Pugo rises out of Flappy Bird demise

A man takes a shot at Pugo, a new spinoff of Flappy Bird. Photo by NOY MORCOSO III/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines—Just as the phoenix rose out from its ashes, a new avian wonder has come to life from the holy flames of video game death.

After Vietnamese game developer Dong Nguyen grounded his infamous winged menace Flappy Bird, two Filipinos summoned a new flying avatar –Pugo.

Pugo, the brain-“chick” of husband-and-wife tandem Patrick and Camy Cabral, is a clone of Flappy Bird and is available on the Apple app store, and soon on Google Play.

According to the International Business Times of Australia, Apple took down all known clones of Flappy Bird but Pugo dodged the cyber scythe and lived on to take the apex of Philippine mobile apps.

Pugo may be a clone of Flappy Bird, but the new winged hero has its own brand of cheerfulness and cuteness that has made it distinctly Filipino.

Clad in vibrant pink, purple, white and fuchsia feathers, Pugo flaps in a jungle platform dodging obstacles while a jolly sound plays in the background.

Another difference from its predecessor, Pugo can actually live longer than Flappy as he can pick up “one-ups” designed as the Philippine flag.

Patrick and Camy, who were married just last October, toyed on the idea of developing Pugo two days after Flappy Bird was euthanized.

Both having the artisan’s hands, Patrick, took the risk of using their supposed honeymoon money, took online classes while Camy continued her job as an art director for a games-developer.

When the company that Camy worked for closed down, the couple played on different ideas until Flappy Bird landed on their laps.
According to the couple, Pugo was named after their favourite snack – kwek-kwek, a deep-fried boiled quail egg wrapped in orange batter.
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