A recap of this week's Wisdom Wednesday. Headline items: the audio/video rollout is nearly complete, a World Cup activation is coming to the app, and a lot more opens up once the full app rewrite lands.
Audio/video rollout
The rollout is about halfway done — roughly 50% of users are on the new audio/video, with full rollout targeted for early next week (Monday, June 8). This caps off about half a year of work and unblocks several other projects.
Quality on the new version is noticeably crisper, and going live shows it clearly in chat. Most remaining glitches come from co-hosting across versions — a bridge was built so the old and new systems can talk to each other during the switchover, which was the hardest piece. Issues should continue to be reported to support.
Flowers v Powers
Powers won — the first time the event has run since 2024, so it was new to a lot of the community. Laser Vision was the most-sent gift, topping both the event and the entire app while it ran.
Takeaways for next time: clearer rules up front on what a side winning unlocks, and a live tracker from the start rather than near the end. There was also a request for a Flowers-side equivalent to the Powers ICU gift (the bee was noted).
Pride 🏳️🌈
The rainbow paintbrush is the #1 gift in the app right now. A 25-cent rainbow is also available as a smaller option. The paintbrush is a deliberate Neopets throwback. The segment closed on a reminder that the community is a welcoming, safe space to create for everyone.
Coming soon
🌍 World Cup activation
Launching June 11 alongside the real World Cup if everything is ready, with June 14 as the fallback (and original plan). The format:
- All 48 countries get their own set of gifts. Gifts translate to goals, and larger gifts are worth more goals.
- Outcomes are decided by gifters, not by the real-world results, so the app bracket will likely diverge from the actual tournament.
- Country support is not tied to IP — any country (or group of countries) can be supported.
- Gifter and streamer leaderboards for every country.
- Multiple ways to earn prizes and items throughout.
Longer term, there's interest in running a fully in-house version with every country and original qualifiers.
🎛️ Widgets
Goals reach beta this week and are expected in the app next week — functionally complete internally. The first set includes summit, verification, and custom gift & coin goals.
✅ Verification overhaul
Rolling out in two steps:
- Around the widgets launch: a visual refresh of badges and levels, making verification level clear at a glance.
- Targeted within a month: a full UI overhaul of the path to verification, plus significant new perks at higher levels. A set of related features is being held back for a proper rollout, and marketing is expected to ramp up once it's announced.
🖥️ Studio (desktop app)
The Studio beta is running ahead of expectations — the first major rewrite tracking faster than planned, since it's narrower in scope. It's a standalone download for both Windows and Mac. More beta testers are wanted, especially across different computer configurations; sign-up is via **beta@favorited.com.**
🔧 Full app rewrite
The major behind-the-scenes effort: rebuilding the entire app natively (separate iOS and Android teams) so it can scale to millions and remain maintainable as features are added. It also includes the overheating fix. It's in internal testing now, with a long beta period ahead — the final 10–20% takes roughly as long as the first 80%. Once complete, the app will be smoother and faster, and the larger play-together events (in the spirit of Snowy and Spooky Season) can return.
⏳ Further out (post-rewrite, no firm timeline)
Mentioned as someday-not-soon: streak gifts, the return of Nuggie Royale, and a long-term ambition to acquire Neopets and fold it into the app's gamification.
☀️ Snipe the Summer
Returning in August — similar concept, different mechanics — with the popular clips likely featured again.
🥊 Royal Rumble
A large TikTok creator announced that the next Royal Rumble tournament will be hosted on Favorited, around the end of the month (~June 27). It's an external tournament, not a Favorited-run event, so the host decides who competes — expect a mix of TikTok and Favorited creators. Interest in hosting tournaments on the platform is growing.
In-person events
- Boston — the location has been revealed, with details on the event site and in Discord. Coming up in a few weeks.
- VidCon — a smaller footprint than last year, including a bowling night, plus an industry-track talk on the 26th about clipping and its role in live streaming.
Housekeeping
- Reload outage this morning: larger reloads were down for a stretch due to a third-party partner issue (not a Favorited issue). It has been resolved and is not expected to recur.
- Birthday cake: automatically assigned to the gift tray about 20 minutes after local reset. If it's missing or arrives early, support can sort it out quickly.
- No Father's Day gift this year, though one is likely next year.
- Mental health resource: streamwithcare.com, shared alongside a reminder that wellbeing is a shared responsibility.
- Recaps now live on Discord — a dedicated place to catch up on anything missed from Wisdom Wednesday.
Questions raised
Next 365 tournament: expected in the fall, with more club365 content overall.
Paid streak recovery / impact on beta badge: recovery is available through support today and may be productized later, but full streaks won't be buyable back, to stay fair to consistent users. Beta badges aren't tied to streaks — they reflect overall time and engagement, so steady participation still wins out.
Birthday gift arriving on the wrong day: handled through support.
Community feedback
Requests: more events with viewer participation; gifts to bring back or add (coffee, the bee, "love is love," more nuggie rewards, more options in the paintbrush price range); plus a lighthearted call to give a team member a raise.
Complaints: overheating (addressed by the rewrite).