Flappy Bird creator pulled hit game from app stores

By David Nield February 9, 2014

flappy bird creator pulling hit game app stores — Image used with permission by copyright holder

The simple, addictive and hugely frustrating Flappy Bird has sat atop the Google Play and iTunes App Store charts for many a month, but now creator Dong Nguyen has had enough of the attention it’s attracted: “I am sorry Flappy Bird users, 22 hours from now, I will take Flappy Bird down. I cannot take this anymore,” he tweeted on Saturday.

Updated by Jeffrey Van Camp on 2-10-2014: The game has been pulled. In related news, iPhones with Flappy Bird installed are now going for $100,000 on eBay. And judging by how well these terrible ripoffs of Flappy Bird are charting on iTunes, the end of days may be near. If you want to play some real games before the world goes bird crazy, check out this list of Flappy Bird alternatives that don’t suck.

After confirming that the decision is nothing to do with legal issues, that he isn’t selling the game, and that he intends to continue developing titles, Nguyen has been silent. If he follows through on his promise, you have about five hours left to download Flappy Bird before it disappears.

There’s nothing notable about the game apart from its runaway success. In an interview with the Verge, Vietnam-based Nguyen said that the free app was earning him $50,000 every day in advertising revenue. Flappy Bird has been downloaded over 50 million times across Android and iOS, leaving tens of thousands of positive and negative reviews in its wake.

Part of the appeal of the app — which launched way back in May 2013 — seems to be how easy it is to learn and how difficult it is to master. In recent days it has attracted a huge amount of interest from the tech and gaming press as an example of a viral hit that has no logical or obvious explanation behind it.

If Nguyen does remove his app, you will still be able to play it on your phone or tablet but it will no longer be available to download for new users. Are you a Flappy Bird addict or do you fail to see what all the fuss is about? Let us know in the comments.

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Dave is a freelance journalist from Manchester in the north-west of England. He's been writing about technology since the…

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