Review: Angry Birds HD for iPad

May

2010

Robert Workman, iPadNewsDaily Contributor
12:14 PM ET

What makes a bird angry, you may ask? Perhaps you go cutting down their tree? Or maybe you curse them out for taking a dump on your favorite business suit? More than likely, stealing their eggs will get you on their bad side. That’s just the mistake the evil pig soldiers make, and now the Angry Birds are fighting back to retrieve them in this fun HD remake of the hit iPhone game.

Playing the game is simple. You need to launch a specific set of Angry Birds across a distance, using trajectory and precision aiming to take out pig strongholds. At first, taking down these castles and retrieving your stolen eggs is easy. However, as the game continues into its 100+ levels, you’ll find the locations a little harder to take down, due to stronger materials or specific Birds that may not do as much damage as others. There’s a strategy to learn here, but it’s by no means impossible.

Now, make no mistake, "Angry Birds HD" hasn't changed that much from the one-dollar iPhone version. However, the additional four dollars you’ll invest in the iPad version is still worth it, as the visuals are much crisper. You can zoom in and out of the battlefield very easily, so you get a better layout of the land. This allows you to set up techniques a little easier than before, even though some of the structures are harder to take down than others. We also liked the animations in the game, both from the attitude-laden birds and the somewhat feisty pigs.

Like the iPhone edition, you can unlock achievements in the game, and if you have the proper Wi-Fi support, connection to Twitter and Facebook is also possible (in case you’re part of a thriving Angry Bird community). In addition, there are also bonuses to the iPad version, including a new bird type, several unlockable levels and hidden golden eggs. That kind of makes the additional four-dollar cost a little easier to swallow, especially if you love the previous edition.

Angry Birds HD isn’t the first game to be ported from the iPhone to the iPad, and we doubt it’ll be the last. However, the gameplay is just as fun here as it was on that platform, and the added extras and high-definition gloss make it worth the extra moolah. Now the only question is whether your iPad battery can keep up before the Angry Birds unleash their wrath. Seriously, this game will suck you in for hours if you’re not careful.

Price: $4.99

File Size: 12.3 MB

Developer: Chillingo

Platform: iPad (also available for iPhone)

iPadNewsDaily Rating (out of 4): ★★★★