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60 new Flappy Bird clones hit the App Store every day

That's 1 every 24 minutes

60 new Flappy Bird clones hit the App Store every day

An average of 60 new Flappy Bird clones roll out on the App Store every day according to a report on sister site Pocket Gamer, with 2.5 clones added every hour.

That's based on the last 300 Flappy Bird clones to have launched on Apple's mobile marketplace, meaning a new game aping Dong Nguyen's infamous release hits the App Store every 24 minutes.

In a flap

"Our definition of a Flappy Bird clone, by the way, is any game in which you guide some character through an obstacle course of pipes (or similar objects) hanging from the ceiling and sticking out of the ground," details Pocket Gamer editor Mark Brown.

"That character could be a bird, a fish, an eagle, a super goat, Nyan Cat, Justin Bieber, Miley Cyrus, Bear Grylls on a jet pack, Flappy Bird inventor Dong Nguyen, the floating head of Kanye West, or the chief minister of the state of Gujarat, Narendra Modi."

Left to right, Bieber Fever Max and Flying Pig

Pocket Gamer notes that, because of Apple's uneven release schedule – apps only added between the hours of 15:00 and 08:00 UTC – you "couldn't set your watch by it."

"On some days, 14 Flappy games can be added in the space of one hour, for example," Brown concludes.

It had been claimed that Apple was clamping down on Flappy Bird clones, though Pocket Gamer's data suggests the Cupertino giant has either lost control, or is simply not enforcing any notable action.

Read the full story over on Pocket Gamer.


With a fine eye for detail, Keith Andrew is fuelled by strong coffee, Kylie Minogue and the shapely curve of a san serif font.