Angry Birds Stella Review (iOS)

The Angry Birds series is one of the longest running mobile franchises and also one of the most successful ever. The series’ success has been so big that it branched out in several different ways, with the production of merchandise and animated shows as well as ports on video games consoles.

Despite all the branching out, the series has hardly changed since the first entry of the series. Each new game has brought a new twist in the formula but nothing truly revolutionary. And Angry Birds Stella, the latest entry of the series, is really no different than the several other games that have preceded it.

Some things, though, are different. The game’s presentation,for starters is really on another level when compared to other Angry Birds games, with new animations for the lady birds and the enemies, new environments and more. The environments are especially pleasing thanks to their colorful nature and unique design.

Gameplay wise, Angry Birds Stella plays like an Angry Birds game, so fans of the series will find theselves right at home from the very first stage. For the very few who have never played an entry of the series, in Angry Birds Stella you will be throwing birds by using a catapult to destroy structures and defeat enemies. Once you’re out of birds, you will have to start again from the beginning.

The new lady birds included in the new game open up some new and interesting possibilities, thanks to their special powers that are nothing like the ones seen in previous entries of the series. Stella can be aimed again after launch, allowing gamers to make her bounce around, another of the new birds uses a sonic blast that can be aimed once launched and more. Like stated before, it’s nothing revolutionary but it helps in making the experience feel fresher. Another new welcomes gameplay mechanic is how the number of total available birds is calculated in each stage, which is dependent on your performance in the previous stage: three stars mean that you will have plenty of birds available, zero stars means that you will have to clear the next stage with just a few birds. This adds more to the stars mechanics, giving more incentive in mastering each and every stage.

Being a free to play game, Angry Birds Stella comes with some features that, unfortunately, damage the experience a bit. You will be able to play the game without any waiting time until level 23, where you will have to wait for an hour once a bomb gets dropped in the game. The same will happen ten levels later, with the waiting being even longer. Obviously, you will be able use coins, which can be obtained in-game and through IAPs, to skip the wait time. The game is also full of ads, which tend to appear way too often.