Flappy Bird creator explains why he killed the world's most popular app

The creator of the recently departed mobile gaming hit Flappy Bird has said that the application is now gone forever, maintaining that the reason he yanked his $50,000-a-day success story is because it was too addictive.

“Flappy Bird was designed to play in a few minutes when you are relaxed,” explained 29-year-old Vietnamese creator Dong Nguyen in an interview with Forbes. The interview is Nguyen's first since he removed Flappy Bird from iOS and Android (though there are now dozens of clones in its place) over the weekend.

“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.”

Forbes says that its interview with Nguyen was delayed by several hours because the developer had an unexpected meeting with Vietnam deputy prime minister Vu Duc Dam. The interviewer also notes that Nguyen appeared stressed throughout.

Nguyen, who has received multiple death threats both before and after removing iOS and Android downloads for Flappy Bird, said that “my life has not been as comfortable as I was before” following the breakout success of the app.

"Thank you very much for playing my game,” he said to fans.

During the interview, Nguyen maintains that his decision for removing Flappy Bird was not because of any legal threats from Nintendo, which is what many suspected as Flappy Bird features green pipes that resemble Nintendo's famous iconography. Nintendo has also said that it did not pursue legal action against Nguyen.

Despite the potential money to be made from keeping the application running, Nguyen adds that he's confident in his decision. “I don’t think it’s a mistake,” he says. “I have thought it through.”

Following Flappy Bird, Nguyen says he plans to develop more games. "After the success of Flappy Bird, I feel more confident, and I have freedom to do what I want to do.”