Review: Angry Birds Star Wars

MANILA, Philippines – The force has come to the land of the Angry Birds! 

On Thursday, November 8, Rovio released the 5th installment of the Angry Birds franchise, Angry Birds Star Wars which takes users on an intergalactic journey through the deserts of Tatooine and deep into the depths of Death Star, I mean, Pig Star! 

The game starts exactly the same way Star Wars Episode 4 begins. Princes Leia’s ship is attacked by the evil Darth Vader, Dark Lord of the Pigs. R2D2 and C3PO escape to Tatooine where they meet our protagonist Luke Skywalker (played by Red Bird). And so our campaign begins… 

At first, Luke plays just like your normal Red Bird…but that all changes a few levels in where you’ll meet and train with Obi Wan Kenobi (Black Bird) in level 1-5. Later in level 1-9 after you have proven that you are worthy, you are awarded a light saber. Red Bird has never had a special power before so yay for him. The light saber smashes through obstacles so he can keep flying through to his target. 

If you’re a fan of both the Angry Birds and Star Wars, you’ll go crazy over the characterizations. Pink Bird plays Princess Leia (super power = pink blasters), Yellow Bird is Han Solo (super power = 3 red laser beams), Big Brother Bird is Chewbacca (super power = earthquake causing super strength), The Blues are the Pilots of the Rebellion (super power = 1 bird splits into 3 that can break ice easily).

R2D2 and C3PO are characters too based loosely off bird eggs dressed to look like the actual star wars characters and you can play them in the included Bonus round, which takes a cue from the gameplay of Angry Birds Space. R2D2 zaps nearby piggies while C3PO explodes into smithereens.   

Let’s not forget about the bad piggies. You’ll see them dressed in several Star Wars costumes my favorite are the ones dressed up as pig troopers. 

I’ve only had about 3 hours with the game and have only gone as far as level 2-24 but as early as now I’m pretty sure you’ll enjoy the game as much as I have. For an Angry Birds Pro like me, the game starts off considerably easy, I was able to clear the first screen with all 3 stars but it does get harder as you go along. Aside from figuring out how to solve each level, you’ll sometimes have to deal with pig troppers, AT-ATs and other creatures shooting back at you.

Level 1-22 really stumped me so I had to use a Mighty Falcon (almost like the Mighty Eagle in other versions of the game). You are awarded Mighty Falcons as you move on in the game and collect stars. When you reach level 1-26 the scene changes and you’ll have to play in space and deal with floating objects and the same gravitational fields you encounter in Angry Birds Space. Level 2-11 takes place inside the death star and is where you’ll first meet Chewbaca.  

The game comes with 80 standard levels and 10 bonus levels. You can also, for an additional $1.99, unlock “Path of the Jedi” that will give you an additional 50 new levels. In Path of the Jedi you undertake Jedi training in Dagobah to forge a new lightsaber. New levels are promised, and like any other Angry Birds game, more levels will be released in future updates so you never really do run out of levels to play.

The game is available on the following platforms iOS ($0.99 iPhone/iPod touch, $4.99 for iPad) Android ($2.99 or free with ads), Amazon Kindle Fire ($2.99), Mac ($4.99), PC ($4.95), Windows Phone 8 ($0.99) and Windows 8 ($4.95). 

Have you tried Angry Birds Star Wars yet? Tell us how you feel about the game on our Mood Meter, leave a comment below, or tweet us using the hashtag #TechRap. – Rappler.com