Angry Birds Epic review: Rovio's take on a turn-based RPG

And just like that, Rovio expanded its Angry Birds franchise even further with the addition of a brand new game - a game that is clearly promising to be epic. It is called Angry Birds Epic, and it is already available on iOS in some parts of the world. If you're expecting to see the usual flinging of wingless birds at barricaded pigs, however, prepare to be surprised. Angry Birds Epic is a turn-based role-playing game, and a pretty good one, we must add. Here's what it all breaks down to.

The story begins in a usual for an Angry Birds game manner - those pesky green pigs have once again stolen the birds' eggs. Needless to say, the birds immediately engage on a quest to return what's rightfully theirs by any means necessary. And so, the journey starts with Red as the sole hero. His first few fights are easy to win as they're meant to introduce the player to the game's mechanics. In other words, the first 10 minutes of gameplay are a tutorial that gets you warmed up for the real challenge that lies ahead. Eventually, you will unlock extra birds, such as Chuck (the yellow dude), and Bomb. All birds have their own unique attacks and abilities - Chuck, for example, can attack all enemies at once with a lightning strike, while Red unleashes a heavy blow at a single opponent. Same goes for the enemies - different pigs have different strengths and weaknesses, which you can actually view during battle.

To be honest, Angry Birds Epic did not feel all that epic, at least not at first. Fights seemed repetitive and weren't exactly what we'd call action-packed, although that was kind of expected from a game in which the player and their virtual opponent take turns in launching jabs at one another. But then pretty soon, the difficulty started to increase. We even lost a few battles as we underestimated our porky opponents. Then we realized that we weren't doing something right. Then we realized that fights demanded us to plan ahead and to use the right strategy - to plan whether to hit the strongest enemy, or to go for the weakest, to attack at full force, or to cast our shield spells in order to protect ourselves from the deadly upcoming attacks. What's more, we had to learn how to craft our own weapons and to prepare potions, which could aid us in battle. Once we familiarized ourselves with this part of the game, we finally got the feeling that we were playing an RPG. And it felt pretty good.

Visually, Angry Birds Epic is as quirky and cartoonish as all other recent games from the series. We're not complaining - the colorful graphics are one of the many things that make an Angry Birds game so lovable. Animations, effects, even the game's different menus are beautifully drawn in detail. Similarly, the sound effects add a lot of character to the game. Now if only the Angry Birds theme wasn't so catchy...

Overall, Angry Birds Epic is one of those must-try casual games. Chances are that hardcore gamers will find it too simple and shallow for their taste, but those who consider themselves casual gamers will surely love Rovio's newest creation. The game is easy to learn, easy to play, and easy to put down when there's more serious business to be done, which makes it a great choice for killing a few minutes while waiting for the bus. Although we wouldn't mind spending an afternoon stashing loot, crafting weapons, and laying waste to those grunting green pigs. Best of all, we never had the feeling that we were being pushed towards buying extra in-game currency (which costs real money, by the way) so don't be worried about IAPs spoiling your experience. The only thing you might be bothered by are the full-screen pop-up ads that appear from time to time.

Developer: Rovio	Download: iOS (Not available globally yet)
Genre: Turn-based RPG	Price: Free (with in-app purchases)