The Game That Was Too Popular to Live
If you had an iPhone in early 2014, you remember the frustration. The green pipes. The clumsy bird. The "Game Over" sound that haunted your dreams.
Flappy Bird wasn't just a game; it was a cultural fever dream. But the story behind its disappearance is even crazier than the game itself.
From Obscurity to $50,000 a Day
Released quietly in May 2013 by Vietnamese developer Dong Nguyen, the game sat unnoticed for months. It was brutally difficult, requiring pixel-perfect taps to navigate Mario-style pipes.
Then, in January 2014, the internet discovered it.
- Viral Explosion: Fueled by frustrated tweets and a PewDiePie review, it shot to #1 on the App Store.
- The Money: At its peak, Flappy Bird was earning $50,000 USD per day in ad revenue. That's over 18 Million MAD a year.
"I Cannot Take This Anymore"
Most developers dream of this success. Dong Nguyen had a nightmare.
On February 8, 2014, Nguyen tweeted a message that shocked the world: "I am sorry 'Flappy Bird' users, 22 hours from now, I will take 'Flappy Bird' down. I cannot take this anymore."
He wasn't sued by Nintendo. He wasn't hacked. He simply felt guilty. He told interviews that the game had become an "addictive product" and it had "ruined his simple life.". True to his word, he pulled the plug, walking away from millions of dollars.
The Aftermath: Phones for Sale
When the game vanished, panic set in.
- iPhones with Flappy Bird installed started selling on eBay for $10,000+.
- Thousands of clones (like "Splashy Fish") flooded the App Store.
- It became a legend—the game you literally couldn't get anymore.
2025 Update: The Bird is Back?
Recently, news broke that a group called the "Flappy Bird Foundation" acquired the trademark to bring the game back in 2025. However, the original creator Dong Nguyen has confirmed he is not involved, stating simply: "I did not sell anything."
Whether you play the new version or still have an old APK saved on a hard drive, Flappy Bird remains the ultimate lesson in mobile gaming: sometimes, the simple ideas are the most powerful.