Flappy Bird Stops Flapping

A few weeks ago, J Student Reporters published an article about Flappy Bird, a smartphone game that was downloaded more than 50 million times and has been regarded with tremendous enthusiasm and preference. Yet the gaming world was surprised on Sunday, Feb. 9 when game developer Dong Nguyen announced on Twitter that he would be removing the game from the Internet the next day.

This unexpected decision caused disappointment among numerous Flappy Birders.

Antonio Apodoca, a junior from Sonora High School, told JSR, “I am really sad now. I have been playing the game ever since it came out. Also, wherever I went, the game was the main source of diversion among my friends. Considering that the downloading is not available from now on, I better take good care of my phone.”

Nguyen has other games available for download, and there are many Flappy Bird clones available by other develops. Yet the removal of the widely-loved game stimulated some individuals to take advantage of the popularity and utilize the situation to make profits.

Marco Garcia, a junior from Sonora HIgh School, explained, “Ever since Flappy Bird was removed, there have been many people trying to sell their phones, or even doing a trade on the game — like, the owner of the phone with Flappy Bird would allow other one to play the game with some payment.”