Once upon a time there was a small Finnish game development company called Rovio. It wasn’t particularly famous, nowhere near the likes of EA Games, but then Angry Birds happened. The original title took the iOS App Store by storm before eventually landing on Android. Since those early days the brand has become one of the most recognizable brands in the world. There’s clothing, toys and even short animated shows as well as numerous movie tie-in games like Angry Birds Rio and Star Wars. What was once the popular darling of the App Store is now a digital behemoth.

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After months of teasing, Angry Birds Transformers is now available in select parts of the world. Gamers in New Zealand and Finland can now sample Rovio’s mashup of fowl and robots, with Canada and Australia set to follow soon afterwards. In addition to a soft launch for its new title, Rovio released a new gameplay trailer, revealing that this won’t be your typical Angry Birds title.

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Sometimes it is fun to take a break from reviewing the newest high-end Android phones out there to see what the other end of the spectrum has to offer. Virgin announced its new low-end phone, the PCD Chaser, which is just $79.99 without signing up for a plan.

Virgin offers unlimited data 3G plans starting at $35 a month. So, you are looking at just under $500 for a year of this phone with unlimited data. That is an incredible deal for an Android 2.3 device that does not totally suck. The Chaser comes with many of the same specs as the previous Virgin-base model, the Optimus V, including a 3-megapixel camera, 800MHz processor, 3.2-inch display, and hardware buttons. The Chaser adds the new, lower $80 price tag and Android 2.3, which the low-cost folks will welcome. However, those who want to see Ice Cream Sandwich or Jelly Bean on their devices will lament (Virgin never updated the Optimus V, so do not expect this one to get an upgrade either).

It is still a remarkable little device that once retailed for $149 (but lately it is often on-sale for much less). The Optimus included a 2GB Micro-USB card, but the Chaser does not, which frankly is pretty petty. Although the phone has a low-end camera, you cannot take videos or still images until you buy a Micro-SD card. Lame. I was able to take some borderline decent pictures and movies once I popped in an SD Card. Therefore, this might actually be a step down from the Optimus V.

Otherwise, this fine Android device will be a good step up for feature phone users. Some notes:

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Samsung Electronics joined forces with Angry Birds maker Rovio in a partnership that will see the two companies market Samsung’s mobile devices and Rovio’s upcoming game Angry Birds Space. A new trailer released featuring Angry Birds Space on Samsung’s Galaxy Note ahead of the game’s official launch announcement on March 8. Angry Birds Space is due to hit iOS, Android, PC, and Mac on March 22.

It is interesting that Rovio also partnered with NASA for rights to use its famous Moon landing footage in an Angry Birds Space teaser (included after the break). The deal is a nice fit for the South Korean consumer electronics conglomerate that rose to become the leading Android vendor. Samsung is also looking to expand its presence in the gaming space, if a patent filing discovered by Patent Bolt is anything to go by.

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Google announced on the Chrome Blog that they are adding more console quality games to the Chrome Web Store that take advantage of the Native Client. The Native Client, according to Google, will allow developers to “build web applications that seamlessly execute native compiled code inside the browser”. In other words, gaming experiences on par with native applications and quickly approaching the quality of console titles.

While Square Enix planned to drop the first Chrome Web Store title to take advantage of Native Client with a port of 2009’s Mini Ninjas, but it looks like award winning RPG Bastion beat them to it. However, that is not the only console quality game available in the Chrome Web Store as of today. You can also check out Sleepy Jack, Cordy, Pirates of New Horizons, Star Legends, Running Fred, and Pocket Legends.

Other games also received updates for the approaching holidays, including a new HTML5 version of Bejeweled, Angry Birds with updated Christmas themes, and Cargo Bridge received a Christmas level edition.

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It ain’t a typo – the episode is in fact entitled Summer Pignic, not Picnic. It’s about smashing pigs after all. So kick back, relax and enjoy the trailer. The video doesn’t reveal much apart from hinting “One bird, one mission: Save the eggs from the green pigs” (but you already knew that if you were a fan of the Angry Birds series).

From release notes on YouTube:

Get Ready for Angry Birds Seasons – Summer Pignic! The pesky pigs never break for holidays, and it’s up to you to save the Angry Birds’ eggs!

Bonus: Did you notice a redesigned Home button in the trailer? Did Rovio just inadvertently leak an iPhone 5 redesign? Just kidding…

Cross-posted on 9to5Mac.com

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(Cross-posted on 9to5Mac.com)

A new episodic update to movie tie-in Angry Birds Rio has just went live, bringing more marmoset mauling action happening on the Copacabana beach, new secrets and more juicy Golden Fruit. Android fans can get it free from Amazon Appstore for Android and a bit later via Android Market and GetJar. They’ve also launched a new pre-order web shop for upcoming Angry Birds merchandise at comingsoon.angrybirds.com and released Angry Birds Rio Samba, a 99-cent iTunes single based on the game’s music theme. More info and the Copacabana beach episode trailer right below the fold.

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The entire hour-long presentation is now available on YouTube for your viewing pleasure.

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(Cross-posted on 9to5Mac.com)

Here at San Francisco’s Moscone West, the Google I/O 2011 keynote has just wrapped up. Being their most important annual pilgrimage for developers, the show is a launchpad for important new products and announcements. For some people, the biggest news is that popular Angry Birds franchise is now available for the most popular platform of all – the web.

Joining Google’s senior vice president of Chrome Sundar Pichai on stage was Peter Vesterbacka, the CEO of Espoo, Finland-based multi-million dollar Angry Birds developer Rovio Mobile. Wearing a red Angry Birds sweatshirt, Vesterbacka announced that the Angry Birds web app is now available on the Chrome Web Store.

The web version taps several new Chrome capabilities to ensure smooth experience one would expect from a native version. “It’s one of the best we’ve built to date,” Vesterbacka quipped as he cut through several levels of Angry Birds with ease. More information and three screenies right after the break.

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