An old Australian train safety campaign has been brought back from the dead thanks to a viral social media trend.
Dumb Ways to Die was a huge transport safety campaign by Melbourne’s Metro Trains back in 2012. It featured an extremely catchy tune alongside some colourful bean-like cartoon characters.
And now, by the power of the internet, the song and app have been resurrected in the form of a viral social media trend 12 years later.
The original Dumb Ways to Die app has been launched into pole position on the US iOS and Android stores, and around the world.
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10 years after the first app released, the Dumb Ways to Die YouTube channel has over 420 million views, and it’s portfolio of games and educational apps had been downloaded nearly about 400 million times.
Acquired by Australia’s PlaySide Studios in 2021, the Dumb Ways brand has shown no signs of slowing down.
”Our mission since acquiring the brand outright has been to both reignite nostalgia with an audience familiar with the viral success of the song and the original game, but also to explore new, popular entertainment mediums, platforms, and formats,” PlaySide Studio’s and Dumb Ways General Manager Ben Kelly told Quest Daily.
“We knew of the nostalgia-inducing effects of the Dumb Ways to Die song and the massive potential the brand had amongst a younger generation who grew up with the mobile games,” he said.
Dumb Ways to Die features colourful bean-like characters that always find themselves, through their own poor choices, in mortal danger.
“Don’t be like them,” says Kelly.
The Dumb Ways social trend began after a TikTok user named blakefloyd04 uploaded a video using the Dumb Ways song – and the rest is history.
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As for the formula to a viral hit, Kelly says no amount of careful planning could ever guarantee success.
“While we have laid solid foundations, and helped to nurture a brand that fans want to engage with,
“No amount of careful planning could have ever guaranteed the viral success or cultural impact that the brand has seen over the last couple of months.”
Since then, over 100,000 TikTok and Instagram users have taken the catchy tune and turned it into their own original content.
“Since the trend exploded on TikTok, the @dumbwaystodie account has grown to 3.2 million followers, making it the sixth most followed gaming brand on TikTok,” Kelly said.
“We’ve been delighted to see our message of making smart decisions go truly global.”
They’re also partnering with Netflix Games, which is huge in its own right, as an all-new survival game.
“We are thrilled that Netflix sees value in this IP and we are excited to join forces with them in bringing Dumb Ways to Survive to subscribers,” Kelly said.
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Now PlaySide Studios is preparing to launch Dumb Ways to Die 4, and timing couldn’t be better.
“We’re looking forward to releasing the fourth instalment of Dumb Ways to Die on mobile very soon, as well as Bean Land.
“Bean Land is an epic, top-down action brawler, born from the Beans NFT collection,” Kelly told 9News.
More details on that can be expected later this year.
Pre-order Dumb Ways to Die 4 on the App Store or Google Play Store.
