Red's First Flight

By Ben Zion

On December 11, 2009, the Angry Birds franchise began. It spawned a media franchise which includes more games, comics, shows and two movies. In 2019, Rovio removed all of the old Angry Birds games for testing purposes. So on social media from 2019-2021, fans demanded Rovio to bring back the old games with #BringBack2012. Then in June 2021, Rovio announced they were bringing the old games back. On March 31, 2022, Rovio released a remake of the original Angry Birds titled "Rovio Classics: Angry Birds". But, something terrible happened back in February. Rovio got rid of the remake on the Android Google Play Store and it's still on the Apple App Store titled "Red's First Flight". I've been a huge Angry Birds fan from 2011-2019. Then I became a fan of it in October or November of 2019. And I became a fan of it again starting in June 2022. I highly recommend this if you have an iPhone or iPad because there are no ads, no requiring stars for the next levels and episodes and you can swipe the screen when you're on a level just like the good old days. Plus, The Mighty Eagle is free if you're stuck on a hard level. But it's still possible for Rovio to bring back the old games. If they bring them back, I want them to have the ways that I like them (which are no ads, bugs and glitches). Heck, I also want the BrainPOP company to bring back the old original non-updated regular BrainPOP movies (even though I like the new ones but I old ones better).

My 25th Birthday at Round 1

By Laryssa Ertel

This year for my 25th birthday, I visited Round 1. It's a multi-entertainment facility located inside the Broadway Mall, which is in Hicksville. It offers arcade games, bowling, karaoke, ping pong, darts, and billiards. I went there just to play arcade games. Some of the arcade games I played there on my birthday include Space Invaders Frenzy, Fruit Ninja, Mario Kart Arcade GP DX, Speed of Light, High Five, Pop the Lock, Lane Master, Pac-Man Chomp Mania, Galaga Assault, and even a SpongeBob themed tokens-and-cards pusher called SpongeBob Pineapple Arcade. It was my first time playing the latter (I have played tokens-and-cards pushers games before, but it was my first time playing SpongeBob Pineapple Arcade). At first, I had no clue how the game worked, but then I ultimately got the gist of it. It was honestly addicting. I played it about 7 times. I am not sure how many points in total I scored on my card that day, but I did not get any prizes, because I wanted to save my points for an even bigger prize. My favorite games at Round 1 are Mario Kart Arcade GP DX, Fruit Ninja, and Space Invaders Frenzy. The best part about my birthday trip to Round 1 was that I won 1st place on Mario Kart TWICE! Yes, I played Mario Kart twice that day, and BOTH times I played it, I won 1st place! Talk about a birthday miracle! If you are into video games (and arcades, in general), I highly recommend Round 1! It's such an amazing, fun-filled place!