What Happened to Flappy Bird? Discover what happened to Flappy Bird, the popular mobile game that gained massive fame in 2014, know why Flappy Bird got shut down, the overwhelming pressures its creator faced, and the concerns about its addictive nature.
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About Flappy Bird
Flappy Bird is a mobile game developed by Dong Nguyen, a Vietnamese video game artist and programmer, under his game development company .Gears. The game was released in May 2013 but gained unexpected popularity in early 2014, becoming a sleeper hit. The premise of Flappy Bird is simple yet challenging: players control a bird and must navigate it through a series of green pipes without colliding with them.
Dong Nguyen created the game over the course of several days, using a bird protagonist that he had previously designed for a different game that was ultimately cancelled in 2012. The game’s minimalist graphics and straightforward gameplay resonated with players, leading to its sudden rise to fame. Despite its immense popularity, Flappy Bird faced mixed reviews from critics. Some criticized its high level of difficulty, which frustrated many players, while others pointed out allegations of plagiarism regarding the game’s graphics and mechanics.
However, it also garnered praise from reviewers who found it highly addictive and compelling. During its peak in January 2014, Flappy Bird topped the charts as the most downloaded free game on the iOS App Store. The game’s success was not only due to its gameplay but also its revenue generation. Dong Nguyen revealed that Flappy Bird was earning a staggering $50,000 per day from in-app advertisements and sales during that period.
Interestingly, despite its tremendous success, Dong Nguyen decided to remove Flappy Bird from app stores in February 2014. He cited the game’s addictive nature and the negative impact it was having on players’ lives as the reason for its removal. After its removal, the game’s popularity persisted, leading to various clones and similar games flooding the app stores.
Flappy Bird’s legacy remains significant in the mobile gaming industry. It served as a prime example of the power of viral marketing and word-of-mouth in driving the success of a mobile game. Its short-lived but explosive rise to fame demonstrated how even the simplest of games could capture the attention of millions of players worldwide.
What Happened to Flappy Bird?
After its initial release in May 2013, Flappy Bird, developed by Dong Nguyen and his studio dotGEARS, experienced a slow start and didn’t gain much attention. However, in November 2013, six months after its launch, the game started to gain traction with a surge in downloads. By December, the number of downloads spiked by 2500 percent, and Flappy Bird entered the top 10 of the free app charts in various countries, along with dotGEARS’ other two games.
The turning point came on January 17th, 2014, when Flappy Bird became the most popular free app on iOS worldwide. Nguyen’s decision to narrow down the distance between the pipes and the addictive nature of the game contributed to its success. Additionally, the short gameplay cycle encouraged users to keep trying, leading them to share their experiences with others. The game’s nostalgic 8-bit characters also resonated with players who remembered similar games from their childhood.
The game’s popularity was further fueled by funny and frustrated reviews from fans, which added to its appeal. However, some accused Nguyen of buying installs from bot farms, although there was little evidence to support these claims. As Flappy Bird’s popularity grew, Nguyen found himself inundated with interview requests from news outlets. An article by The Verge claimed that Nguyen was earning around $50,000 a day from in-app ads.
The overwhelming attention and pressure became too much for Nguyen to handle. On February 8th, 2014, he announced on Twitter that he would be taking down Flappy Bird. The game was removed from app stores the next day, leaving a void in the mobile gaming market. Competitors quickly rushed to fill the void, releasing similar games to capitalize on the game’s absence. However, Flappy Bird remained installed on devices, allowing Nguyen to continue earning significant income.
A few months after its removal, on August 1st, 2014, Flappy Bird made a surprise return as “Flappy Birds Family” on Amazon’s Fire TV box. The game had slight mechanic changes, with the bird being controlled by the Fire TV controller. Moreover, it included a two-player mode, leading to the addition of “Family” to the name. Notably, this version didn’t contain in-app ads, sparking speculation that Amazon had secured exclusive rights to the game.
To this day, Flappy Bird remains available and playable on Amazon Fire TV, and it continues to be remembered as one of the most iconic and influential mobile games of its time. Despite its brief moment of fame, its impact on the mobile gaming industry and its legacy live on.
Why did Flappy Bird Get Shut Down?
Flappy Bird was shut down by its creator, Dong Nguyen, primarily due to overwhelming pressures and negative consequences associated with its unexpected popularity. The game gained massive traction in early 2014, leading to a surge in interview requests and media attention for Nguyen. An article by The Verge claiming that he was making $50,000 a day from the game further intensified the scrutiny.
As interest in Nguyen’s persona grew, he found himself bombarded with interview requests from various national and international news outlets. Local paparazzi in his hometown of Hanoi began following him, invading his privacy. The online harassment he received was another significant factor that contributed to his decision to remove Flappy Bird from app stores.
Nguyen received numerous messages from angry parents, teachers, and frustrated players, citing the negative impact the game had on their lives. Examples included kids becoming distant from their parents and people losing their jobs due to excessive playing during work hours. All of this attention and pressure took a toll on Nguyen’s mental well-being, causing him to hide in his parents’ house to escape from the overwhelming attention.
He was able to relate personally to the addictive nature of games, as he himself had failed tests in high school due to playing too much Counter-Strike. In an interview with Forbes, Nguyen expressed his concern about Flappy Bird becoming too addictive and causing problems for players. He designed the game to be played for a few minutes during relaxation, but it unexpectedly turned into an addictive product.
Another speculation that arose during this time was that Nintendo might file a lawsuit against Nguyen for allegedly copying and pasting Nintendo sprites into his game. This led to more abusive comments and negative attention, affecting Nguyen’s well-being. While Nintendo later clarified that it didn’t plan to file a lawsuit, the damage was already done, and the pressure became too much for Nguyen to handle.
Faced with mounting stress, harassment, and his genuine concern about the addictive nature of the game, Dong Nguyen made the difficult decision to take down Flappy Bird permanently. He stated that the game was gone forever and removed it from app stores on February 9th, 2014. This marked the end of Flappy Bird’s short but intense period of fame and left a void in the mobile gaming market.
Is Flappy Bird Still Available?
No, Flappy Bird is not available on App Store and Google Play. Flappy Bird gained significant recognition and a large fan base during its brief period of popularity. The game experienced a sudden spike in popularity in early 2014, approximately six months after its initial release in May 2013. The surge in downloads and positive reviews catapulted Flappy Bird to the top of the app charts in various countries, making it the most popular free app on iOS worldwide.
The game’s addictive and challenging gameplay, coupled with its simple yet nostalgic 8-bit graphics, resonated with players of all ages. Flappy Bird’s short gameplay cycle encouraged users to keep playing repeatedly to improve their scores, leading to a strong sense of competition among players and further promoting the game through word-of-mouth. The game’s popularity also led to the emergence of a vast and passionate fan base. Players began sharing their experiences, scores, and humorous reviews on social media, further fueling the game’s momentum.
Funny and frustrated user reviews added to the game’s appeal, as people enjoyed sharing their struggles and achievements in the game with others. However, the overwhelming success and attention also led to some negative consequences, as mentioned earlier. The game’s creator, Dong Nguyen, faced immense pressure, online harassment, and excessive media attention, which eventually prompted him to take down Flappy Bird from app stores.
Despite its sudden removal, Flappy Bird remains a memorable and influential game in the history of mobile gaming. Its impact and legacy are still felt in the gaming community, and many fans continue to remember it fondly for its addictive and challenging gameplay.
Amazing Gameplay of Flappy Bird
Flappy Bird is an arcade-style mobile game with simple yet addictive gameplay. The player controls a bird named Faby, who continuously moves to the right. The objective is to guide Faby through pairs of green pipes, each with a gap at a random height. Faby automatically descends, and the player’s input is crucial for making the bird ascend. To make Faby fly upward, the player needs to tap the touchscreen, causing the bird to flap its wings and gain altitude. Timing is crucial because Faby will descend naturally if the player stops tapping.
The goal is to navigate the bird through the gaps between the pipes without colliding with them. As the player successfully passes through a pair of pipes, they earn one point. The challenge lies in the precise timing and control required to keep Faby flying at the right height to avoid hitting the pipes. The game offers a straightforward but increasingly difficult gameplay experience, as the speed and positioning of the pipes become more challenging as the player progresses.
If the player collides with a pipe or the ground, the gameplay ends, and they are presented with a game over screen. Depending on the player’s score, they may receive various medals as recognition for their achievements. Reaching ten points earns them a bronze medal, twenty points gets a silver medal, thirty points earns a gold medal, and an impressive forty points earns a prestigious platinum medal.
Flappy Bird’s gameplay is designed to be quick and accessible, making it easy to learn but difficult to master. The addictive nature of the game lies in the pursuit of improving one’s high score and earning medals, keeping players engaged and coming back for more challenges.
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