15 BRUTALLY Hard Video Games (That Are Actually Fun)
8. Flappy Bird
When Flappy Bird was released on the iOS store in May 2013, it was just another arcade-style, simply designed mobile game. The aim was simple: guide a little bird through a series of pipes without hitting them.
The thing about Flappy BirdWa was that, unlike real birds, it fell out of the sky like a lead balloon. It felt seemingly impossible to get past any pipes at all. But the game was so simple, all you had to do was tap the screen. Soon, hours were lost trying to get that bird as far as possible. All of a sudden, Flappy Bird was a sensation.
The game was unnaturally difficult for a free-to-play mobile game. Getting a high score became a badge of honour and people would dedicate hours to try and get to that next milestone. Dong Nguyen, the developer of this smash hit, felt guilt for the beautiful monster he had created. By February 2014, even though the game was making upwards of $50,000 a day from ad revenue, he pulled Flappy Bird from the iOS store.
Flappy Bird was a fever dream. A strangely simple, punishingly hard, beautifully addictive fever dream.