Reviewed on PS3, also available on PC and iOS
Angry Birds, developed by Finnish developers Rovio Mobile, first launched on the iOS platform back in December 2009. The rampant success of the title saw it ported to a number of varying mobile platforms. The game has now made its way to Windows, Mac OS, and PSP/PS3, with Xbox, Wii, and Nintendo DS still in the pipe.
The game is ostensibly the same across the various platforms, but MyGaming reviewed the PSP Minis version of Angry Birds on a PlayStation 3. The conversion was to the PSP/PS3 platform was handled by Abstraction Games. The download weighs in at around 17MB and it costs ±R28 on the ZA PSN store.
Evil green pigs have stolen the birds’ eggs, and this has made them angry – angry enough that they are willing to turn themselves into avian projectiles. Strapping themselves into a slingshot, the birds hurl themselves at the pigs’ fortresses. The objective of each level is to kill all of the pigs (and obtain the highest score possible while doing so).
The fortresses the pigs use to protect themselves are constructed from an array of materials – wood, glass, stone, and in latter stages some more elements are introduced to mix things up, such as explosive crates and small rocks to large boulders. The pigs vary in size – the larger the pig, the more damage it can take. Some even come equipped with helmets.
A physics system is at the core of the game. The piggy fortresses are often quite rickety and well placed shots send structures tumbling down. Sometimes they have dug themselves in well, and the player will have to take advantage of the environmental hazards laying about.
The angry birds also come in different types. The initial red bird does nothing special, and warms the player to the mechanics of the game. The other bird types have abilities that can be activated. Small blue birds split into clusters of three, good for dealing superficial damage, or perhaps setting off a chain reaction. A yellow bird can give itself a speed boost mid-flight, and penetrate multiple layers of material – essentially a bunker buster. A fat and heavy black bird penetrates tough materials and then explodes, scattering materials and pigs. A white bird can drop an explosive egg vertically as it soars over the map.
On each level the player is given a set number of birds, and a set order of bird types. The earlier levels are mostly about having some good fun blasting down piggy fortresses and familiarising oneself with the mechanics. Later stages can get quite tricky, as players will have to figure out which portions of the pig fortress to demolish, with the right bird type, in order to clear the level.
Players score points based on the amount of environmental objects that get destroyed along the way, piggy deaths, and spare birds. There are star ratings for each level which rate performance, going up to three stars (for the obsessive compulsive types). The controls are simple enough – left stick to pull back the sling, X to release, and X again to use bird abilities. L1 and R1 pan and zoom out the level.
There are 195 levels and 7 special Golden Egg levels to enjoy – plenty of content to keep one occupied. Rovio did a great job of keeping each level interesting and challenging despite the simple nature of the game.
Visually, the game is colourful and cartoonish – the birds and evil piggys are quite cute. Sound effects are few, with some squawks from the birds, snuffling pigs, mandatory explosions, and tumbling fortress materials. Though few, the sound effects are just right to round out the experience, and can be quite amusing. There is no soundtrack.
The game is most certainly addictive and fun to play. It’s one of those titles that you just can’t tear yourself away from –‘just one more level.’ I’ve spent a couple of evenings telling myself to stop and go to bed, and yet a part of my brain ignores reason, and keeps on playing.
For ±R28 players will certainly get a great deal of gameplay from the title. Unfortunately it comes with a few annoying problems; a distinct feeling of a lack of polish.
The physics system sometimes baffles, with objects defying gravity. This can probably be dismissed as ‘cartoon physics’ but it is not the least of the problems for the physics system. The game will actually chug, lag, and slowdown in certain instances, and especially in large levels. Some research online reveals that this problem is rife across both the PSP and PS3 ports of the game. The PSP is certainly powerful enough to handle this game, and the PS3 struggling to handle the game is laughable. Poorly optimised code is the most likely culprit and hopefully Abstraction Games fixes this issue soon.
There are also annoyances that hinder the flow of gameplay. Levels will only end once all the fired birds have popped, something that happens when they come to a complete rest. The problem is that the bird may have the slightest bit of momentum on a flat surface, and roll along slowly for quite some time before popping.
Portions of the fortresses on certain levels will fall before a shot has been fired, and in some cases a pig explodes in the same way.
Visually, the game suffers from low resolution. Whilst this probably looks fine on the small screen of a PSP, when gaming on a large high resolution TV or monitor, it looks a bit rough around the edge. I’m not marking the game down on visuals on the PS3 – PSP Minis are essentially PSP games that can also be played on the PS3.
Despite these problems, I’d say that the sheer level of addictive charm offered by the game is enough to sway things in its favour – let’s just hope that the physics lag issues get ironed out. There are plenty of fun levels and loads of evil pig slaying action to be had with Angry Birds. The price hits the mark, especially considering the amount of content and hours of fun to be had.
Discuss MyGaming’s review of Angry Birds (PSP Minis) on the MyGaming forum.
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