WEB310 Case Study

Nicky Veitch | WEB310 Case Study

Introduction to: Angry Birds

How to Play

History

Social & Cultural

Business Model

Subsequent levels of the game become more challenging,

and different types of birds become available,

By 2015,

the original

Angry Birds game

had been downloaded

more than

A player can achieve a rating of one, two or three stars on each level.

This increasing difficulty

means that Angry Birds

can cater to both

beginner and

advanced players.

Angry Birds

was made possible by

the introduction of

Apple’s iPhone smartphone,

and the Apple App Store,

in 2007.

which enable a player to perform new and more difficult tasks.

700 million

times.

The popularity

of Angry Birds

led to the creation of

a franchise

which includes not only

smartphone games,

Image courtesy of:

Angry Birds TM

(Cheshire, 2011)

Image courtesy of:

http://blog.mapquest.com/2010/07/19/mapquest-4-mobile-new-and-noteworthy-in-iphone-app-store/

Image courtesy of:

http://www.angrybirds.com

The App Store

enabled game developers

to utilise

Apple’s distribution platform

(Anderson, 2012)

Following the success

of the original game,

Points are gained based on:

to easily reach

millions of players via

a single company.

- the number of pigs destroyed,

Image courtesy of:

http://showroom.angrybirds.com

The aim is to

fire a slingshot

to launch Angry Birds

at pigs...

- the number of surrounding

structures destroyed, and

It is an example of the

Angry Birds

is a very simple game

to play.

(Cheshire, 2011)

using a finger on a touchscreen

- the number of birds used

on each level.

It was initially developed

for the Apple iPhone

smartphone ...

casual

(AngryBirds.com, 2015)

game genre.

but is now available

for most smartphone

and tablet platforms,

including Android

and Windows Phone.

Casual game design

generally includes flexibility

Image courtesy of:

Angry Birds TM

(Juul, 2010)

Angry Birds

was designed to appeal

to everybody.

that allows different players

to use a game

in different ways.

(Rovio.com, 2015a)

is a touchscreen-based video game for smartphones and tablets.

(Cheshire, 2011)

(Juul, 2010)

The first

casual games

which reached a

broad audience

were relatively simple games

such as

Image courtesy of:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rovio.angrybirds

It was created in 2009

by a Finnish

computer company called

Rovio Entertainment.

There is also a

social version

of Angry Birds for

Facebook,

So it might be

“just a game”...

There are now

Angry Birds games

for gaming consoles

such as Playstation, Xbox

and Nintendo.

and a Chrome browser extension

version.

But Rovio is

one of the most successful

game creators in the world.

Angry Birds was

initially created in 2009

(Juul, 2010) Images courtesy of:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pac-Man

http://www.memory-improvement-tips.com/original-tetris-game.html

http://spoiledflushgames.com/designers-diary-matrix-solitaire/

And Angry Birds

is one of the most

lucrative games.

Image courtesy of:

http://www.rovio.com

Image courtesy of:

http://showroom.angrybirds.com

for an outlay of €100,000.

(GameBreakingNews, 2014)

During 2014 alone,

Rovio reported full year revenue of

The Angry Birds

series of games

have been downloaded

Copyright information

(Cheshire, 2011)

Casual games

generally incorporate

several key elements,

including:

€158.3 million

This work was created under the auspices of the Australian Commonwealth Consolidated Acts Copyright Act 1968 – SECT 41, utilising the “Fair dealing for purpose of criticism or review” exception.

It was created for a university assignment for Curtin University, unit WEB310 – “Web Play, Online Games and Gamification”.

I acknowledge Rovio Entertainment as the creator and owner of all Angry Birds-related material provided herein.

My use of the content meets the legal requirements for fair dealing under Australian copyright laws.

“A fair dealing with a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work, or with an adaptation of a literary, dramatic or musical work, does not constitute an infringement of the copyright in the work if it is for the purpose of criticism or review, whether of that work or of another work, and a sufficient acknowledgement of the work is made.”

http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/ca1968133/s41.html

more than 2 billion times

Rovio have employed

a very successful business model

for the Angry Birds

franchise.

(Rovio.com, 2015b)

since 2009.

References

(Forbes, 2014)

Fiction

Usability

On the Android

Google Play Store platform,

the paid download option was

not effective.

Interruptibility

On the Apple App Store

is a free “lite” version,

Bright colours

and a simple theme

Easy to play and use,

even for beginners,

It is easy to spend

a small amount of time playing

and return later,

to promote a

positive

or friendly feel.

while simultaneously being

challenging enough

to maintain interest.

without having to start over

each time.

Rovio's revenue is from:

(Juul, 2010)

These app store

distribution channels,

combined with

Rovio’s own websites,

mean that distribution costs

are low.

- purchasing the game

Otherwise, it costs

So Rovio chose to create

a free, ad-supported

model instead.

Difficulty

Positive Feedback

- ads displayed within the game

Anderson, S. (2012). Just One More Game... Angry Birds, Farmville and Other Hyperaddictive ‘Stupid Games’, The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/08/magazine/angry-birds-farmville-and-other-hyperaddictive-stupid-games.html

AngryBirds.com. (2015). Angry Birds Retrieved April 20, 2015, from https://www.angrybirds.com/play

Angry Birds image. (2015a) Retrieved April 20, 2015, from https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rovio.angrybirds

Angry Birds image. (2015b) Retrieved April 20, 2015, from http://www.angrybirds.com

Angry Birds Showroom image. (2015) Retrieved April 20, 2015, from http://showroom.angrybirds.com

Angry Birds Trilogy image. (2015) Retrieved April 20, 2015, from http://showroom.angrybirds.com

Cheshire, T. (2011). In depth: How Rovio made Angry Birds a winner (and what’s next), Wired UK. . Retrieved from http://www.wired.co.uk/magazine/archive/2011/04/features/how-rovio-made-angry-birds-a-winner

Forbes. (2014). 'Angry Birds Stella' Launches To Increase Series' 2 Billion Downloads Retrieved April 20, 2015, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/andyrobertson/2014/09/04/angry-birds-stella-hands-on-review/

Game Breaking News. (2014). Two billion downloads? We’re just getting started, says Angry Birds creator Rovio Retrieved April 20, 2015, from http://gamebreakingnews.com/two-billion-downloads-were-just-getting-started-says-angry-birds-creator-rovio/

Iphone image. (2010, July 19) Retrieved April 20, 2015, from http://blog.mapquest.com/2010/07/19/mapquest-4-mobile-new-and-noteworthy-in-iphone-app-store/

Juul, J. (2010). What is Casual? In A Casual Revolution: Reinventing Video Games and Their Players (pp. 25-63). London: MIT Press.

Pacman image. (2015) Retrieved April 20, 2015, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pac-Man

Rovio.com. (2015a). Angry Birds Retrieved April 20, 2015, from http://www.rovio.com/en/our-work/games/view/1/angry-birds

Rovio.com. (2015b). Rovio Entertainment Reports Growth In Games And Media Businesses In 2014 Retrieved April 20, 2015, from http://www.rovio.com/en/news/press-releases/630/rovio-entertainment-reports-growth-in-games-and-media-businesses-in-2014/

Rovio logo. (2015) Retrieved April 20, 2015, from http://www.rovio.com

Solitaire image. (2015) Retrieved April 20, 2015, from http://spoiledflushgames.com/designers-diary-matrix-solitaire/

Tetris image. (2015) Retrieved April 20, 2015, from http://www.memory-improvement-tips.com/original-tetris-game.html

The level ratings

ensure beginners can finish easily,

Every action a player makes

results in positive feedback,

AU$1.29c

which includes in-app advertising

and has limited levels.

both in the form of points gained

- merchandise, including toys and clothing

while also allowing advanced users

to aim for

three stars and a

higher score.

and also by

providing positive responses

to player actions.

- movie tie-ins such as Rio and Star Wars

(Juul, 2010)

(Cheshire, 2011), (Juul, 2010)

to download

a full version of the game

with no advertisements.

(Cheshire, 2011)

- clicks from YouTube videos

- and in 2016 Rovio will release

an Angry Birds feature film

(Juul, 2010)

(Cheshire, 2011)

(Rovio.com, 2015b)