Finnish videogame maker Rovio has announced “Bad Piggies”, a spin-off of the popular Angry Birds franchise that will let users play from the pigs’ perspective. Titled “Bad Piggies” and set to launch later this month, the game will shift the focus from the birds – typically, the main characters – to the pigs. It is unclear how this will translate in terms of game mechanics, but Rovio promises “never-before-seen gameplay” without slingshots, Angry Birds’ tools to complete levels and clear them of pigs, the enemies.
There’s a lot of empathy towards the lovable enemies from the Angry Birds games, and we’ve been constantly asked: what about the pigs’ side of the story?” said Mikael Hed, CEO of Rovio. “Bad Piggies gives you the chance to play as the second-most-loved characters in the Angry Birds universe, and explore this rich world through their green eyes.
After the modest success of Amazing Alex – a new IP from Rovio based on the acquisition of a game previously called “Casey’s Contraptions” – Rovio kept on releasing updates to Angry Birds, adding new levels and options for free. Earlier this year, Rovio launched a new version of Angry Birds called “Space”, which was downloaded over 100 million times in just 76 days. Also earlier this year, back in May, Rovio announced the billionth download for the Angry Birds franchise, and reported revenue of over $100 million for the fiscal year 2011.
As a side note, an Angry Birds version featuring the pigs’ point of view was rumored all the way back in November 2010.
Bad Piggies will launch on Thursday, September 27, on iOS, Mac, and Android. A teaser website is available here.