Angry Birds Cartoon Series To Land On TV Screens: Top 5 Successful Animated Shows Based On Video Games

The most popular app game of the smartphone world, Rovio's Angry Birds, will now take a big jump from its slingshot and land upon television screens for all its fans soon this year.

In a recent announcement made by the Finnish game developer Rovio Mobile, it has revealed that it is launching a series of 52 shortform animations for its Angry Birds by the Autumn 2012.

According to CNET reports, while speaking at the MIPTV Conference in Cannes, Rovio's head of animation Nick Dorra released a statement saying, We are going to roll out a weekly animation series later this year of shortform content. The series will consist of 52 episodes lasting between two-and-a-half and three minutes each. And we are going to roll it out on all possible devices. We are also looking at building a video app for that, and considering partnerships and so on. We want to be on all screens.

Further the report also mentioned that Dorra confirmed that an Angry Birds movie is the works, but it would not be released for a couple of years. In the report, Dorra was quoted saying, It is in development, but it would not be out in 2013 or 2014.

Last year in June, Rovio inked a deal with animation studio Kombo and acquired the company to extend the Angry Birds beyond its gaming platform. In the same month, it recruited former Marvel Studios chairman David Maisel as an advisor, sparking talk of a full Angry Birds film. Meanwhile, in addition to the upcoming cartoon series and movie, the company has also published an Angry Birds cookbook.

Like Angry birds, in the past too there have been animation series adaptions of successful videogames in an attempt to create entertainment series that the fans enjoy watching. While many of these cartoon shows fall under the shovelware umbrella, a few attempts stand out as truly entertaining and worth a watch.

Here is a look at the blast from the past of the top five animation series that have taken a pick up from their successful video games and have assured that they were incredible enough to keep the reputation of their brands intact.

Pokemon (1997-present)

Pokemon, an adaption of the videogames to cartoon series, has been by far the most successful and longest lived succession ever. The Pokemon franchise developed animated series has witnessed fourteen seasons and it has been the first major monster series to be targeted towards children. Love it or hate it, there is no denying that the Pokemon has for decades been the king of the videogame TV shows. The Pokemon characters (specifically the Pikachu character) are among the most easily recognizable pop culture icons in both the East and the West.

The Super Mario Bros. Super Show (1989-1991)

Inspired from Nintendo's popular videogame, The Super Mario Bros. was part live-action and part animated and was the top favourite among the children of the nineties. The cartoon segment of the show featured Mario, Luigi, Toad and Princess Toadstool defending the Mushroom Kingdom from the reptilian villain King Koopa and his Koopa Troopas. The show was produced by DiC Animation and was distributed by Viacom Enterprises. Cookie Jar Entertainment, the successor company of DiC, is the current distributor.

Sonic the Hedgehog: The Animated Series (1993-1994)

Based upon the escapades of the video game character Sonic the Hedgehog and his sidekick Miles Tails Prower in their attempts to stop the evil Doctor Ivo Robotnik and his array of vicious robots from taking over the planet Mobius, The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog initially lasted only for a year, and were cancelled in December 1994 after 26 episodes; however, due to its extreme popularity, it was continued to as re-runs until May. This series was created by DiC Entertainment and SEGA Corporation which produced a total of 66 episodes for its first season, and was then syndicated by Bohbot Communications, now BKN International.

Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm (1996)

This cartoon series was based on the popular Mortal Kombat video game series, mainly Mortal Kombat 3 and its expansions, with some elements of Mortal Kombat II. Produced by Threshold Entertainment and Film Roman, it aired on the USA Network's Action Extreme Team animation block for one season of 13 episodes from September to December 1996.

The show was focused on a group of warriors assembled by Raiden to defend Earthrealm from invaders who entered through portals from various other dimensions. Despite the popularity and success, the series never ran for more than one season due to budget constraints.

The Legend of Zelda (1989)

An American animated series by Nintendo Entertainment System based on the first and second edition of The Legend of Zelda games, followed the adventures of the hero Link and Princess Zelda as they defended the kingdom of Hyrule from the evil wizard Ganon. The show was produced by DiC Entertainment and distributed by Viacom Enterprises. It comprised thirteen episodes which consisted of characters including Ganon (or his minions) either attempting to capture the Triforce of Wisdom from Zelda, kidnap Zelda herself, or use some other villainous scheme to conquer Hyrule.