This sound is associated with Among Us, the social deduction game that became hugely popular online in 2020 through streaming, YouTube edits and short meme clips. Fans began using the kill cue outside the game as a shorthand for betrayal, sabotage and sudden defeat. Its popularity lasts because the audio is extremely short, easy to recognize and simple to sync to visual punchlines. It often appears in the same gaming meme space as the ROBLOX oof and jumpy reaction effects.