Angry Birds 2 Fires Super Monkey Ball's AiAi From the Slingshot

Rovio and SEGA have put Super Monkey Ball into Angry Birds 2: a limited-time crossover live on iOS and Android through September 28 adds a Super Monkey Spell that launches AiAi in his ball from the slingshot, plus Monkey Ball hats for the flock that raise flock power. The hats can only be earned until September 24, according to Rovio's announcement of September 16.

What was announced

Rovio announced the event on September 16, with quotes from Angry Birds 2 game lead David Trammell and Super Monkey Ball Banana Rumble producer Nobuhiro Suzuki. The story hook is a dimensional portal that drops AiAi, MeeMee, Baby and GonGon onto Piggy Island; the mechanics are three things:

• Super Monkey Spell. A new slingshot spell that fires AiAi inside his Monkey Ball. On impact it sets off a chain reaction of exploding bananas that tears through pig structures — the crossover's equivalent of the Golden Duck spell.
• Super Monkey Ball hats. Cosmetics for Red and the rest of the flock modelled on AiAi and friends. As with every hat set in Angry Birds 2, wearing them adds to flock power, which is why they matter beyond looks. They are available only through September 24.
• Event challenges. Limited-time challenges that pay out collaboration rewards through the end of the event on September 28.

The crossover is on both stores; nothing needs to be bought to take part.

What it means for players

The date that matters is September 24, not September 28. Hats are the permanent part of the crossover — flock power carries into every level after the event — and they stop being obtainable four days before the spell and challenges end. The spell itself is a consumable, so stockpile it from the challenges while they run.

For anyone who plays for the leaderboard events, a hat set that raises flock power is worth the four days of grinding; the AiAi spell is fun but does not outlast the event.

What happens next

The Super Monkey Spell and challenges run until September 28; hats close on September 24. Rovio has not said whether the AiAi set returns to the hat shop later, as some past crossover hats have. This is the second Rovio–SEGA exchange after Red's appearance as DLC in Super Monkey Ball Banana Rumble.