Hoax Alert: Flappy Bird Creator Dong Nguyen Commits Suicide

Flappy Bird is dead, but its creator isn’t. Let’s just get that straight. The circulating report that says Dong Nguyen has committed suicide after taking down the insanely popular free app from Androids and iTunes marketplaces is just a cruel rumour.

On early Sunday morning, the Vietnamese game developer tweeted that he was taking down the game, merely weeks after its popularity surged. He denied that his decision was influenced by legal issues, citing stress instead.

There were reports that the app, a simple but frustratingly difficult game, was copied from other already existing games. Apparently, he has received a cease and desist order from a game company giant, which forced him to end Flappy Bird’s life.

According to a new twisted report, however, it’s not only the hapless bird’s life that he ended, but his own as well.

The fake report claims that Nguyen was found in dead in his home with a gunshot wound in his head, with authorities confirming that he committed suicide with a pistol.

Tweets purportedly from Nguyen himself were the basis for suicide rumour. However, the tweets did not come from Nguyen, whose last message was posted on Sunday.

The faux Twitter posts read:

“I can call ‘Flappy Bird’ is a success of mine. But it also ruins my simple life. So now I hate it.”

“Press people are overrating the success of my games. It is something I never want. Please give me peace.”

Flappy Bird was available since May 2013, but only gained popularity during the recent weeks. Nguyen’s previous interview with The Verge revealed that app allowed him to earn an average of USD50,000 per day from the in-app ads.