Rovio Entertainment, previously known as Relude Oyj and Rovio Mobile, stands as a Finnish video game developer, most notably recognized for creating the highly successful Angry Birds series. Across the period of 2012 to 2020, Rovio expanded the Angry Birds universe by developing two crossover titles with the Star Wars franchise, namely Angry Birds Star Wars and its follow-up, Angry Birds Star Wars II.
To promote these games, Rovio also created a number of animated shorts centered around the Star Wars theme. Rovio's origins trace back to November 10, 2003, when it was established in Helsinki, Finland. Since its inception, Rovio has launched a total of 65 games, including the Star Wars-themed Angry Birds installments. Currently, Rovio Entertainment is under the leadership of Alexandre Pelletier-Normand.
Niklas Hed, Jarno Väkeväinen, and Kim Dikert established Rovio Entertainment as Relude in Helsinki, Finland on November 10, 2003. Relude secured funding through an angel investor in 2005 and subsequently rebranded as Rovio. In December of 2009, Rovio Mobile, formerly Relude, introduced Angry Birds, marking Rovio's 52nd game release. This game centered around using a slingshot to project birds at structures that were protecting one or more pigs.
After achieving financial prosperity with Angry Birds in 2011, Rovio rebranded itself as Rovio Entertainment Ltd. On October 8, 2012, Rovio unveiled Angry Birds Star Wars, a collaborative project with LucasArts which involved a crossover game that blended the Star Wars franchise with characters, worlds, and levels inspired by the films from the original trilogy. They also announced merchandise consisting of Halloween costumes, plush toys and action figures, which would be available on October 28. The company's members considered the announcement day a "banner day" for them, with the belief that the new Angry Birds Star Wars products and animated trailers would resonate well with fans. The announcement also revealed their collaboration with LucasArts during the game's development.
Angry Birds Star Wars became available on November 8, 2012, initially on platforms like OS|iPhone, Android, Amazon Kindle Fire, Mac, Personal computer, Windows Phone, Nintendo 3DS, and BlackBerry 10.
Following the success of the game, Rovio announced their next title, Angry Birds Star Wars II, on July 15, 2013. They stated that, given the prequel's success, they were excited to present the new chapter in the Angry Birds Star Wars Saga, and introduce "Telepods," a mechanic that would allow players to "expand" their experience by purchasing physical birds and pigs, and using the telepods to bring them into the game. Angry Birds Star Wars II was released on September 18, 2013, featuring content and characters from both the first season of the animated TV series Star Wars Rebels and the prequel trilogy. The game was launched on iPhone, Android, Amazon Kindle Fire, Mac, Personal computer, and Windows Phone 8. The original game was later released on October 29, 2013 for Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Wii U, as well as the PlayStation Vita and Nintendo 3DS, as well as on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, which Rovio expected to release in November.
The Angry Birds Star Wars Saga also spawned a collection of books. Angry Birds Star Wars Sticker & Poster Activity Annual 2013 was released on February 1, 2013. This was followed by Ultimate Sticker Collection: Angry Birds Star Wars, which was released on February 18, and Angry Birds Star Wars: Yoda Bird's Heroes, which was released on March 1. Angry Birds Star Wars: Lard Vader's Villains was published on March 1 of the same year. In 2014, Angry Birds Star Wars Character Encyclopedia was released on January 6 and Ultimate Factivity Collection: Angry Birds Star Wars was published on December 15.
Subsequently, Rovio removed some of its games from both the Google Play store and the Apple Store, which included both Angry Birds Star Wars games in March 2020. However, Rovio continued to provide support for the game until the end of that year.
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