For longtime fans of the Angry Birds franchise, it’s a sad day, as Rovio has announced that Rovio Classics: Angry Birds will be delisted on the 23rd of February.
The remake of the original Angry Birds title was originally released in March 2022, but for those looking to either revisit their childhood or one of their first favourite mobile games, time is running out. An announcement from Rovio confirmed that the game would be delisted in the coming days, although devices that have it installed will still be able to access the game.
The announcement reads “We have reviewed the business case of Rovio Classics: Angry Birds, and due to the game’s impact on our wider games portfolio, we have decided that Rovio Classics: Angry Birds will be unlisted from the Google Play Store on Thursday, February 23. Additionally, the game will be renamed to Red’s First Flight in the App Store pending further review.”
Another one bites the dust
From a game preservation standpoint, the delisting of Rovio Classics: Angry Birds is an unfortunate reality of modern mobile gaming. Having only been released in March last year, many might have expected the remake of Rovio’s original title to remain in place for a few years at least. However, the announcement indicates that for whatever reason maintaining the game was not financially viable.
The decision to rename the game “pending further review” is however interesting, as it indicates the potential that the game may be revived in future, or points to other reasons for the rebranding. The removal of the title means that the primary Angry Birds title will now be the still available (and successful) Angry Birds 2, as Rovio continues forwards with new releases to expand the franchise.
We covered Angry Birds in our ongoing Mobile Masterworks series that explores the origins, development and success of major titles in the mobile gaming landscape, in this case it was Rovio’s flagship franchise and the first entry that was remade for Rovio Classics.
