Angry Birds GO - Everything you need to know

Game Play

Despite the near constant action, Angry Birds GO is a very simple game. It’s a racing game where you drive or fly around a track. Obviously the point is to get first place. Like most racing games these days, the longer you race, the more vehicles you unlock and the more upgrades you can apply to those vehicles.

Each level is a single track that you race a variety of events on. Included is fruit smasher, 1-on-1 versus with an AI opponent, the standard race, a time trial style race, and a boss race that you must win 3 times. You then unlock a new bird to race with and move on to a new track to repeat the process.

That’s really it, surrounding the vehicle upgrades and tracks are a myriad of other things. There are in-app purchases that get you anything from new cars to double coins. There are sponsored power ups and in-game services like the State Farm mechanic, and the Facebook integration so you can see your scores compared to your friends.

Mechanics

The game mechanics are very simple. There are two types of controls. One is tilt to steer and the other is on-screen controls. There is a power-up button that lets you use that racer’s ability. Each racer’s ability is different. The first time is free, each subsequent time costs you one blue gem.

In terms of racing, you can’t just fly through the game like with prior Angry Birds titles. Each bird can only race a certain number of races before it has to rest for a bit. The more you unlock, the longer you can go but you will have to wait for that to fill up every now and then.

The good

So here’s what we liked.

• The controls and game play are easy enough for even a child to grasp. No complicated drift controls or draft physics. You just race and it’s fun.
• The game is playable and beatable without any in app purchases. You can get through this game without spending one dollar.
• It’s visually appealing. There are a lot of bright colors, types of vehicles, and the tracks are scenic.

The bad

Now for the bad.

• Some of the in app purchases are just ridiculous. They want $50 to unlock a couple of the cars which are only marginally better than the stuff you end up unlocking on your own.
• They bug you frequently to spend money. You’ll see the button to buy a permanent upgrade for double coins after each race.
• The system where you have to wait for racers to rest is kind of lame. One of the best features in Angry Birds is the ability to play whenever you want for as long as you want. Now Rovio makes you wait after a while.

Final Thoughts

Unfortunately, the in-app purchases are going to ruin this game for some people. However, many more will be able to overlook this minor inconvenience and enjoy this game for what it is. It’s a colorful, simple, and fun racing game