In 2021, the internet broke. It wasn't because of a political scandal or a scientific breakthrough. It was because of a piece of processed poultry that looked like a space-faring bean.
The Among Us chicken nugget is basically the peak of internet absurdity. Most people look at it and see a snack. A few people saw an investment. One person, specifically an eBay bidder, saw it as a $99,997 priority.
Honestly, the story sounds fake. If you told someone ten years ago that a single nugget from a McDonald’s BTS Meal would sell for the price of a luxury car, they’d assume we’d reached a societal collapse. But here we are. This wasn't just about food; it was a collision of "The Crewmate" aesthetic, the sheer dominance of InnerSloth’s Among Us during the pandemic, and the weird, speculative energy of the early 2020s.
How a McNugget Became an Icon
The listing appeared on eBay in May 2021. The seller, "polizna," had originally listed the nugget for a modest $0.99. It was just a weirdly shaped piece of chicken that looked vaguely like an Among Us crewmate—complete with the stubby legs and the rounded "visor" area.
Then things got weird.
The bidding didn't just crawl; it teleported. Within two days, the price had cleared $14,000. Why? Part of it was the meme. The game was everywhere. You couldn't open Twitch or Twitter without seeing "Sus" or "Vent." When the official Among Us Twitter account actually acknowledged the listing, the price shot into the stratosphere.
It was a feedback loop.
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Publicity creates bids. Bids create more publicity.
The item sat at nearly $100,000 for days. People were skeptical. They thought it was a money-laundering scheme or just a bunch of teenagers placing "troll" bids they never intended to pay. But eBay has strict rules about high-value auctions. While we don't know the buyer's name, the sale was finalized. It remains one of the most expensive pieces of video game memorabilia ever sold, which is hilarious considering it has an expiration date.
The BTS Connection That Fueled the Fire
You can't talk about the Among Us chicken nugget without mentioning the BTS Meal.
McDonald’s had just launched a collaboration with the K-pop giants BTS. This meant that the nuggets were already under a microscope. Fans were collecting the packaging, the sauces, and the limited-edition merch. When the seller found the "crewmate" nugget inside one of these specific meals, it was a crossover of two of the biggest fandoms on the planet.
It was the perfect storm. You had the gaming world and the K-pop world colliding in a single greasy box.
Some people tried to replicate the success. Thousands of "crewmate-shaped" food items flooded eBay within hours of the original sale. People were selling "Among Us Cheetos," "Among Us French Fries," and even "Among Us Toast." None of them caught fire. The original had that "first-mover" advantage that defines internet culture.
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Why do we value "Sus" food?
It's about the "Rare Drop" mentality. Gamers are used to hunting for items with a 0.01% spawn rate. Finding a nugget that perfectly mimics a game character is essentially a real-life legendary item drop. It’s silly, sure, but it’s the same psychological trigger that makes people hunt for Shiny Pokémon.
The Logistics of a Six-Figure Snack
What actually happens after you buy a $100,000 nugget? You can't just throw it in a Ziploc bag and call it a day.
The seller, polizna, mentioned that the nugget would be "frozen and air-sealed" to ensure freshness during shipping. McDonald’s nuggets are notorious for their shelf life—thanks to some pretty heavy-duty preservatives—but even they have limits. To actually keep this thing as a "collectible," the buyer would likely need to preserve it in resin.
Imagine having a gold-plated pedestal in your living room with a clear block of epoxy resin containing a five-year-old piece of chicken. It’s a conversation starter, if nothing else.
The Official Reaction
InnerSloth, the developers of Among Us, handled the whole situation with the perfect amount of "internet-native" humor. They didn't send a cease and desist. They didn't try to claim a cut. They just tweeted about it. Their engagement turned a niche eBay joke into a global news story.
Xbox even chimed in on Twitter, suggesting that at that price, it should come with Szechuan Sauce. This kind of brand interaction is what keeps these memes alive long after the initial joke should have died.
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Is the Market for Game-Shaped Food Dead?
If you go on eBay right now and search for "Among Us nugget," you'll still find people trying to sell them. Most are listed for $10 or $20. The "gold rush" is over.
The internet has a very short attention span.
In 2021, we were in a weird place. Everyone was home. Crypto was booming. NFTs were the hottest topic in the world. People were used to the idea that digital—or seemingly worthless—items could have massive value. The Among Us chicken nugget was basically a physical NFT. It was a one-of-one item whose value was derived entirely from social proof and hype.
If the same nugget were found today, it might sell for $500. Maybe $1,000. But $100k? That was a moment in time that won't happen again.
Moving Past the Meme
While the nugget is a funny piece of trivia, it highlights how gaming culture has moved from the screen into our physical lives. We don't just play the games; we consume them—literally.
If you're a collector or just someone who enjoys the weirder side of gaming history, there are better ways to spend your money than hunting for shaped food.
What to do instead of buying expensive nuggets
- Look for verified memorabilia: Items with actual historical significance to a game's development are better long-term "investments" than perishable food.
- Support indie devs directly: Instead of spending $100k on a secondary market joke, that money could literally fund ten indie games.
- Keep an eye on trends, but don't "FOMO" in: The person who bought that nugget probably didn't do it as a financial investment; they did it for the story. If you can't afford the story, don't buy the hype.
The legacy of the Among Us chicken nugget isn't the chicken itself. It’s the fact that for one week in 2021, the entire world agreed that a piece of McDonald’s was the most interesting thing on the planet. It’s a testament to how powerful community and memes have become in the modern economy.
If you happen to find a crewmate in your next 10-piece box, by all means, take a photo. Post it. See if it goes viral. Just don't expect to retire on the proceeds. The lightning has already been caught in that particular bottle.