Submitted by Sammy Snyder on
Angry Birds has joined Wheel of Fortune, Solitaire, Scrabble and Trivial Pursuit on the roster of available games through the WorldWinner app. Angry Birds Champions is an officially licensed game where players can fling their favorite feather friends to earn cash.
WorldWinner told Engadget that the new title is really the "original Angry Birds physics game" where players can compete against each other for a cash prize.
In Champions, a player can pay to enter a tournament and play one of two modes. They're then matched against an equally ranked player who can try to beat their high score. The person with the highest score at the end collects the cash prize.
WorldWinner stresses that these games are not gambling, and says Angry Birds Champions features "skill-based competitions" which separates it from other titles that offer rewards based on chance. Publisher EA has recently been criticized for its use of Loot Crates in Star Wars: Battlefront II, and other popular titles have long been scrutinized for their use of microtransactions. The backlash against EA prompted some gamers and even governments to call chance-based reward systems in video games “glorified gambling."
Version 1.5 of the WorldWinner app with Angry Birds Champions is now available for free on the Apple App Store. Tournaments typically cost less than a $1 to join, and the official App Store description promises to deliver "secure deposits & withdrawals." You must be 18 or older to play, and cash tournaments are not allowed in all states. Check the App Store description for more details.