Now that Angry Birds Stella has been out for about a week, several different reviewers have had the opportunity to get some hands-on time with the line of toys that has shipped out to support the game. Now, we can better see what they look like, how they affect gameplay and how they're switching up the formula seen in other Angry Birds games.
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Different Angry Birds Stella toy sets will come packed with a Telepod for the game, a little stand for some of the main characters' figurines. Much like in a game like Skylanders, these Telepods can be placed on the camera of your smartphone or tablet and transport the character into the game for the player to use.
Though this concept has been used in Angry Birds games before, there's one important difference in how Stella does things. As Forbes writes, Stella has removed the option to purchase characters digitally from within the app. The only way to buy a Stella character is to purchase a toy set and get the physical Telepod.
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This doesn't mean, however, that Stella will star in her game solo until the player gives in and buys a toy set. How the system works is that each level comes with a predetermined collection of birds. By using a Telepod, however, players can add a bird into the lineup that wasn't there before, allowing them to tackle levels differently from what the game had in mind.
Players can still digitally purchase bonuses to use on a level using in-game currency, but it's now on a one-time basis. To have permanent access to a character, players need to go find a physical toy.
Angry Birds Stella is now free-to-play on the Apple App Store, Google Play and the Amazon Appstore.
