In the main adventure, you advance along a path as you complete each level. Challenges generally take place in one level. Before you begin a level, you can add one copy of each spell available to you. Levels typically have more than one set of pigs to clear out, which is indicated by the circles at the top of the screen.
Your arsenal for taking out these pigs is a combination of birds and spells, which appear as cards on the bottom left of the screen. If you want to switch out your current bird or spell, tap one of the other two visible cards. Face-down cards in the deck can’t be selected.
Destruct-O-Bar
One of the new features is the Destruct-O-Bar, which appears in the upper right corner. Scoring points gradually fills the bar. When the bar is completely full, you’re rewarded a bonus card to your deck. The card will be a bird or spell that isn’t already in the deck. A second way to earn a bonus card is to knock out a golden pig head. Taking out a golden pig head instantly fills the Destruct-O-Bar. If you’re close to filling the bar, do not aim at golden pig heads! Save those for nearly empty bars or for when you’re down to your last card and there are multiple pigs left to get.
Active Environment
The environment has also gotten into the act in Angry Birds 2. Red flowers swallow, then expectorate, anything that gets too close, regardless of the object’s size. Fans and steam vents blow debris and alter the trajectories of your birds and debris. Slime flows catch loose objects in their current and deposit them in a new area. When the fire ring appears, the first bird through it ignites, then explodes upon impact. It’s possible to use all of these changes to your advantage with a little practice.
Those Tricky Pigs
Another big change is the pigs. A number of the green nuisances have picked up weapons, arming themselves with items ranging from blasters to wands. These pigs fire at your birds as they approach (or rocket at them in the case of the pig with a jetpack) and either knock down your birds, turn them into random objects, or just steal their momentum so you can’t use the bird’s special ability.
The biggest change to pigs is the addition of boss pigs. Boss pigs are huge and don’t take much damage from bird strikes, even direct hits. When you face one of the boss pigs, your goal is usually to clear a path and roll the big pig off the screen.
