Angry Birds 2: Old Game, New Rules

A few days ago a sequel of a popular online game was launched - Angry Birds 2. After 13 spin-offs of the popular franchise, Rovio has decided that it has been enough. A company from Finland has decided that it is time to get back to basics and released entirely new Angry Birds adventure. If you still have some doubts about a success of a new game, just check the number of downloads. Angry Birds 2 were downloaded 10 million times in just a few days. The game holds a first place on Apple Store’s free downloads list and second place (just behind Facebook’s Messenger) on Google Play free download chart in the US. [caption id="attachment_8177" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Angry Birds 2 are here![/caption]

What’s so great about Angry Birds 2?

If you loved the old Angry Birds, you would probably like refreshed and upgraded version of the good old game. The birds are more powerful than they were in the original game. Levels are more exciting now, and everything is wrapped up quite nicely. But, let’s not be hasty. Let’s check what exactly are the good sides of the game: 1. Good old birds are back. Forget about fancy effects that we have seen in some spin-offs, such as anti-gravity fields, seasons, transforming birds, or Star War heroes. You can use birds and slingshot mechanics only to destroy the pig enemy. The birds are back, and they are stronger and angrier that they ever were. 2. Birds have never looked better. The graphic is excellent. Leading characters are looking awesome; the background is quite colorful and lively and crashing effects are polished. In graphical aspects, this game deserves to be called a major release. 3. New features are spicing up the game. First, you will notice that levels are not the same - they have multiple stages now (usually from 2 to 4). Second, you can play any bird you want, the order of shooting is not predefined anymore (this is my personal favorite). If you repeat the level you will notice that the pig structure are not the same, they are randomly displayed now. And these are just a some of the new features that are making the game more exciting. You will discover a few more on your own, we don’t want to spoil all the surprises for you. [caption id="attachment_8178" align="aligncenter" width="300"] You can choose the bird you want to use now.[/caption] 4. The game is still free to play. Yes, there is in-app purchase in the game. You can buy gems that will enable you to buy lives, cards and spells (ups, we have just discovered another new feature). By default, you have only five lives, and you need to wait for 30 minutes until they recharge. If you don’t want to hold on, you can buy gems or watch an advertisement. The bottom line is that the game is still free to play, and nobody has to pay, unless they want to. 5. Angry Birds are getting social. The game has a social component now. You can compete with your Facebook friends in daily tournaments and win some extra point is the Arena. Some players are loving it and confess that they are playing only in this area of the game. [caption id="attachment_8179" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Angry Birds 2 daily tournament[/caption]

Is there anything not to like about angry Birds 2?

Well, unfortunately, there is. Even if the game is still free and you can choose whether or not you wish to allow it to connect to your Facebook account, you are regularly forced to buy gems and to connect to Facebook. As Forbes magazine said in their review of Angry Birds 2, titled “Pay or die”, the in-app purchase implementation is absolutely awful. They continue by saying that a perfectly good puzzle game has been shot down by its own revenue model. [caption id="attachment_8180" align="aligncenter" width="300"] You need to buy gems if you want to play longer.[/caption] In their review, Metro also criticize Rovio’s decision to go down the freemium lane. They are adding that the game is obsessed with you connecting to Facebook, so you can bore your friends with updates on your high score. What do we have to say? Yes, they are partly correct, the “call for action” could have been a bit more subtle. We are not against monetizing and freemium models, but we don’t like seeing it aggressively implemented. After all, Angry Birds 2 are not as annoying in requesting your money or connection to Facebook as some other games (as Home, for example). We have still expected a solution that is more stylish than this one. Rovio is a good at learning, and they will probably figure it out, eventually.

Our final two cents

Let’s rock some pigs! We are fans of the game, after all. We are willing to forgive a few slips just because we like the new game. Everything looks great, birds are completely crazy, and they are ready for some serious pig destroying. https://youtu.be/M0niPfYZaaI Do you agree with us? How do you like Angry Birds sequel? Who is your favorite bird? We are looking forward to your comments, so feel welcome to share your opinion with us. Image source: AngrybirdsNest, TechTimes, Mashable.