Today, when most people are adapting real life games into video games, one boy has chosen to do just the opposite. Twelve-year-old British resident Sam Beards, recently recreated a real-life version of the blockbuster Angry Birds video game, on his family farm.
In the original version of the popular game, players use a slingshot to propel wingless birds up in the air to try destroy egg thieving pigs on the playing field. In order to get to the pigs they have to also destroy the ice, wood and stone structures that the pigs are taking refuge in.
Sam's real-life game follows a similar theme, except for the fact that the 'birds' are actually pumpkins that have been painted red, yellow, or black and plastered on with faces and the slingshot replaced, by a giant cannon. The pumpkins also double up as the target pigs, complete with snout. The destructible structure protecting the 'pigs' is put together using wooden planks and old barrels stacked on hay bales.
The avid Angry Birds fan first got this brilliant idea thanks to a pumpkin cannon his father built for Halloween in 2010. Once he explained what the game was all about, his father Dorian along with his sister Jessica, and brothers Ben and Davy all joined in to paint and decorate the pumpkins to resemble Angry Birds characters. Within just an hour, Sam was ready to fire his first 'Angry Bird-Pumpkin'.
The game is so much fun, that Sam's parents are planning to offer it as a regular feature to visitors at their farm in Barford,Warwickshire. Also, they are thrilled that Sam is no longer constantly hunched over his iPhone playing the video version but instead, out in the farm getting some fresh air and exercise.
As for Sam - He believes his real life adaptation beats the internet version by a mile, especially given that he can get the pumpkins to fly up to 500 meters (1,640 feet) in the sky - Something no video version can do!
Resources: thesun.co.uk,odditycentral.com