Flappy Bird creator says popular game will fly no more

Flappy Bird is a 2013 bird flying game developed in Hanoi by Vietnam-based developer Nguyễn Hà Đông and published by .GEARS Studios, a small, independent game developer also based in Vietnam. The game, which was released on May 24, 2013, was removed from both Apple's App Store and Google Play on February 9, 2014 by the game's author.

In a bizarre turn of events, the Vietnamese creator of the maddeningly difficult #1 Android and Apple AAPL +1.4% iOS game Flappy Bird is saying that he’s taking the game down within the next day.

Developer Dong Nguyen announced the decision on Twitter just a few hours ago:

This sort of move is perplexing as Nguyen is reported to be bringing in $50,000 a day from in-app advertising revenue. It would be understandable if say, Nintendo was suing him for ripping off their art, but he claims that isn’t the case.

He also says he’s not interested in selling Flappy Bird, and he still makes other games, many of which are also quite popular on the Android and iOS app stores.

Is this really just a guy who can’t cope with sudden fame and success, or is something else going on here? Is there really a level of internet vitriol that can make someone simply throw away $50,000 a day? I suppose with the amount of flack Nguyen has taken, it can wear on someone, but why delete Flappy Bird and not his other popular, also simplistic titles?  If his other games become even more popular and are subsequently also criticized, will he take those down too?

The majority of his Twitter interactions are actually positive conversations with individual fans, thanking them for their support or answering their questions. I was hard pressed to find actual hate-filled comments responding to any of his tweets, even in his most recent ones about taking the game down. That said, I’m sure he’s seen negative things said about him or the game elsewhere on the internet, and one hurtful comment can offset a hundred uplifting ones.

A tweet from Nguyen earlier today says “I can call ‘Flappy Bird’ is a success of mine. But it also ruins my simple life. So now I hate it.” Perhaps this really is just an ordinary guy who will do anything to shed the spotlight that was inadvertently cast on him by the public. Still, I’ve never seen anything like this.

I’m not sure I see Nguyen as an entirely sympathetic figure here. While no one deserves personal threats or attacks (if that’s what’s happening), I think criticism of the game or his design of it is valid. The idea is lifted from a thousand other similar games before it. The art and sound effects are taken almost directly from Super Mario Bros, while the bird design and tap mechanics are from 2011′s Piou Piou. These are typical mobile games problems, and the fact that Flappy Bird has been so popular only reinforces the idea that other developers should try to clone their way to the top of the charts.

NBI: Vhong Navarro didn’t rape Deniece Cornejo based on CCTV

MANILA, Philippines—The National Bureau of Investigation on Wednesday discounted the possibility of rape in the incident involving actor-TV host Vhong Navarro and Deniece Millet Cornejo.

NBI Assistant Regional Director Vicente De Guzman said there was no instance that Navarro and Cornejo were left alone inside the girl’s condominium unit in Taguig City.

“Attempt to rape is not possible. The footage is glaring that there was no instance that Deniece was inside her room,” De Guzman said at a press conference.

He also noted Navarro’s statement that when he went inside Cornejo’s condominium unit, two men were already inside.

De Guzman said the CCTV footage that they have acquired corroborates Navarro’s statement because while the CCTV lobby showed Cedric Lee, his sister Bernice and three other men entering the lobby on separate instances, the two men were not seen on the video except when the hand-tied Navarro was escorted to the elevator and towards the lobby.

Here is the time sequence of the incident based on the CCTV footage:

• 10:38 p.m. – Navarro, in shorts, blue polo shirt and a bull cap entered the condominium lobby
• 10:40 – Cornejo was seen at the lobby going out of the building
• 10:41 – Cedric Lee entered the condominium lobby
• 10:43:08 – Ferdinand Guerrero (in white shirt and wearing glasses and one of the respondents in the complaint filed at the Department of Justice) entered the lobby together with still unidentified man
• 10:43:26 – Cornejo entered the lobby
• 10:48 – a certain Mike (also a respondent in the complaint filed by the NBI at the DOJ) was seen entering the condominium lobby
• 10:56 – Cedric’s sister Bernice entered the lobby
• 11:10 – Navarro was escorted inside the elevator with Lee, Bernice, Deniece and five other men

Deniece Cornejo and Cedric Lee Speaks out about Vhong Navarro's Mauling Incident

For the past few days, Vhong Navarro's Mauling Incident made it to the top of Philippine Headlines involving Deniece Cornejo and Cedric Lee who happens to be the cause and the doer of the said mauling.

After Vhong Navarro's full statement about the incident that aired out at Buzz ng Bayan 2 days after the mauling, both side of Deniece and Cedric remained mum about the issue.

Days later, finally the latter made their official statement about the incident.

Deniece Millet Cornejo claims innocence over the mauling of “It’s Showtime” host Vhong Navarro in a condominium in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig on Jan. 22.

Cornejo was the 22-year-old woman who reportedly filed “attempted rape” charges against the actor-TV host. The accusation was said to be the reason behind the attack.

“Kung may biktima at inosente dito, wala nang iba kundi ako…,” read Cornejo’s text message aired on GMA News’ “Balitanghali.”

It added, “You want justice, I’ll give you the real justice. In the field of women’s rights, the right will always be right. Mataas ang paghanga ko sa mga lalaki na arunong rumespeto at ipagtanggol ang mga kababaihan…”

A police blotter of the incident, filed supposedly at the Investigation and Detective Management Division of the Southern Police District on the same day of the attack, stated that the comedian (real name Ferdinand Navarro) tried to “rape” Cornejo, forcing her on a bed and pulling down her short pants.

Vhong denied the accusation in an interview with “Buzz ng Bayan” on Sunday, saying, “Hindi ako rapist.”

He also said that Cornejo is an old friend.

After Navarro identified Cornejo, some of her pictures spread on social networking sites. Based on one of her older posts, netizens pointed out her supposed familial relation to GMA-7 Chairman and CEO Felipe Gozon, whom she had referred to as “lolo;” a connection denied through a statement posted on GMA News Facebook.

Meanwhile, in a report on ABS-CBN News, Cedric Lee, named by Navarro as among his alleged assailants, admitted his participation in the incident but maintained that he only did so to prevent the supposed molestation of Cornejo.

He alleged that he caught Navarro in bed with Cornejo, who was then shouting and fighting the actor off.

“Ang instinct ko, I grabbed him from the back at hinila ko pababa ng kama. Si Deniece ay tumakbo sa sister ko at inilabas na siya sa condo unit. Naiwan dun sa condo, ako at ‘yung lalaki na di ko pa kilala ay si Vhong,” he recounted.

He claimed that Navarro refused to be brought to a police precinct, and as such, “Napilitan namin siyang suntukin at naupakan namin siya. Nagkabasag-basag ang mukha niya.”

Comedian Arvin "TADO" Jimenez among dead in Mt Province bus accident

MANILA, Philippines – Comedian Tado (real name: Arvin Jimenez), 39, was among those who died when a bus heading to Bontoc, Mountain Province, fell into a ravine on Friday, February 7.

According to a report from the Cordillera Regional Disaster Risk Reduction Council, Jimenez was among the 14 who died on the spot. Thirty-two more are injured.

The Florida tourist bus with plate number TXT 872 had at least 47 people on board when it fell.
Two foreigners – a Dutch and a Canadian national – also died in the accident.
Injured passengers, including a Dutch woman and the driver of the bus, were taken to different hospitals nearby.

The bus came from the Sampaloc terminal in Manila. Most of the passengers on the bus were tourists, while some were going to attend a women's Christian conference in Bontoc.

Local police spokesman Superintendent Davy Vicente Limmong said they believe the accident was caused by loose brakes or human error, as there was no traffic and the weather was clear.

Non-governmental organization DAKILA also confirmed the comedian's passing on its Facebook page. Tado, said DAKILA, was among its founding members.

The comedian is survived by his wife and 4 children, according to the group.
One of Tado's last posts on his Instagram was a picture of the bus bound for Bontoc. It had the caption: "Long trip, as in trip, trip."

A Twitter post by Dakila said Tado was going to Bontoc for the 40 Mountains Project, which uses as slogan a quote from the comedian himself: "Life begins at the mountain." "My journey begins here," wrote the comedian in a Instagram post promoting the project.

On social media, Tado's friends and fans expressed grief over his death.