Rovio to launch Angry Birds Go! December 11, catapulting skills not required

By Trevor Mogg Published October 16, 2013

Let’s face it, if you have a smartphone or tablet, you more than likely have at least one Angry Birds game on there somewhere. It might be plain old Angry Birds, or the follow-up Angry Birds Seasons, Angry Birds Rio, Angry Birds Space, or possibly Angry Birds Star Wars. You might not play it anymore (course you don’t), or it may be continue to be your go-to game for the morning commute, but love it or hate it, there’s another version on the way, and you’ll be loading it onto your phone when it arrives.

This one’s different, however. Of course, every version is a little different from the one that went before, but this one’s markedly different, meaning developers at Rovio either ran out of ideas with the format familiar to millions (ie. hurling bird balls at green pigs) or got so bored of it they decided to try something new.

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So clear some space on your mobile device for Angry Birds Go!, launching December 11.

Judging by the preview video released Tuesday, the racing game bears more than a passing resemblance to Mario Kart, though with Go! the drivers comprise popular Rovio characters – Red, Bubbles, Stella, King Pig, and Terence included.

“It’s a complete first for the Angry Birds series, featuring high-octane downhill racing, upgradable karts, tons of characters with unique special powers and a fully rendered 3D world,” the company says in a blog post announcing the launch date.

Catapulting skills perfected through excessive playing of previous versions of Angry Birds will be all but useless with Go!, which instead will require a tip-top tilting technique. Go! also works with Hasbro’s Telepods, so you’ll be able to scan your favorite karts into the game.

Not one to miss a marketing opportunity, Rovio has teamed up with various companies to develop full lines of Go!-based clothing, accessories, and stationery, with branded sporting goods, greeting cards, confectionary, poster books and [enter any item here, it’ll be coming] also planned.

The free-to-play Angry Birds Go! game will launch on iOS, Android, Windows Phone 8, and BlackBerry 10. Bet you can’t wait.

Contributing Editor

Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…

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