Angry Birds Stella Hands on First Look at the First 7 Levels

Earlier today I took Rovio and Barnes & Noble up on their offer to play Angry Birds Stella a wee-bit early (see our mention of this from yesterday). Anyhow, above is raw footage of me actually playing Stella for the first time. I’m sorry for the shaky camera footage, but it’s tough playing a new game while also recording from you phone — all while standing. Remember, this is raw footage, so bear with me as I learn how to navigate the game.

I have to say playing Stella was quite intimidating at first, and I still don’t get it all, but that’s not to say it wasn’t fun. Quite the opposite actually. It IS really fun, well executed, and best of all the gameplay is familiar (but different enough that it doesn’t feel like a copy).

Below are some of my initial observations in list form (feel free to leave a comment with things I may have missed):

  • There don’t seem to be any episodes per se, though it’s hard to say for sure. After you pass level 11 there is a final “Wall of Pigs” level, which is sort of like a boss fight / golden egg level. Once you beat the Wall of Pigs I the next block of levels is revealed, which in this case unlocks Poppy (the yellow bird).
  • The one, two, and three star thresholds are not secret and as you earn points it shows you how much you have left to hit them.
  • At first I thought you get as many birds as you like (about 00:04:30 om the video I am just flinging away), but once you pass level four the line up is set and all birds remaining after you pass the level earn you the customary 10,000 points. With that said, you can swap birds using coins and Telepods, ala Angry Birds Star Wars 2.
  • Free coins float up in bubbles that you can pop with your finger (nice touch — zing!).
  • Some (all?) of the birds’ abilities allow you to tap and hold, which allows for more precise aiming. For example, for Poppy’s tornado of destruction you can tap and hold to slow her down and aim, then after a few seconds things start to speed up again. Pretty nifty and helpful.
  • The Credits menu has a fun “Keep the Pigs up in the Air” mini-game (video of this coming soon). I am a real sucker for little things like this.
  • The menus are very well animated and tie in nicely to the Angry Birds Universe, much like Epic.
  • Much like Angry Birds Friends and Epic you’ll be able to compete against your Facebook friends, as well as see their scores. As usual, the real battles will happen here on the Nest though. :)
  • After you complete a level the total number of stars you’ve earned appears at the top. Earning a certain number of stars unlocks rewards.
  • At 00:06:41 in the video notice the brown block in the top right has a camera on it. Smashing this blocks unlocks takes a snapshot that appears in your photo album. This photo album allows you to change the version of the character. It’s not shown in this video but later on I unlocked a version of Stella that is wearing a black wig.

In closing, more than ever I am looking forward to Stella’s release on September 4th! Please watch the video and let us know what you think of the gameplay (don’t insult my wobbly hands though).

Stella Hidden Mini-Game | Keep the Pigs in the Air

This is awesome! Hidden in the credits of Angry Birds Stella you will find a fun mini-game where the objective is to keep the pigs up in the air. Now, one thing is missing, a score. I say we petition Rovio to add a score counter to this so we can all compete. Who’s with me?

Tags: , ,
Category: Angry Birds Stella News & Updates, News

Comments (55)

Rank: Boss Hog with 14280 points
By Josm (@josm)

Awesome!!!!

Rank: Master Slinger with 6640 points
By E-Star (@e-star)

@BirdLeader I love the video and I think you just convinced me to get the game as soon as it comes out! Rovio ought to thank you for this great sales video. No high tech or gizmo’s to make an ad, just a plain and honest review. I love it!

Rank: Boss Hog with 12515 points
By Rowdypup (@rowdypup)

At 4:30 i was just thinking the same thing, they could just be missing cuz its the demo, I’m sure they will add them before they release the game

Rank: Sling God with 36930 points
By Bird Leader (@birdleader)

Awe, thanks @e-star.

Rank: Boss Hog with 14280 points
By Josm (@josm)

@birdleader great video! i think there are pretty much levels. There is an achievement to unlock something by getting 393 stars :3 = at least 131 levels ?!? also its pretty awesome you can see the score you need for 3 stars. And about the unlimited birds, i think thats just in the first levels to learn how the game works. Can’t wait to play it

Rank: Sling God with 36930 points
By Bird Leader (@birdleader)

@josm Yep, once you passed level four the line-up was more traditional.

Rank: Gold Flinger with 9660 points
By Dr. Omega (@dr-omega)

I got to play at my local Barnes and Noble as well. I did notice there was a lot of loading screens, and you can’t fast forward through the star awarding like some games, so there is some level of patience needed.

It does appear to have a cloud sync option.

With Stella, you aim, fling, then tap and hold. This gives you a phantom guide, like the sling scope, to see where she will bounce. Once you release your finger, that’s when she flies to that path.

I also noticed the Piggies were definitely modeled on the Toons version.

You’ll notice in @birdleader ‘s video that there is a Piggy with a blonde pompadour hairdo that seems to be Gale’s version of Mustache pig. He’s seen twice right by her side at all times.

I also like that there is a definite story element to it.

Rank: Sling God with 36930 points
By Bird Leader (@birdleader)

Great additions @dr-omega! Thanks.

Rank: Out of this World with 2795 points
By Woods (@chiiyuen0109)

@dr-omega Do you mean there’s a Rovio Account Sync option?

Rank: Gold Flinger with 9660 points
By Dr. Omega (@dr-omega)

Yes, it appears so.

Rank: Master Slinger with 6375 points
By AngryBirdsSpaceMaster (@spacemaster)

I hope there’s an option to pay out of having ads. I think they take away from the enjoyability of the game.

Rank: Master Slinger with 7130 points
By Kelani (@kelani)

Great video @birdleader! I’m with you on the mini-game score counter. I see many hours trying to double-bounce a pig in my future.

Rank: Sling God with 67585 points
By wrw01 (@wrw01)

@Birdleader
Thank you for taking the time to record the game play. The game looks great and your camera work is fine. Also, thanks for recording the credits. I also like that stuff. It makes it interesting and creative.

The game play in Stella looks awesome along with the colors, backgrounds and effects.

By Gbird

Game looks awesome! Has anyone heard if this game will be coming to PC/Mac?

Rank: Avian Overlord with 18470 points
By cosmo2503 (@cosmo2503)

@birdleader thank you for video, it is great. I assume it isn’t easy to play game for the first time, play it in public place and record it, you did excellent job.
I’d like to know if it is possible to use other characters then Stella if we have telepods or we have to unlock each one through gameplay (like in AB GO!) and then play levels again if we want to improve scores.
Are there any informations on prices for this game?

Rank: Avian Overlord with 18470 points
By cosmo2503 (@cosmo2503)

Just to add, mini game seems fun, but definitely isn’t my type of games. At my age I have slow reflexes to play it.

Rank: Sling God with 33590 points
By sparty83 (@sparty83)

I wasn’t thinking of getting this game due to the telepod swap issue and the Last Chance “feature” in ABSW2. Since there does not appear to be a Bird side and Pork side in this game, the telepod/swaps will be an even playing field (for those who pay for them). The Last Chance addition is wrecking ABSW2 for me and I hope that feature is not in this game.

@birdleader, I didn’t notice, but is Rovio Accounts integrated into this game?

Rank: Sling God with 36930 points
By Bird Leader (@birdleader)

@sparty83 Unfortunately, I didn’t notice if Rovio Accounts was included. Shoot!

Rank: Sling God with 28590 points
By MVNLA2 (@mvnla2)

@BirdLeader — Great videos! Does the mini-game in the credits get a score? FYI, at least in other games you can slow down / speed up the credits by holding / dragging your finger on the screen.
Does having facebook friends playing the game give you any special / necessary rewards as it does in AB Epic. Are there in-App purchases, and if so, for what?
Definitely plan to try it out.

Rank: Sling God with 36930 points
By Bird Leader (@birdleader)

@mvnla2 It doesn’t have a score counter, but I hope we can convince them to add one eventually. 10 points per pig and three can hit the ground (one idea at least). You can purchase coins but I don’t know exactly what you use them for yet, probably characters and such. I’m not sure about Facebook gifting either. Sorry, I feel like I was not much help. :)

Rank: Sling God with 28590 points
By MVNLA2 (@mvnla2)

@BirdLeader — Well, you got a preview vid, which was great. Can’t expect you to know everything until the actual release.

Rank: Shooter with 885 points
By ABGoRia (@abgoria)

@birdleader Thanks for making this video! The layouts are lovely and I love love Stella. Is it just me for feeling that the themes are kind of romantic! :)

Rank: Master Slinger with 7130 points
By Kelani (@kelani)

@abgoria Not just you. I also thought they were pretty cute, which was kinda funny seeing how Stella now has the same impact energy as a bulldozer.

Rank: Flinger with 0 points
By Ahmad (@)

I CANNOT WAIT!.

Rank: Boss Hog with 14280 points
By Josm (@josm)

@birdleader is there gonna be an part 2 today? ;)

Rank: Master Slinger with 5160 points
By Xano2323 (@xano2323)

What Gale wants with a map, I have no idea…

Rank: Out of this World with 2795 points
By Woods (@chiiyuen0109)

@xano2323 Probably after the Golden Eggs that I heard ealier ago?

Rank: Master Slinger with 5160 points
By Xano2323 (@xano2323)

Yeah, she could want the map to find treasure. Stella DID just come back from adventuring, by the looks of it.

Rank: Sling God with 35350 points
By Joey (@joeyba)

The game looks difficult but I’m looking forward. Thx for the video @birdleader.
we know what to expect

By Keegan

@birdleader You didn’t happen to find out about the price, by any chance?

Rank: Gold Flinger with 9660 points
By Dr. Omega (@dr-omega)

The NOOKs are $179.00 ;)

By Keegan

Ha-ha-ha! :D

Rank: Gold Flinger with 9660 points
By Dr. Omega (@dr-omega)

Day #2 impressions –
I went back with a pocketful of Telepods and a mission..

You can’t use Telepods until about level 5 when you get the picture book. I tried to use one, but the Nooks on display were not connected to the real Internet, so the Telepods would not work. “No Network Connection.”

I played through to level 18. Poppy’s power is a powerful tornado, but again with the tap and hold mechanism like Stella. You fling, you tap and hold and it will bring up a sight. Only with Poppy, it’s at a 90 angle down. When you target where you want, let go and she will tornado downward, like a big drill. It’s pretty devastating.

Between the first chapter (11 levels) and the second, there was a “boss-level” of sorts with a story component. Gale sends Piggy soldiers with bucket helmets. You have to beat the “Wall of Pigs” to advance.

The book found at level 5 – You can access the book at any time. You will eventually pick up pictures for it. I got Stella with her Rockstar hair and Poppy with her sunglasses and drumsticks. The birds all have their own pages in the book with notations that you earn more pictures at certain star collection intervals.

When I clicked on Poppy with sunglasses, it changed her appearance for the next level. I tried with Stella and it did the same. So the book seems to control their appearance in the game. The costumes don’t seem to have any special powers or moves as far as gameplay. Though the next Poppy on the slingshot did play the drums when you win the level. It occurred to me that the two alternate birds were both from the “Birds Rock Together” telepod set.

So it is unsure if the Telepods will give the Birds new abilities or if they will just be new outfits to wear during the game. It is possible it could be a combination of both.

Additionally, there was a Pig hammer found during the game. It fills up slowly as you finish levels, but you can also pay in-game coins to use it. You just click it, confirm and then target a Pig you are stuck on.

Rank: Master Slinger with 5160 points
By Xano2323 (@xano2323)

There’s a thing I’m wondering about that book…Gale has her own page in it. Could that mean she could be playable? I wonder what her power would be…

Rank: Gold Flinger with 9660 points
By Dr. Omega (@dr-omega)

Well, she has three Telepods, too. Each has a slightly different crown, but there is definitely a QR code on all three ‘Pods.

So I would assume at some point that she is playable. Maybe the blonde pig takes over, or maybe King Smoothcheeks makes an appearance?

Rank: Avian Overlord with 18470 points
By cosmo2503 (@cosmo2503)

@dr-omega I have Birds Rock Together, Trehouse playset and Sweet Treat package telepods. As you probably noticed there are 18 different telepods six different Stella looks and three different looks for other birds. As I can see in video there are seven spaces for stella pics and four spaces for each other bird in album. Do you figure out what that might be?
All that dressing up thing for characters seem so girlish while game doesn’t look like it is meant for age 5 to 8. However I will look for all telepods and can’t wait princess Gale to be launched in October, because she has such a sweet face.

Rank: Boss Hog with 14280 points
By Josm (@josm)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIV82Cpch58 telepods commercial for AB Stella
@dr-omega

Rank: Sling God with 21565 points
By dmsral (@dmsral)

Just finished my Barnes & Nobel session, played through level 33. The game built-in game breaks at 22 and 33 that force you to an hour or two to continue, or you can buy your way through with coins. I think the level 22 one was100 coins which I had enough on hand to pay. The level 33 toll was 300 coins but I only had 160 so I didn’t pay to get through the 2 hour game delay. Strategy suggestion: just play each level to completion and then move forward even if you don’t get 3 stars. When you hits a game break, then go back and work on 3-starring the previous levels. This will keep you busy while the clock ticks down.

Showing the needed star level points nice. It wasn’t too hard to 3-star most of the levels. It doesn’t look like there’s very many extra points available to on most of the levels though. The new bird powers force you to think in new ways to get the most out of them. I just plowed through levels and didn’t much attention to coins, stars, swaps, hammers and such, but I’m sure it will be good to know them when game comes out. If it’s like the other games, I’m sure the levels will get more interesting as the game progresses. Sort if reminds me of Rio.

Rank: Avian Overlord with 18470 points
By cosmo2503 (@cosmo2503)

@dmsral thank you for review. I assume that you can collect only certain amount of money on each level and once you collect them you can’t replay level for more coins (unlike replaying levels in AB Epic and AB GO! where you can replay level million times and collect in game currency every time you play).
Sorry for my Neandrethal English, I hope you underdtand what I mean.

Rank: Sling God with 21565 points
By dmsral (@dmsral)

I really didn’t pay much attention to the coins but I think you picked them up along the way on the levels (one-shot, like SWII) or earned them with completing levels.

Rank: Shooter with 970 points
By AEX10 (@aex10)

It looks cool can’t wait ;D
is there a release date yet?

Rank: Sling God with 36930 points
By Bird Leader (@birdleader)

This Thursday, September 4th.

Rank: Master Slinger with 5160 points
By Xano2323 (@xano2323)

From what I can gather about this game and the trailers, the powers seem to go this;

Stella: Can bounce off of objects twice, can bounce more times if the objects are pink.

Poppy: Drills straight downward, very powerful.

Luca: Creates an aimed shockwave, can shatter glass and seemingly push objects.

Willow: Spins around, able to smash through objects and keep going.

Dahlia: Not exactly sure at the moment, but if I were to guess, it would be being able to teleport through objects in her way, like the Emperor Hologram from ABSW2.

Rank: Avian Overlord with 17065 points
By GypsyBird (@gypsybird)

This looks awesome. We don’t have a Barnes and Noble close by so I’ll have to just wait two more days to go ahead and buy AB Stella on my iPhone. Thanks for sharing the video and your assessment, @birdleader!

By GGtt

Angry Birds Stella does not appear in the NZ App Store right now. It is probably given Rovio’s experience with soft-launches. Out at midnight GMT+0 for UK and 3 hours later in the rest of the world? (for iOS version)

Rank: Sling God with 26055 points
By sal9 (@sal9)

It is a world wide release. Rovio never mentioned a soft launch.

Rank: Fling King with 4800 points
By myhthk (@myhthk)

cannot wait …. just getting better and better …..

Rank: Pig Leader with 12210 points
By Bad piggies (@bad-piggies-2)

Out now! iOS and Android

Rank: Gold Flinger with 9830 points
By Chris (@chriss)

Installing …

Rank: Master Slinger with 7130 points
By Kelani (@kelani)

Darn, don’t see it yet.

Rank: Avian Overlord with 18470 points
By cosmo2503 (@cosmo2503)

Huh, it was difficult to find it directly from iPad. I could see it in iTunes on PC (which is my office’s PC and I can’t use my iPad with it)but couldn’t see it in iTunes on iPad. Tried several search options until I finally find it. What is strange I wasn’t able to find it searching for Rovio’s applications and when I looked for “Stella” it wasn’t forst on list but 10th… It is downloaded by now, can’t wait for lunch break to play.
All Stella’s fans have fun playing game :-)

Rank: Gold Flinger with 8250 points
By GrimmJow (@grimmjow)

How can we synchronize between Iphone and Ipad ? Any Rovio account :(

Rank: Pig Leader with 12210 points
By Bad piggies (@bad-piggies-2)

I think it synchronizes trough facebook

Rank: Avian Overlord with 18470 points
By cosmo2503 (@cosmo2503)

As much as i can see there is only option to sign in via FB, so it is probably possible to sync progress between all devices, no matter of platform (like in ABF).

Pingback: First gameplay footage of Angry Birds Stella surfaces | ShouYou手游资讯网|汇集中西最新手机游戏资讯!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *