Just in case you hadn’t heard enough Flappy Bird news in the last few days, Flappy Bird creator Dong Nguyen has spoken to Forbes in an exclusive and confidential interview in which he speaks about his decision to take the virally famous game down. In his own words:
“Flappy Bird was designed to play in a few minutes when you are relaxed… But it happened to become an addictive product. I think it has become a problem. To solve that problem, it’s best to take down Flappy Bird. It’s gone forever.”
It’s quite remarkable that the previously unknown Vietnamese developer is making such a moral decision for the betterment of the people playing his game, and probably more than that, I doubt many of us would be able to walk away from the alleged $50,000 he was earning in ad revenue everyday regardless of the moral implications. Perhaps he’s just foolish, or maybe Nguyen is a better person than all of us, though what he did divulge in the interview was that he was haunted by Flappy Bird while it was still available, citing that “my life has not been as comfortable as I was before… I couldn’t sleep.”
Nguyen says that he isn’t done with games, however, and although countless clones of the game have gone up in the wake of Flappy Bird’s demise, he says he won’t be taking legal action against them. It’s quite refreshing to hear Nguyen’s story finally laid out in full and really puts viral successes in a whole new light, reminding us that developers are human too. What do you think about Nguyen’s story? Do you think he was right to take Flappy Bird down, and would you do the same? Let us know your opinion in the comments below.
For the full interview, hit the source link below to go to the Forbes article.
Source: Forbes via Android Headlines
