Tip: The more buildings you buy, the more memes you make!
Ascend to Meme Haven and reset your progress for permanent bonuses!
You need at least 1,000,000 lifetime memes to ascend
WARNING: Ascending will reset all your memes, buildings, and upgrades!
You will keep: achievements and heavenly memes.
Total Memes Created: 0
Memes Clicked: 0
Memes from Generators: 0
Time Played: 0:00:00
Memes per Click: 1
Discover the fascinating origins and evolution of memes throughout human history.
Before the term existed, "Kilroy Was Here" graffiti appeared during World War II, featuring a simple drawing of a bald man peeking over a wall. It became one of the earliest viral cultural phenomena.
Richard Dawkins coined the term "meme" in his book "The Selfish Gene." He described memes as ideas, behaviors, or styles that spread from person to person within a culture, similar to how genes spread in a population.
Before the web became widespread, early internet communities on Usenet and BBS systems shared humor through ASCII art and recurring jokes, forming the earliest digital memes.
One of the first viral internet memes, this 3D-rendered animation of a baby dancing to "Hooked on a Feeling" by Blue Swede spread widely through email chains and was featured on the TV show "Ally McBeal."
A webpage featuring rows of animated GIF hampsters dancing to a sped-up version of "Whistle Stop" from Disney's Robin Hood. The site went viral and was one of the earliest examples of an internet fad.
Poor translation from the Japanese game "Zero Wing" became an internet phenomenon with the phrase appearing in modified images, videos, and flash animations across the web.
A video of a teenager awkwardly wielding a golf ball retriever like a lightsaber became one of the first viral videos, predating YouTube and spreading through file-sharing networks.
Gary Brolsma's webcam performance to "Dragostea Din Tei" by O-Zone became a massive viral hit, demonstrating the emerging power of amateur video content online.
Flash animations like "Badger Badger Badger" by Weebl showed the potential for internet culture to spread quickly across the web. YouTube's launch this year would revolutionize video sharing.
"Evolution of Dance" and "Chocolate Rain" emerged as YouTube's early viral sensations, showcasing the platform's power for creating cultural phenomena.
The bait-and-switch meme of unexpectedly linking people to Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up" music video began on 4chan and became one of the internet's most enduring pranks.
Sites like 4chan became birthplaces for many iconic memes. LOLcats emerged with the "I Can Has Cheezburger?" blog, introducing a new format of animal images with broken English captions.
Image macros featuring animals and other characters giving stereotypical advice began to populate Reddit and 4chan, including Courage Wolf, Insanity Wolf, and Socially Awkward Penguin.
Simple comics using a set of expressive faces to tell relatable stories of frustration and humor gained massive popularity on Reddit and other platforms.
A cat with a Pop-Tart body flying through space with a rainbow trail set to Japanese pop music became an internet sensation and inspired countless remixes.
PSY's music video became the first YouTube video to reach one billion views, demonstrating the global reach of meme culture and leading YouTube to update their view counter.
A Shiba Inu dog paired with colorful Comic Sans text in broken English ("such wow", "very amaze") became one of the decade's most recognizable memes, eventually inspiring a cryptocurrency.
A viral challenge where people dumped ice water on themselves to raise awareness for ALS became a global phenomenon, showing how memes could drive social causes.
The six-second video platform Vine reached its peak popularity, creating a new form of rapid-fire comedy and launching phrases like "What Are Those?" and "Why You Always Lying?"
After a gorilla was killed at the Cincinnati Zoo, Harambe became the subject of endless memes that demonstrated the internet's ability to sustain and transform an event into a cultural touchpoint.
A stock photo of a man checking out another woman while with his girlfriend became a versatile template for expressing divided attention or betrayal.
What began as a joke about the appetizing appearance of laundry detergent pods sparked concern when some people actually attempted to eat them, showing the potential real-world impact of meme culture.
A joke Facebook event suggesting people "storm Area 51" to "see them aliens" drew millions of responses and mainstream media attention, culminating in small actual gatherings near the site.
COVID-19 lockdowns led to a surge in meme creation and consumption, with formats like "Nature is Healing" and TikTok dance challenges providing levity during a difficult time.
An image of Senator Bernie Sanders sitting cross-legged in mittens at President Biden's inauguration became an instant meme, with Sanders photoshopped into countless scenarios.
Tools like DALL-E and Midjourney began creating bizarre, dreamlike images based on text prompts, adding a new dimension to meme creation and visual humor.
Meme culture has become so mainstream that games like "Meme Clicker Tycoon" are created to celebrate and interact with meme culture in new ways.
As AI and virtual reality technologies advance, memes may evolve into even more complex and interactive formats, continuing their role as a fundamental element of human cultural transmission.
Play games to earn bonus memes!
Match pairs of meme cards
Click as many memes as you can in 10 seconds
Test your meme knowledge
Warning: This will completely reset your game progress!
Are you sure? All progress will be lost!
Meme Clicker Tycoon v1.0
Click memes, build your empire, and become the ultimate meme tycoon!
View Meme Encyclopedia