Rovio Entertainment has managed to bring its Angry Birds franchise to most mediums, with a couple of virtual reality (VR) videogames as well as augmented reality (AR) titles under its belt. In its latest venture into immersive gaming, the company has teamed up with Burger King and AR specialist Zappar to offer an Angry Birds WebAR experience through promotional packaging.
Utilising Zappar’s WebAR tech, Burger King diners can access the Angry Birds experience by scanning QR codes on various items and meals. These range from King JR kids meals and other box packaging to plush toy tags and even signage at select Burger King locations.
Once the Angry Birds WebAR title starts players will see three eggs appear. Waves of Hatchlings will then try and steal them with players having to defend the eggs by tapping on the Hatchlings. While this will shoo them away, players can also deploy catapults that fire slime to hamper the Hatchlings efforts. After a while player will be rewarded with a unique power-up where the camera swaps to a selfie viewpoint. This allows players to blow away all the Hatchlings, safely returning all the eggs to the nest.
“We’re thrilled to partner with Zappar and Burger King to create this unique AR experience for Angry Birds fans,” said Katri Chacona, Director, Brand Licensing at Rovio Entertainment. “The accessibility of WebAR and wide availability across thousands of Burger King restaurants make this an incredible opportunity to connect with consumers in new ways.”
Zappar’s ZapWorks platform has powered numerous app-based AR campaigns for several years with its WebAR technology one of the most recent features. It means that brands don’t need an app for a particular marketing campaign as it can all be run on the web. Expect to see this type of promotion become far more commonplace as brands connect with customers, especially as 5G-enabled devices allow for faster streaming.
VRFocus will continue its coverage of WebAR, reporting back with further updates.