Back in the early 2000s the peak form of entertainment was watching 3D pipes infinitely generate on the computer screen. So in this video I decided to take a deep dive into the history of these nostalgic screensavers, detailing the most influential screensaver releases, seeing how they developed over the years, and the eventual fall in popularity.
This video took a lot of effort to research and put together, so thank you so much for watching :)
BTW if you want to use old screensavers on modern versions of windows, I downloaded some from this website.
3D Maze: www.screensaversplanet.com/sc...
3D Pipes: www.screensaversplanet.com/sc...
(You just put the .scr file in the system 32 folder and it will be an option in your screensaver settings)
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🎵Music:
Ape Escape 2 ( Gadget Trainer ) Soundtrack OST
Endacopia - By The Fridge
Ape Escape 3 OST - Mount Amazing (Part 2)
Broken Reality - Domo Paradisso Theme
Oliver Buckland - backroom labyrinth
The Elder Scrolls IV - Oblivion Soundtrack - 04 Harvest Dawn
Gex Enter the Gecko OST - Menu
Cosmic Comics C - Snipperclips Plus OST
[Wobbledogs OST] 1 - Chrysalis
Neon White OST - Coin Flip
meow by ivusm
Let Me Be Your Mahou Shoujo
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TABLE OF CONTENTS:
0:00 Intro
0:45 The First Screensavers
1:41 After Dark
3:50 Windows 3.0
4:14 After Dark 3.0 And More
6:38 Windows 95
10:46 After Dark 4.0 And More
12:05 Windows 98 And More
14:17 The Death Of Screensavers
15:56 The Legacy Of Screensavers
16:29 Bonus
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Like for cookies ;3
It is rather peculiar how I never had nostalgic feelings for those eras due to the fact that I was not born yet, though I can still remember seeing the pipe screensaver in the doctor’s office. I guess my surroundings were kind of old-fashioned during those times.
same, except my surroundings were never really old fashioned
Mhm
That's because you are experiencing anemoia, basically nostalgia for something you've never been or experienced
yeah theres a lot of businesses that update to newer versions of windows late, i know a ton didnt upgrade from 7 until windows 10 had been out a while and they stopped supporting 7
Same-ish. I was born in 1999 but didn’t have internet or most tech of that time. We had no live TV either and that house still can’t get live TV or internet there. Literally every provider has said it can’t be done there. Anyways we mostly had VHS, cassette tapes, vintage towns from the 90s and older, etc.
I watched 3D pipes unironically for entertainment when I was a really young really dumb kid. I always thought the pipes had people crawling around inside trying to find their way through the maze, and I used to imagine myself alongside said explorers. It was my favorite because the pipes in an infinite black void was very mysterious to me, and I wondered why these pipes just conjured themselves out of nowhere. It's hard to explain why I loved it, but I watched the pipes go for hours.
really good idea for a game
冰淇淋
pov: you just got up from watching pipes for an hour best relaxation, now to go watch gt slander.
The pipes just were the best
The only time I got to watch that screensaver was in detention if there was another computer in the room.
I remember changing my 3D text wallpaper almost every week. And when we visited our friends houses, we left each other little messages in the screensaver. Also, the maze screensaver was SCARY!!! It freaked me out as a kid, I always imagined some scary monster would pop out from somewhere.
Backrooms stole your fear1!1!!1!11!11!1!1
So glad to see the Utah Teapot easter egg there! It seemed like hardly anyone ever noticed or knew about it. I was an autistic preteen, and very excited to see the teapot spawn. Dunno if I ever managed to convince anyone else that it was real.
I believe that not only were there Utah Teapots but also random coffee pots.
The DVD screensaver is probably The most popular and my most favorite in my opinion. They really should bring back Screensavers for real
Facts
Actual facts
Faxs
Phaxz
Real Facts
Honestly using Backroom Labyrinth for the maze screensaver was the best idea ever
Omg yess
fr
Pongon is quite good at putting music together with specific imagery
How
Where?
14:13 I WANT TO SWIM IN THE GODDAMM RADIOACTIVE WINDOWS XP CAVERN
Mercury isn’t radioactive
14:13 i want to swim in the goddamn radioactive windows xp cavern
The premise was that they were necessary to save your screen... but once that excuse was in place, we had no desire to question the importance of these magical microcosms. How creative and inspiring a thing can be when it doesn't have to justify its existence!
Seeing that polygon has a full on cat folder makes me very happy
If polygon releases “cat” I’ll be so happy
@@krystalclouds he released it actually
@@cactus5802 WHERE
you dont?
@@cactus5802wWHERE😭
It almost feels weird seeing some of these screensavers again after years. It also has the same energy as classic Windows Media Player visualizers, I remember being entranced as a kid watching all the psychedelic colors and lines while my dad listened to music on our old Windows XP back then!
Nice! I almost forgot about those. But they were so entertaining.
ok wow this comment definitely unearthed some memories I forgot about those windows media player animations
@@dragonslayer7724 Right? I'm just glad some people remember and it isn't a fever dream! Maybe Polygon one day will make a video about them who knows!
Look up project m visualizer for a modern version
Milkdrop 2 in Winamp can give you all that. You click "visualizer" and it has like hundreds of possibilities.
10:42 i think that C418 has used this eerie sound for the caves in Minecraft
Ribbons is the most nostalgic for me since my music teacher at my old elementary used it and I remember when his computer would go into sleep mode and I would be mesmerized by the silly colorful ribbons fly around on the projector
The way you called these "hyperfixation videos" is reassuring, it's nice to know you enjoy making them
I love when Polygon uses those silly words like "gizmo" or "goofy", also I love the voice he makes during saying them
silly voice for silly words
Forgot to mention "goobers"
You could say they are… goofy words
@@NinetailsNineLives yep. goofy goober gizmo
doohickeys
12:29 DO A LITTLE DANCE
Electric guitars, miscellaneous goobers, Architecture and leaves doing a little dance
@@T3H_C0SM1C_SP4RT4Nthey're not leaves, they're guitar picks
11:29 that's goona hurt 🤕🤕🤕
Polygon I just want to say I really appreciate how much detail and ADHD energy you put into all of your videos. If someone asked me what a hyperfixation feels like, I'd immediately direct them to your channel, because I couldn't put it into words myself. Keep being awesome, and thank you for another great video!
Love this comment, I feel the same way.
Thank you so much 🥰🥰🥰
u described this begter than i ever have
this shit makes me feel like i got a mental illness i can’t watch this
truly the silliest of videos
For years I’ve had this necktie that I thrifted with spooky looking sets of eyes on it, like you’d see in the opening to scooby doo, and it had this label on the back of the company who made it. Their logo was a flying toaster and it was called “After Dark”. I’ve always wondered why their logo was that but never looked it up, just assuming they were a wacky tie company. I never would have guessed they were a screen saver company who made ties based off their screensavers!
after dark merchandise is super cool and rare
dude after dark merch is like super rare
Sick, I had no idea!
dunno how much that’s worth but it might be worth a lot
7:43 Fun fact! : you can also see that teapot in the amazing digital circus intro when there are objects spinning in the air, i think!
Sillyy
Well... He is not wrong
Cool!
I remember waaaay more windows 98 ones! You should also do a video about Windows themes like the ocean theme, the themes changed stuff like the error noises, in the ocean theme it was a seal noise, and the power on was like a wave crashing noise
The psychedelic textures look a lot better when it’s lagging on an old PC, our computer was in my room and I used to watch the psychedelic maze every night to get to sleep, I was convinced I could control it with my mind, or at the very least I would do my best to guess which way it was gonna turn. OH and, my brother changed it to a Daria screensaver once, it BLASTED music in the middle of the night, scared the shit out of me.
I love the April Fools' Minecraft screensavers, but I wish you could pick and choose which one you want. I'd be so down for watching pixel grass grow all day
This video is my favorite one for sure!
As a 38 year old who had the overwhelming majority of these new, thank you. Many of these screensavers were simply my taken-for-granted daily items. I'd spend hours experimenting around with settings between all of these. I think voyeur from the twisted line was the most fascinating. I'd love to see you go over anything early 90's WIndows 3.1 or MS-DOS. I literally had no idea about the fucking teapot until literally today watching your video. you just taught my old ass something about a screensaver I spent WAY to long spacing out on in high school detention and at home.
Now that software like Wallpaper Engine exist, we've basically gone full circle. I would love to see compilations of these classics added to Wallpaper engine.
Yeah wallpaper engine feels like the successor to the idea of screensavers. I love customization!!!!!!
@@PolygonDonut Nah I'd call that the successor to the old programs that let you set your wallpaper to a video. They existed at the same time as some of these screensavers. They didn't catch on because they were resource hogs, and all your videos back then were 45-second 380p novelties that didn't function well as a backround for anything.
@@PolygonDonut 🍩🍩🍩🍩🍩🍩🍩🍩
I think I've seen the flying toasters one.
ALL OF MY YES. ʘ‿ʘ
I had one screensaver back on a Windows 7 touchscreen computer that was a bird's-eye view of some fish swimming around in shallow water, and wherever you tap on the screen it makes a ripple and the fish go towards it. Also just to note: 4:03 - "Bezier" is pronounced like "Bez-yay", 4:40 - "Wagner" is pronounced like "V-ah-gner", 15:50 - "Arabesque" is pronounced like "Air-a-besk".
Dude watching your videos is like how my brain functions on a regular day, and I can actually pay attention without needing a side browsing session. A+ ADHD comrade in arms I appreciate the work involved a lot dude
8:34 is that texture you put on the floor.... Busy Town??? That brought back memories of a Busy Town rug I had in the 90s as a kid. wow lol
would really love to see a history of the Jumpstart PC games.... they were given away as chick fil a toys and would be a good addition to your nostalgia series
Ama their history only deepens too, considering they're now trashing Neopets of all sites
@@Solaceon dude i forgot ab neopets omg
I know you briefly mentioned Frutiger aero, but you should make an entire video around the aesthetic
I would say screensavers are still in use today. Applications like wallpaper engine although aren't on lockscreen backgrounds, they are on desktop backgrounds and have customizable moving animations and user generated content so really, the legacy of moving wallpapers and screensavers live on.
I'm sure these got as popular as they did because many of them are almost like baby sensory videos! I can imagine all the adults getting out their wallets for all the screensaver expansions to keep the kids quietly distracted for hours at a time. Watching flying toasters and randomly generated pipes for no other reason than the fascination of it all.
"You can watch some architecture do *A LITTLE DANCE!* " I lost myself there 💀
I laughed too
*F R E N C H. A R C H I T E C T U R E.*
Leaving my mark here to remember these amazing things. Such a significant reminder of how technology has evolved, but also a significant memory for those who lived during that time and even those who didn’t.
Don't make me sad 🥺
There was a period in the early 2010s where some games would be your screensaver. One I played was called Endless Forest. When you wanted to play the game you would wait for your computer to go into screensaver mode and then the game would start.
You made me discover some screensavers I've never heard of before, especially ones from Windows XP Plus!. I even ended up changing the screensaver of my Windows XP VM to Robot Circus, with the scene setting set as 'Arena'. Thanks for this great video! :)
Bro Polygon I want to say you have become one of my favorite KZheadrs ever. It’s the energy you put in to all of your videos, it makes it so goofy! Can’t wait to see what topic you choose next
TYHANK YOU SO MUCH😺😺😺
I await his demise
9:02 WHAT THE DEVAL
12:53 feels very liminal like actually
I miss this type of stuff but I’m glad I got to grow up with it. It made the computer feel even more special and amazing as a kid.
tbh polygon donut is my comfort youtuber, hes so funny silly and goofy and always makes me smile :3
As a kid i would just mess around with the settings and watch screen savers for hours man. Blew my mind, especially the pipes! I wasnt around till 2001 but when ur poor u grow up with all the older systems
14:48 the only one of these i remember is bubbles
Back in the day, my sister and I would love messing around with the screensavers on an old Windows XP computer we had. The maze was one of our favorites and we had fun playing with all the different textures!
I really like the old Screensavers, seeing them evolve was interesting, gets me nostalgic. Thanks polygon :]
I love how your talking about 2000s Screensavers, it's really amazing to learn about this.
The Mac computers also had a screensaver that had a few words moving across the screen, with specific words and their meaning appearing every ten or so seconds
9:54 dangerous creatures inside your computer
Too bad you missed Castaway, that screensaver in particular not only has some lore hidden in it, the story behind it is really interesting. There's a whole video that goes in depth into it, I'd recommend you all to check it out.
There is a possibility that screensavers could make a comeback as OLED displays also suffer with burn-in. Also, there is a program for Windows called Shimeji which allows you to have virtual pets on your desktop.
I doubt it because modern technology isn't really known for having personality anymore, they will most likely just have auto-black screen set by default instead of any animations.
@@PolygonDonut Oh, how boring. It's kinda sad in a way. But at least you can still download them. And I think desktop pets might become popular as you have software like Shimeji-ee.
I love that maze texture you made with a ballpit, play road/city rug, and arcade flooring ☺️
i literally just found your channel today but i’m loving ur content omg !! the editing style scratches my brain
THANKS!!!!
I was born in 2007 yet these screensavers feel so nostalgic for some reason.
same but 2 years later lol especially the pipe one
@@Fidumo There’s just something special about the 80s-90s
Born 2003 but since I have big brothers born -89, -90, -95 and -98, I grew with a lot of 90s stuff.
We are the same :)
That's interesting, I wonder why. They're nostalgic for me too, but I probably spent hours watching After Dark screensavers and playing with the configuration options on my Grandma's old Mac (also Warcraft 2 and Simcity 2000)
This is the most engaging yet ominous video that polygon donut has made..
Ahh, I remember watching some of those old screensavers with my sister on our old Windows xp computer back in the day, especially the 3D maze. We even used the crazy psychedelic textures!
i got into making screensavers like a year ago and it gives me so much joy every time I make a new one
I never knew a video about screen savers could be so interesting.
Finally someone getting to the real issues
I looooveeee this video format. Keep up the great work! ^^
Thanks for this video! I could never imagine that I have so much nostalgia!
To all the kiddos now and young people who weren't around for the pipe screensaver when it first came around: Now I know that the pipe screensaver is just that cool, my nostalgia glasses aren't lying to me. I could stare at the screensaver for music playing to the beat of Windows Media Player for hours as a kid. It felt like watching a whole music playlist, probably not as revolutionary now but it was amazing then
The thing I like about screensavers the most is that they still work today, albeit, an old one I tried did end up making my monitor freak out _(had to restart my pc to fix it)_ but other than that, I love screensavers they're funny :) Awesome video 👍👍👍👍 _(oh, by the way, if anybody knows where any mario screensavers are let me know)_
he’s here again🫵
pixel you could just y'know edit the 3d maze textures to be super mario
12:23 I remember that screensaver! I've been trying to search for that for years, but I forgot what it was called. I thought it was called Alien World.
Beautiful compilation of these pictures
There's a screensaver I remember that I've never seen mentioned online (possibly because it wasn't very popular?). It was little drawings being done and sometimes things about them would change as they were being done. I specifically remember that there was one of a man in the rain, wearing a yellow raincoat, and at the end he gets struck by lightning. My nostalgia brain wants to watch it again but I don't know which version of Windows had it or if my family had downloaded it so I've never found it :(
Hmmm i dont know what screensaver you are talking about maybe you will find it someday
7:34 time to grind for that teapot
Literally one of my favorite KZheadr I like your videos, they are great👍
Very cool video. Brings back memories of the A.O. hell days lol. Glad I came across this and your channel
Polygon donut never fails to make amazing content
I live for the polygon donut videos of life
I will never get tired of your usage of the bitcrushed clip of Nene going "YAY".
7:51 dodge the bouncing teapots of doom
I love how some of these give nostalgia even tough i wasnt alive back then
POV: You perished in the 90's and reincarinated in the future
At 7:07, when he’s talking about the pipes, he used my art :D
YES THANK YOU FOR THE ART ITS VERY CUTE :3
i always screwed around with the 3D text screensaver all the time when i was a kid. seeing whatever i typed spin around with a shiny texture was so fun!
You know what was most fun: Windows 98 themes, with custom sounds, startup music, screensavers, everything. I still remember Lion king theme with FULL 1 minute Whimaway Whimaway intro. This should return
When I was little, we had an American Greetings CD-ROM that basically just let you customize your own American Greetings card (which my sisters and I found MANY excuses to make cards with lol). Most importantly though, it came with its own screensaver that featured a collection of various art "speedpaints". I found this one MESMERIZING. I could seriously sit forever and watch various colors and textures splash across the screen and try to guess what picture it was going to be before it completed. Even now, I find myself thinking about it every once in a while
Bros editing is out of this world 😁
Okay now i need to upload those screensavers immediately, this remembers me of my childhood and schooltime
I remember some of those screensavers as a kid, heck, I even got a copy of the Energy screensaver from Windows Vista through the internet hooked up on my Windows 11 computer, it still works!
Idk why but there's something about ur videos that is so soothing and my interest is just automatically captured
I'm missing Johnny Castaway, that screensaver told an entire story if you watch all the scenes that randomly play out. Otherwise really cool video man.
The enthusiasm throughout the video made my entire day 😂
The bubbles Screensaver just gave me so many memories, holy cow😳
polygon finally mentioned the frutiger aero aesthetic, now more people can enjoy it
Oh my god, the bubbles screensaver was my ENTIRE childhood
As someone who was raised in the 2000's.... This mortifies me as I remember these fondly when I was 10 and 11..
When I first got a computer and got into the internet world in 1998, I had a program with a dozen or psychedelic screensavers. I can't remember if it was something you had to install or if it just came already loaded. The quality probably wasn't anywhere near as what you would see today, but I really miss it. I miss the old pre Google internet in general.
Bro your editing style and concepts are awsome. You deserve more followers
Polygon, I just wanna say thank you for making these videos. The first one of these is the Weirdcore one, which first introduced me into your channel. The vaporwave and liminal spaces are really cool, I watch them whenever I eat food for some odd reason. What I ask of you is to keep this up and keep making these kinds of videos 😊
honestly i love thinking about screensavers like the computer is dreaming. be quiet, little computer is dreaming.
This was a great documentary!
Man, they really should bring back screensavers. Even if the screens of today are immune to burn-in, screensavers have so much charm!
5:13 me when I get hut by a truck "ow, ow"
proto ooooo
@@squidiskool yes indeed
Me when i get my arm erased: "ow, ow"
This editing is wild I love it very 90s
My grandma actually had Afterdark games! I never realized what it was supposed to be because my only knowledge of screensavers is of the Bad Dog era I wish my roku tv had a good selection of screensavers. I would kill to have flying toasters
AAA! ur videos make my brain explode 💥💥💥💥💥 with joy ehehehehe, a lot of my hyperfixations tend to originate from ur videos (like weird core) !!! U discuss topics rlly well and it's fun to watch
I remember we had our own computers at our grandparents place and we would play a bunch of educational games on them. But I honestly really liked just watching the screensavers. We had a dancing Pikachu one which was my favorite, but I think my grandpa would rotate them out occasionally. I definitely remember a maze one and a pipes one, I just don't think they were the after dark ones
screen savers need to make a comeback fr
I remember watching the maze like it was a movie, I always felt like there was something new to discover in that little world! I would trigger the screensaver on purpose just to watch it lol mixed with the hum of the crt it was so relaxing... 90s stimming and ASMR fr LOL