Angry Birds in Space, with a little help from NASA, just became the first videogame ever to make its official debut in space.
The International Space Station orbits Earth at a distance of approximately 240 nautical miles. On board at this moment are six astronauts from the U.S., Russia and Europe, as well as some eggs, some pigs and some birds. Angry Birds.
The official Angry Birds in Space announcement trailer has finally arrived, beamed, appropriately enough, from space. NASA veteran Don Pettit laid it all out, explaining how the variable gravity environments in Angry Birds in Space will affect the trajectories of the birds as they attempt to take out the egg-stealing pigs. He even put together a pretty awesome demonstration, firing a stuffed Angry Bird across the multi-billion-dollar orbital facility. Freedom! Horrible, horrible freedom!
The Angry Birds part of the trailer doesn’t do much for me – I’m a fan, but after the original game plus Seasons and Rio, I’m not likely to get too worked up about more – but Pettit’s presentation is fantastic. He’s enthusiastic and charismatic, with just enough nerdy awkwardness to make his “I’m a NASA astronaut” thing work. I could watch this guy all day.
As well as promoting the game, the trailer is also being used by NASA to explain the basic concepts of microgravity. “NASA participated with Rovio on Angry Birds in Space under a Space Act Agreement to share the excitement of space with the Angry Birds community, educate users on NASA’s programs, and collaboratively create interactive educational experiences for the public,” the site says. And that’s pretty cool.
Angry Birds in Space lifts off on March 22 for iOS and Android devices, the PC and Mac.
