin, it disappears from view and the narration acts like it never existed. The latter is a reference to the art style, which neglects to portray the character's arms unless they expressly need it.
91* SchrodingersGun: Most of the early adventures and ''Problem Sleuth'' had their most important plot points made from one-off suggestions.
92* SharedUniverse: Or rather, a shared multiverse.
93* StylisticSelfParody: The characters are usually drawn sans arms, leading to a running gag throughout the series consisting of the command "Quickly retrieve [[AmbiguousSyntax arms]] from _____", with the character responding by gesturing with their (now drawn) arms and the message "You already ''have'' arms, stupid!" (or some other insult). This is [[SubvertedTrope subverted]] early on in ''Homestuck''. And again thereafter.
94** "Quickly retrieve arms from cinder blocks." "Nah."
95** THEY'RE RIGHT THERE. IN PLAIN SIGHT. LOOK, THEY ARE FLASHING RED.
96** At one point, a character ''literally'' has to retrieve an arm (from an inadvertently dismembered corpse.)
97** After much fiddling with arms/armory puns, one instance actually bothered to play the original intention of the command (equipping a gun) straight.
98* StylisticSuck: The unrefined, aliased art style allows for swifter drawing, allowing several panels to be published per day. That doesn't stop Andrew Hussie from doing incredibly refined and detailed drawings, however.
99** The stride does slow significantly when Hussie is utilizing Flash for pages in ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}''.
100** The best example of stylistic suck would be Dave's own webcomic, ''Webcomic/SweetBroAndHellaJeff''.
101* ThemeTable:
102** ''Problem Sleuth'' and ''Homestuck'' each use this. In ''Homestuck'', each of the main characters has a guardian, something weird that guardian collects, a world etc.. In ''Problem Sleuth'', each of the detectives and the Mobster Kingpin has something trapping them in a room, a kingdom in the fantasy world etc..
103** Some more detail on things the kids in ''Homestuck'' each have one of is [[http://mspaintadventures.wikia.com/wiki/Homestuck_Kids here.]]
104* WebAnimation: One of ''Homestuck'''s primary draws are the Flash (denoted by [S]) updates.
105* YouCantGetYeFlask:
106** The pumpkin. Of course, when you attempt to get ye flask of whiskey, it works fine. Also, when you attempt to get ye key, you get a gun... and ye key disappeareth.
107** It's sort of applied logic: in ''Problem Sleuth'', one of the commands would be to grab something (gun, knife,) and it would immediately turn into something else. '''Any''' time you bring it up, it will turn back.
108** It was so common that it even got an official name "Innocuous Double" and a [[http://mspaintadventures.wikia.com/wiki/Weapon/Object_Duality page on the wiki]] detailing all the doubles.
109** You can also [[http://www.mspaintadventures.com/?s=6&p=002911 get ye rope]], despite it actually being a cable.
110----
111!![[ArchiveBinge > Continue your downward spiral into the MSPA archives]].
112'''[[Webcomic/{{Jailbreak}} > Start MS Paint Adventure.]]'''\
113'''[[Webcomic/BardQuest > Choose your path to cod-given glory.]]'''\
114'''[[Webcomic/ProblemSleuth > Knock a stiff one back and get to sleuthing.]]'''\
115'''[[Webcomic/{{Homestuck}} > Begin reading excessively verbose document.]]'''\
116\
117'''[[Characters/MSPaintAdventures > Examine character tropes by series.]]'''\
118'''[[Trivia/MSPaintAdventures > Display vast intellect of pointless subject matter.]]'''\
119'''[[WMG/MSPaintAdventures > Craft extensive theories on previous adventures.]]'''\
120'''[[YMMV/MSPaintAdventures > Consume subjective opinions with a grain of salt.]]'''
121----
122->Blinded by your ceaseless story archiving, you fail to notice the pumpkin you're tripping over, which has [[BrickJoke clearly been on the page this whole time.]]

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