Why is Angry Birds so Much Fun?

I have never been one to play video games. I am more of a person who likes to play Scrabble, Pictionary or Trivial Pursuit with friends around a table.  But, I decided to purchase an iPad (with ebooks, videos and Internet capability) so I could have something to distract me during this transition in my life.

I stumbled upon a gazillion applications. One application that continually came up as a top seller was Angry Birds. So I decided to invest a couple of bucks and see what it was about.

Let me warn you that this game is highly addictive! The objective of the game is to sling various sizes of birds at different angles to smash little green piggies, some of whom are wearing helmets and are hard to take down. The snort and snarl can lighten the most hectic day.

The piggies live in castles that are constructed with wood, brick and ice. The goal is to find a weak spot to take the castle down. To master this game you have to understand physics.  Even one angry bird flying through the air can take down a fortress if it hits the right spot.

For some strange reason, I feel a tremendous amount of satisfaction when I am able to hit where I was aiming. 

Last weekend, my friends son came over and he easily was able to advance through many of the levels with ease. At 8 years old I was watching a professional and I was in awe. How does he do it?     

The animation and sounds of Angry Birds will make you smile and at the end of the day it is mindless fun. But sometimes we need that - right?