Not even two weeks have passed since Rovio released Bad Piggies for PC/Mac and mobile Android and iOS devices, and yet, here I am completely done with the game after numerous bursts of playing while on the go. I’ve collected all of the skulls and stars leaving me with nothing left to do, impatiently waiting for the “Coming Soon” levels to be unlocked, which are slated to be released sometime in the coming weeks.
The green little pigs, which happen to have an amazing appetite for bird eggs, have proven to Rovio that it’s not exactly the birds that are responsible for their financial success, it’s the addictive gameplay that is perfect for on-the-go gaming. For those of you who haven’t given Bad Piggies a chance, I have to ask: Why the heck not?
Angry Birds is an amazingly huge franchise that started with the original 99 cent game in 2009. It’s almost like a virus, spreading to nearly every medium available. I’m surprised they haven’t made a television series yet, considering the many cartoon shorts they’ve developed. Off the top of my head I know that Angry Birds exists in toys, plushies, board games, apparel, Halloween costumes, bed spreads, party supplies, Band-Aids, cell phone accessories, school supplies, back packs and, okay, I’ll stop there. You get the point. It’s popular, mainly with kids, thanks to it being so easy to pick up and play.
That’s where Bad Piggies differs. My 5 year old nephew, who is a huge fan of the series, is constantly getting frustrated with the build-your-own vehicle gameplay that sets Piggies apart from Angry Birds. In the beginning levels, it seems like the only way to win is to build vehicles a specific way. Later in the game you get a little more freedom to build what you want to complete the level and collect stars, but usually they provide you with the exact tools needed to build the vehicle and you just have to figure out how to use them appropriately.
Bad Piggies requires some critical thinking to solve certain puzzles. It can be frustrating, even for a 27 year old man such as I, but it is very rewarding when you solve the problem yourself. I’m hoping the younger audience isn’t having too much issue with the game, but I doubt I’m the only uncle who has had to help his nephew with the harder levels.
I like Angry Birds, but it never really hooked me in the way that some other mobile games have. I usually get addicted to tower defense apps like Fieldrunners. Rovio’s Amazing Alex is pretty fun as well and quite similar in gameplay to Big Piggies, and come to think of it, it’s probably way too hard for kids. Then again, when I was a kid I played the NES and NES games were brutally difficult. Ninja Gaiden, I’m looking at you!
There is something about popular games that tend to accrue a lot of hate. Popular franchises, notably Call of Duty, are flamed to death online by haters. People go out of their way to express their hatred toward a game or series. Angry Birds is one of those games that attracts haters, although not as much as Call of Duty. I’ve heard people call out Angry Birds for “ripping off” similar titles, such as Crush the Castle. I don’t see a problem with taking an existing idea and improving upon it. You can argue that every platformer out there is a Mario rip-off.
Angry Birds sought out to be a great game to play on your cell phone, and it is. If you’re not particularly interested in it, then don’t play it. But even if you hate Angry Birds, you seriously need to give Bad Piggies a chance. I’ve seen Bad Piggies compared to Banjo Kazooie Nuts & Bolts on other review sites and that is probably a good reference, but Banjo isn’t a casual mobile game like this. You build vehicles that need to reach the goal, scoring stars along the way. Stars can be obtained by completing the level under a certain time limit, collected throughout the level, or there are some level-specific goals such as escorting the king pig to the goal or getting your vehicle to the goal without damaging it. With three stars in each level, you don’t have to collect all three in one play through like in Angry Birds. If you replay a level later, you still have the stars you already collected, so you just complete whatever goal necessary to get the second or third star.
It’s very fun and hard to put down at times. The experience is very rewarding and it will leave you wanting more. So give it a try and let us know, are you a bad piggy or an angry bird?
As we mentioned earlier, Rovio has released a Bad Piggies-themed episode to the original Angry Birds. If you’ve done everything there is to do in Bad Piggies like I have, this is a great time killer while we wait for more Bad Piggies content. With the upcoming Angry Birds Star Wars, I can’t help but wish there was a Bad Piggies Star Wars so I can build a tie fighter. One can only hope!
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