Flappy Bird. Unless you’ve had your head in the sand or have spent the last few month’s enjoying the excellent weather, you must have heard of it. You take on the role of a bird with enormous lips that has to navigate a never ending obstacle course of very Mario-like green plumbing pipes. You fly up the screen by tapping the screen and plummet if you’re not tapping the screen – it is very simple yet seems to have the whole world hooked.
If you’ve not picked up on it already, I cannot stand this game – partly because I am rubbish at it and partly because people obsessively post their scores on Facebook…. I really do not care that you got 6 and that this is your best score and no I will not be engaging with you, nor congratulating you.
Anyway, the creator of Flappy Bird, Dong Nguyen, has pulled the game off iTunes and the Play Store due to its sudden success as he ‘cannot take this anymore’. This has led to him receiving death threats on Twitter and even rumours of his suicide. It has also led to people flocking to eBay to sell and buy iPhones with the game installed.
People have gone completely mad!
Potential buyers on eBay are bidding hundreds or even thousands of their hard earned wages on second hand devices with the game pre-loaded. I’m sure this fad will wear off and that this is not a sound investment but this all has me completely perplexed. Sure, it was an addictive game (if you don’t have any real hobbies), but it is repetitive and the fun of it will surely expire. As a free game, fair enough, but as a triple or quadruple figure purchase? Mad!
What do you think of this Flappy Bird obsession? Have you bought the iPhone on eBay for a crazy amount?
Please don’t tell me your top score.