For a franchise based mostly on mobile devices, Plants vs Zombies has been running?? strong for the better part of the last two deca??des.

Since appearing first in 2009, the PvZ series has been a staple for lovers of tower defense games. With the emergence of more powerful hardware, EA has experimented more with the main franchise. While Plants vs Zombies 3 is yet to go live ??globally, let's look at how the rest of the fully-released titles hold amongst each other.

Disclaimer: This only includes full releases and games that are available w?orldwide.

7. Plants vs Zombies: Adventures

This is possibly the only game in the series I don't miss playing. First, you had to log into social media, as the game was a Facebook exclusive. Like the plethora of browser-based games that were popular on Facebook, Adventures did alright.

The main objective was to raise and grow your plants and then use them to defend the vehicles. There was even a bit of PvP in the Brainball mode. However, Plants vs Zombies Adventures never had the depth and complexity of?? the main franchise and was shut down in 2014.

6. Plans vs Zombies: Garden Warfare

Garden Warfare was the franchise's first big ticket spin-off, and the decision to branch out from the old formula bore dividends. The game switched away from being a typical tower defense title, and fans ins??tead had a third-person shooter on their hands. Players could choose different classes from both Plants and Zombies, and each had its own set of strengths and weaknesses.

With Garden Warfare, PopCap aimed to appeal to a larger audience, especially to those who love shooters. The shift away from tower defense to squad-based shooting action across PvP and co-op modes showcased the developers' intentions. The core gameplay was simple—a team-based shooter where you control classes from ?either faction and level them up. After completing the levels, you could unlock different customization items to personalize the characters.

While there are few complaints you could have about Garden Warfare's gameplay, both Battle for Neighborville and Garden Warfare 2 have more content to offer.

5. Plants vs Zombies: Battle for Neighborville

While Battle for Neighborville has plenty of similarities with Garden Warfare, I loved the subtle differences offered by the gameplay. Yes, it's another third-person shooter with the same core formula as Garden Warfare.

However, this entry has more classes than both Garden Warfare 1 and 2 and offers more game modes as well.
In fact, the classes were classified into four sub-groups, offering more specialization during matchmaking. While there's a strong emphasis on PvE modes, Battle for Neighborville has certain PvE zones as well (where you can find diff??erent rewards). There's also local split-screen support if you and your friend want to play on the same system.

Battle for Neighborville is visually more appealing than Garden Warfare 2. However, it has to cover some more miles if it wants to outdo Garden Warfare 2's legacy.

4. Plants vs Zombies: Heroes

The positions of Heroes and Garden Warfare 2 could be altered because the former is one of the most unique PvZ games of all time. With Heroes, EA attempted to develop a CCG, and the game has plenty of fans despite being available exclusively on mobiles. You get to pick cards from both factions and new special items are released routine??ly to keep the decks fresh. The presence of single-player and multiplayer allows you? to play the game at your own pace.

Heroes isn't a revolutionary CCG - it does what you expect a digital card collector to do. But it's not just a mere Hearthstone meets PvZ, as the different game modes and general content add the??ir personalities. It's a very dif?ferent product than anything else that has been released as part of the franchise.

3. Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare 2

Garden Warfare 2 is a notable upgrade over its predecessor, and introducing new classes is a world of good for those who loved Garden Warfare. Once again, you can pick characters from both factions, but with more choices. The same can be said about the modes, and you can pla?y co-op or PvP. The broader categories can be further subdivided into many modes, including new ones like Gr?aveyard Ops, Herbal Assault, and more.

The sequel feels more up-to-date in terms of presentation, and the new classes and maps help keep interest high. While the core gameplay is still focused on squad-based action, the new modes make everything much more engaging. It's a definite upgrade over Garden Warfare visually and gam??eplay-wise, and there are still hours of fun to have from it in 2024.

2. Plants vs Zombies

The OG of the entire franchise, Plants vs Zombies is where it all started in 2009. PvZ's introduction as a great tower defense title on mo?bile devices was remarkable back then. Its premise is simple: plant some plants that can gather sun and shoot bullets, to graduall??y hold out against the oncoming zombie horde. The game's success led to launches on other platforms like PC, Xbox, and PlayStation. While the core gameplay was simple, a wide variety of plants and deep reliance on real-time strategizing captivated many.

While ??some would rate it on top, I just feel that the sequel has better content (as long as you can look past microtransactions).

1. Plants vs Zombies 2

The PvZ franchise knows how to make sequels, and Plants vs Zombies 2 is the biggest testament to that. The second game received new additions to both factions, and it's availa??ble on multiple platforms (I have always preferred playing on my phone). While the core gameplay remained the same, adding Plant Food to charge up the pl??ants felt innovative.

While both mainline titles are good, the second game will feel better regarding gameplay and presentation ?to someone playing in 2024. But do note that the second title, unlike the one r?eleased in 2009, does offer microtransactions.

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Developer PopCap and publisher EA have been working on the latest entry in the Plants Vs. Zombies series, Plants vs. Zombies 3: Welcome to Zomburbia, for the past four years or so. It's ?been through a few soft launches and periods of unavailability??, but it's still very much in development.

However, alongside this work on the third tower defense title in the series, a group of fans have been working on a game called Plants vs. Zombies 3: What Could Have Been. It was announced as being in development on May 1, 2024, but it didn't even last the rest of the month before EA and PopCap stepped in to put a stop to it. The thing is, neither company seems to have bee??n that harsh with the f??ans, yet despite this game clearly infringing the franchise's copyright, the fan developers are crushed by their game's cancelation.

Why was Plants vs. Zombies 3: What Could Have Been shut down?

The reason that Plants vs. Zombies 3: What Could Have Been was shut down is because it heavily infringes the PopCap and EA's copyright for not only Plants vs. Zombies 3: Welcome to Zomburbia, but also the series as a whole.

The game may be a fan project, but it's set in the universe PopCap created, uses the company's characters, the design for the games that sparked the series, and everything else that makes up the essence of the series. On May 14, 2024, the creators of Plants vs. Zombies 3: What Could Have Been received communication from PopCap and EA asking ????them to stop development.

The direct communication asked the project's founder to stop development because it's an alternative version of PopCap and EA's game. The message, sent via Reddit, explained how PopCap is generally okay with fan projects but has to draw the line somewhere. The line, it turns out, is drawn at creating alternative versions of Plants vs. Zombies games.

The fans understood where PopCap was coming from but felt this reaction was pretty rash. At the time the message was received, only the artwork for Plants vs. Zombies 3: What Could Have Been had been released publicly. However, as user chhopsky points out on Twitter, it looks a lot?? like someone cut out the tagline for PopCap's g?ame and stuck their own in its place.

In their response to PopCap, the founder of the fan project made it clear th??ey didn't want this game to be an "alternative" to PopCap's. In fact, they outlined how the image they'd shared was temporary, and the game they w?anted to make would use original artwork, sprites, and music and have its own storyline. Furthermore, the game wouldn't be monetized in any way or listed in the same market space as PopCap's original title.

PopCap's response to this was, I think, pretty reasonable. It explained how the fan project couldn't use any of the original characters it had created, such as PeaShooter, Sunflower, Wall-nut, Conehead Zombie, and every other face you see in the official series. There would be trouble if the fan project contai?ned redrawn versions of these characters.

However, PopCap is very clear that if Plants vs. Zombies 3: What Could Have Been contains all-??new characters created specifically for its setting? and story, that wouldn't be an issue. Its response is actually pretty encouraging on that front.

The founder's takeaway was that PopCap was singling the game out and that making original characters to fill in for those the developer had made in the first place wasn't worth it. Considering the amount of work it would take to?? make meaningfully different stand-ins, I have to agree. But it's hard to say how others would have felt about this, given that the game was meant to be the product of passionate fans who just wanted to make a game they were desperate for in the franchise.

Understandably, the founder hasn't gone into too much detail about what the plan for Plants vs. Zombies 3: What Could Have Been is moving forward. The group certainly can't make the game now, but there is a choice to be made between continuing it in secret and distributing it quietly or, given PopCaps' requirements, just making a full alternative to Plants vs. Zombies.

I would absolutely love to see a passionate group of fans of this series, which was one of the first to really make a splash on smartphones back in the day, make something they feel is better and serves the needs of the players. After all, as the founder points out in their thread, there's some contradiction between what PopCap said to them about protecting the work ?of its artists and EA's intention of using generative? AI to replace them.

What was Plants vs. Zombies 3: What Could Have Been?

Plants vs. Zombies 3: What Could Have Been was a fan project created to address two major problems with Plants vs. Zombies 3 that EA and PopCap made. First, the official game seemed to be in a bit of a development hell for se??veral years. It initially soft-launched to a set number of users before being taken down.

Then, it was restored in certain regions and taken down again. It only officially launched in 2024, but it was still a soft launch. The fan project basically aimed to be a full game for fans to enjoy, not one th??at would appear and disappear for even longer.

The second issue that Plants vs. Zombies 3: What Could Have Been was built to fix was fans' unaddressed expectations of gameplay. The project's website doesn't specify exa?ctly what these are, but I imagine these gripes must have bee??n present in both previous titles to warrant a group of fans getting together to fix them in a new game.

It certainly looks like the team had some huge plans for Plants vs. Zombies 3: What Could Have Been and always made it clear that it couldn't monetize it, so it ??would be free for anyone who wanted it. That doesn't change the fact that ?the game uses assets created by PopCap and EA.

If the project's creators had stayed quiet about their game and distributed it to friends and fans, it might have seen the light of day. As it stands, this fan game made it to 23 days in active development and even had applications for more people to join in that time. Thankfully, no legal action appears to have been taken, so no one is losing mone?y or suffering that much over it.

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It's time to redeem August's PlayStation Plus games

[Update: It's time to claim August's PlayStation Plus titles: Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville, Hunter's Arena: Legends, and Tennis World Tour 2.]

Thanks to Wario 64, (and not the typical announcement on PlayStation Blog), we now know the identity of the PlayStation Plus offerings headed our way in August. The new month will bring PS Plus subscribers Electronic Arts' Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville (PS4), Bigben Interactive's Tennis World Tour 2 (PS4), and Mantisco's Hunter's Arena: Legends.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=Je8Rk6YjVtA

Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville launched for PS4, PC, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch in 2019, replacing the series' typical strategic warfare with third-person run 'n' gun action. A host of anthropomorphic monsters and garden greenery lay waste to each other in a variety of team battles and deathmatches. Player vs. Enemy modes are also featured for chaotic co-op action, and Battle for Neighborville adds nine new classes, for a tota??l of over 20 types o?f fighting flora.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGSqu4pDb68

Breakpoint Studio's Tennis World Tour 2 launched on PS4, PC, Xbox One, and Switch in the fall of 2020. The recipient of mixed reviews from critics and fans, Tennis World Tour 2's reputation fared a little better than its highly controversial predecessor, notoriously released in a barely finished state back in 2018. Tennis World Tour 2 features a selection of recognizable world??-class players and courts.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5rtf3Q2HgQ

Next month's PS5 offering, Hunter's Arena: Legends, is a fantasy battle royale title set within a fantastical take of ancient Asia. Up to 30 players, (or "Hunters"), battle it out to be the last person standing. There are 17 different classes to choose from, with lots of customization options available. A slew of PvE modes is also available, for when you and your pals fancy taking time out to team up against an army of A.I. demons, rather than human opponents. Having been available on Steam in Early Access since July 2020, this PS5 port marks Hunter's Arena: Legends debut on the PlayStation platform.

The three new titles will be made available to PlayStation Plus subscribers on August 3. In the meantime, July's offerings of WWE Battlegrounds, A Plague Tale: Innocence, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, and Virtua Fighter 5: Ultimate Showdown remain available to register until August 2.

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All unlocks are earnable through 'offline or online play'

The rumors were true and the Plants vs. Zombies universe is coming to Nintendo Switch. Well...

Battle for Neighborville, the third game in the Garden Warfare shooter sub-series, will officially be out for Switch on March 19 with an "everything's included" Complete Edition. It's the system's first Frostbite engine title (co-developed by PopCap Vancouve??r?? and QLOC), which is wild to reflect on in 2021.

The Switch version of the game will support motion controls if you're into that ?sorta thi??ng.

The prior versions of Battle for Neighborville leaned into scheduled battle-pass-like Prize Maps to dole out rewards. Here on Switch, you can "unlock all characters and content from the PlayStation, Xbox, and PC Standard Editions,?? as well as post-launch content, directly through offline or online play."

In other words, you can earn every cosmetic item and class "without ??any premium store or currency."

This game has had an interesting rollout (including an early access phase), and while it's not my favorite Garden Warfare entry, it will surely find an eager young audience on the Switch. Even if you have no intention of facing off against other players, there's a lot to like as a PvE fan. I mostly played Battle for Neighborville as someone who enjoys t?racking down trinkets and secrets in hub worlds. Let me loose!

I would've liked to see a Switch port a while back, but March 2021 is better than neve???r.

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GameFly listing points to March 19 release on Switch

Late ports aren't the most riveting thing??s to play on Nintendo Switch, but if they're gonna happen – and let's be hones??t, they aren't slowing down – the Switch is my go-to platform for double-dips.

Several EA-published ports have trickled out lately, and there are a few more in store for the Switch. The next one might be Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville, the third game in PopCap's Garden Warfare spin-off series. A listing for a Nintendo Switch edition recently showed up on GameFly.

The listing was pulle?d down, but while it was visible, it offered a couple of noteworthy details. The releas?e date is supposedly March 19, 2021, and the Switch version is a "Complete Edition."

There's no such equivalent on PC, PS4, or Xbox One, so that's interesting. Battle for Neighborville leaned pretty far into cosmetic items; there are even battle-pass-like Prize Maps to power through. Having a lot of those unlocks accessible from the outset could be a decent benefit for this ??Switch port.

The game didn't reach the same highs as Garden Warfare 1 or 2 (to the point where some fans would prefer a Switch port of either one of them instead), but it's still fairly unique in the shooter space. I'll always appreciate family-friendly multiplayer games with cool worlds like Garden Warfare and Splatoon.

I ??also can't help but wonder when EA Play will fit into the picture. I feel like these Switch ports make far more sense from a cost/time perspective when viewed through the lens of a subscription service.

[Via ResetEra]

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The soft launch has begun on iOS and Android

PopCap has soft-launched Plants vs. Zombies 3, a new mobile-based free-to-play game, in select?? territories. Right now, it's playable on Android Galaxy S6 devices and iPhone 6S or higher in the Philippines. More coun?tries will be supported "as time goes on," according to the developer.

The game is still about defending against kooky zombies with your all-powerful plant squad, but it's "not meant to replace the original PvZ or PvZ 2." Put another way, it's mixing things up. "For this game, we wanted to incorporate social play, faster combat, and deeper synergies?? for the plant team."

One big change is that you no longer ?need to plant sunflowers to produce energy – there are "multiple" ways to "improve your sun production" and the sunflower's "role ??has been expanded in new ways."

The main loop of Plants vs. Zombies 3 is assembling a diverse team, leveling everyone up, and knowing which plants are best suited ??to which missions and boss battles. Related: it has microtransactions.

The core progression involves pushing back the undead troops, rebuilding, and clearing floors on the Devour Tower. PopCap is also leaning into multiplayer and hoping that friends will guilt-trip each other into joining up. "Compete against others ??in Arena Mode and climb the League Tiers in Tournaments to earn gems and seeds. You can also create or join a Club to chat,? donate seeds, and acquire Club plants."

There's no definitive word about Plants vs. Zombie 3's worldwide release, but the developers "want to take as much time as wee?? need during soft launch to grow the game into something really awesome."

I won't lie: anything to do with Plants vs. Zombies just makes me want to boot up the original. I never finished Plants vs. Zombies 2 – it wasn't something I could commit to long-term – but PvZ 1 is eternal.

Grab Your Shovels – Plants?? vs. Zombies 3 Soft Launches Today [EA]

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Unlockable on the March 2020 Prize Map or with 500K coins

The zombies are finally getting a magical counterpart to Rose. In an update preview video for Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville, PopCap Vancouver confirmed the long-speculated Wizard Zombie character. He's no??t joining the game until March 2020, but you'll want to start saving your coins.

To unlock the Wizard Zombie, Battle for Neighborville players will either need to finish the Prize Map (the PvZ equivalent of a free battle pass) in March, or th?ey'll need to fork over 500,000 coins once t?he Luck o' the Zombie festival concludes at the end of the month. I can't say I'm surprised by that rollout.

Wizard Zombie Abilities

• Orbracadorbra – Hold [Fire] to charge your staff and release to cast a damaging aura.
• Zee-lixir – Throw a potion that temporarily makes allies immortal and stops enemy jumping and sprinting.
• Spell Disaster – Slam the ground with your staff to summon magical missiles that chase and damage nearby enemies.
• Co-Star – Hover above an ally as a star in an orb to provide extra firepower and grant them armor.

Up until now, the Prize Map model has mostly dealt with alternate outfits and other less-flashy cosmetic rewards, so this is an enticing incentive to kee??p plugging away at the game all month long.

As the video shows, PopCap has several other things lined up for Battle for Neighborville be??fore the roster update. Throughout ??February, players can strive to unlock the Foodal Lord Draconius legendary costume for Kernel Corn, and there's also a new Turf Takeover map, Preserve Pastures, to check out.

The Valenbrainz Prize Map has a gameplay-impacting reward up for grabs, too. Players can earn the Shogun-Guard upgrade for Kernel Corn, which gives him a personal shield. The ability item w??ill be "available for purchase in Rux's Emporium" starting March 2, 2020, according to the developers.

I've dropped off this game, but I have to imagine it's still decently popular among?? families.

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Putting one side in the ground

EA has made its allegiances known. In the everlasting war between plants and zombies, the arboreal and the once-alive, EA has sided with the leafy oxygen-prov?iders. Probably a good choice!

In contribution to the TeamTrees charity effort, EA has donated $500,000 to help plant 500,000 trees. And it's in the name of Plants vs. Zombies, of course.? Neutrality be damned, it only makes sense that EA would support plants; imagine EA?? making a big financial investment in bringing more zombies into the world.

TeamTrees is the brainchild of YouTuber MrBeast (video embedded above), and it's an initiative to help plant 20 million? new trees around the world. It started when MrBeast's co?mmunity challenged him to plant 20 million trees for hitting 20 million subscribers. Every dollar donated translates to a tree. TeamTrees is run through the Arbor Day Foundation.

EA is one of the largest donors thus far. The top contributor is Shopify CEO Tobi Lutke, who chipped in for $1,000,001. That's good for a single tree more than Elon Musk. Also of note: Twitter founder Jack Dorsey donated 350,000 trees, MrBeast support?ed his own cause with 200,002 trees, and PewDiePie helped plant 69,420 trees (duh).

TeamTrees is well on its way to meeting its goal. With nearly a month left, it has surpassed 17 million trees. Give them a visit if you want to donate s??ome pl??ants. Or don't if you're more of a zombies person.

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The game's holiday update launched today

It's been December for not even two whole days and I've already watched my first traditional Christmas movie (Jingle All the Way – don't ask). There's no escaping it. Soon, holiday cheer will co??me for us all.

Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville is getting into the spirit with a snowy present-filled makeover of Giddy Park, a social hub where plant and zombie players can mingle and duke it out. Alongside update 1.03, PopCap went ahead and booked Sir Patrick Stewart to recite a?? festive poem.

You don't need to love Plants vs. Zombies to get a kick out of this. The man has a?? way with words!

In terms of new content, Battle for Neighborville has a multiplayer map – Oozevoir – that's full of pink goop. It's playable in Team Vanquish, Mix Modes, and Ops. Otherwise, the 1.03 update is cosmetic-centric. Rux's Emporium started selling outfits in exchange for a new type of currency, Rainbow Stars, that's purchasable with real money ($4.99 for 500 Stars) and earnable in-g??ame. I'm not surprised.

At the high end, there's a bundle that costs $74.99 for 8,700 Rainbow Stars. This might be a good time for any parents in the room? to dou??ble and then triple-check that their console has parental controls.

The developers also made some PvE balance changes – most notably, activities like Bounty Hunts now come with a cooldown – and players aren't thrilled. Keeping up with ongoing challenges can be a grind. If you're still into Battle for Neighborville, the Feastivus Prize Map has begun and?? there are two big carrots on the stick: a Super Rare Abo?minable Chomper and a Legendary Inspiration Elf Engineer.

I'm here for the legendary Sir Patrick Stewart, the holiday-them??ed map redesign, ??and that's it.

Feastivu?s and Patch Notes are Coming to Ne??ighborville [EA]

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PvP needs more thyme to blossom

It feels like a small miracle that the team-based shooter series Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare is now on its third game in five years. The latest, Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville, isn'??t a huge step forward as much as it is a continuation, but PopCap Vancouver has done a lot of streamlining.

An?d you know what? I'm perfectly fine with that! All three games have their high points.

Some fans are always going to prefer the expertly-crafted map designs and purity of the original game, and I can sympathize. Others will forever cling to Garden Warfare 2's countless character class variants, which offered a tre??mendous sense of flexibility but contributed to long-term balancing headaches.

I can also picture Battle for Neighborville winning over another subset of players: folks w??????????????????????????ho love hanging out in PvE zones and scouring for collectibles and secrets without the pressure or stress of PvP.

Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville (PC, PS4 [reviewed], Xbox One)
Developer: PopCap Vancouver
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Released: October 18, 2019
MSRP: $39.99

The developers tried something different with Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville's release model, and overall, I think it worked out well. The game was made available for purchase six weeks before launch in a c?heaper, not-yet-complete Founding Neighbor edition??. That's where I began.

Each week, PopCap doled out more game content, including multiplayer modes – like the new four-on-four Battle Arena – and multiple open-ended PvE story zones, like the Weirding Woods. This gradual rollout prevented me from burning through any single area too quickly, which I appreciated. It's also hopefully a sign of what's to come if post-launch content updates or expa??nsions are on the table.

As it stands today, you'll be able to hop into Battle for Neighborville without those early-access restrictions. Straight away, you can start poking around. The plants and zombies both have their own hea?dquarters, with an amusement park "social area" sandwiched between them, and these home bases are where y??ou'll access everything from PvP and PvE gateways to cosmetic unlocks and even a couple of goofy mini-games. By default, you'll see other players, but you can form your own private lobby.

I had a love-hate relationship with the hubs at first. They're full of personality, which is one of the series' strongest suits, but until you memorize the layout, navigation is a bit of a chore. They're pretty densely packed. Thankfully, I figured out that certain actions – like team switching, cosmetic customization, and character upgrades – can be accessed from the start menu. That saves time.

Battle for Neighborville expands on the Backyard Battleground concept from Garden Warfare 2, and dozens of hours in, that's where the bulk of m?y time has gone.? PvE really feels like a focal point.

There are three distinct zones – Mount Steep (plants only), Weirding Woods (zombies only), and Town Center (plants and zombies) – each with their own missions, collectibles, rewards, a??nd surprisingly intricate boss battles. You can play through all of this stuff as any of the characters, at any time, alone or with friends. It's fun to face AI troops and mini-bosses while you roam the maps, even if you're flying solo. The story quests themselves aren't anything too groundbreaking, but the new character designs and all-around silly ??vibes put a consistent smile on my face. This is such a good "podcast game."

I wouldn't have necessarily recommended Garden Warfare 2 to people who just wanted a solid PvE experience, but I'm much more inclined to make that case with Battle for Neighborville, particularly given its $40 price tag. The scope of free-roaming isn't on the same level as, say, patrolling through Destiny 2, but I've genuinely enjoyed it, and I hope PopCap will continue building. It's not an afterthough??t.

Just to be clear: this game is online-only.? You won't make it past the main menu without a connection.

As for PvP, to some extent, I'm still making up mind. In a lot of ways, the competitive side of Battle for Neighborville feels like more of the same, albeit streamlined with the removal of class variants and the piece-by-piece booster pack unlock system from before. As a quick aside, you no longer have to spend a single coin on pesky one-time-use consumable defensive items – those now run on cooldowns.

There are 20 characters, all told. Each side has three new classes, two of which are pu?ny but can transform into more pow??erful forms and even team up with other players, Megazord style.

On the plant front, there's the stealthy Night Cap, the fire-breathing Snapdragon, and the Acorn, which can become a mighty cannon-firing Oak. On the zombie squad, there's the roller-skating Electric Slide, the bow-wielding 80s Action Hero, and the transformative Space Cadet. These fresh faces join the existing Garden Warfare 2 cast including the Foot Soldier, Peashoo?ter, Imp, and Rose, and the whole gang can full-on sprint now. Someti??mes, pinning down targets isn't enough. They're slippery.

Not everyone is fun to play as yet – I truly feel like game balance will be a constant tug-of-war again – but the potential is there. In place o??f wildly different class variants, every character has static abilities and equippable "upgrades." You can swap these in and out at will for bonuses like health regeneration for each vanqui??sh, faster XP accumulation, and even homing shots (depending on who you're playing as), but you only have so many slots and potent perks take up more space (and need to be unlocked).

This system is arguably more elegant, but it loses some of the impact. My hope is that with fewer variables to juggle, PopCap will be able to add more characters down the road, not unlike Overwatch. Heck, the character select screen is even divvied up with Attack, Defend, and Support categories.

In terms of modes, it's mostly a repeat with the objective-based 12v12?? Turf Takeover, 8v8 Team Vanquish, smaller modes like Suburbinatio?n and Gnome Bomb, and a strategic new 4v4 Battle Arena mode in which players have one life per round and they can't pick the same character twice.

If this is all sounding very samey, well, it kind of is! Again, Battle for Neighborville feels like a refresh, for better or wor??se. I'm not remotely tired of the formula yet, but I also think there's room t??o grow.

I don't have as much of a desire to level up the whole cast this time around – the "gotta catch 'em all" factor isn't as palpable without class variants – but the free battle-pass-esque Prize Map for unlocking new seasonal rewards is interesting,?? at least in the early days. I'm also struggling somewhat with character movement and hit detection, neither of which feel one hundred percent fine-tuned to me.

I don't doubt that the developers will try to stay on top of ongoing balance concerns, but I also worry that the power pendulum will swing too far in one team's favor week to week. We'll see how that goes.

That said, review??ing? what's in front of me, I'm mostly happy right now. PvP just isn't quite there yet.

Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville doesn't go out of its way to surpass expectations, but it's a silly, strange, joyful game – one I'm glad was greenlit. If PopCap can continue what it started, this stands a fighting chance of becoming my favorite PvZ spin-off. I hope it gets that opportunity.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of t??he game provided by the publisher.]}

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Along with a PvE zone, Battle Arena mode, and Prize Map

I've been having an all-around good time carving my way through Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville, the mostly-there-but-not-quite-done successor to Garden Warfare. Today marked another milestone on the road to the game's full release, a?nd if you're a founder's edition player, it's time to hop back in. Along with the Battle Arena mode and another PvE story zone, there's a big patch.

Not to be confused with the general concept of battle royale, Battle Arena is actually a four-on-four PvP mode in which players can't pick the same character class twice. If you're taken down (and no one on your team takes enough pity to revive you), you're done for that round. The format leads to these tense moments where wins up front can come at the cost of the overall prize, and snowballing and tilting are a very real concern. It's much less chaotic than the typical higher-player-count PvP modes, and while not everyone is here for tactical play, some peo??pl??e are bound to dig this more strategic structure.

The latest PvE zone isn't wholly new – it's the zombies' take on the previously plant-only Town Center area – but there are new story missions. I've only done one so far, a mission to root out the un-zombie infection, but as with the other Battle for Neighborville zones, I'm looking forward to the boss fight.

Battle for Neighborville also has the equivalent of a free battle pass now. As you earn XP, you'll make progress along a track on a "prize map" with regularly scheduled cosmetic rewards?. It's a more guided incentive than the existing random unlocks from the coin-eating prize machine. The?? first map, Lawn of Doom, runs for four more weeks. The top reward is a Super Scarab outfit for Super Brainz.

Then there's the patch itself, which brin?gs balancing tweaks and some necessa?ry new features.

• There's now a toggle to outline enemy players and teammates. Before, it was easy to lose track of your target in firefights, especially with multiple abilities popping off.
• "Added bullet drag to allow faster speeds from projectile launch and slow down projectiles as they get to max range." From my early experience, shooting feels noticeably better. I was struggling with hit detection before.
• The all-powerful Night Cap and Acorn were nerfed, while zombies like Soldier and All-Star were buffed. The balance definitely needs more fine-tuning (I'm still maining the Engineer for the foreseeable future), but this is a start. Watch out for Super Brainz.
• "Adjusted difficulty in several quests, gnome challenges, and hunts."
• "Fixed some exploits in Regions relating to using key items in split-screen."
• "Made improvements to split-screen stability."

Those are just my highlights. You can find the full patch notes here.

The founder's edition has two more weeks to go, and then Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville will hold its proper release on October 18. If you're just now thinking of coming in, you're a little too late to play – EA is no longer selling the early a??ccess Founding Neighbor vers??ion. You'll have to wait.

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I'm really digging the PvE

What's the deal with Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville? Where do I begin!

The follow-up to PopCap's kooky team-based shooter series Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare isn't fully out yet – the launch is set for October 18 – but you can play Battle for Neighborville right here, right now, if you're willing to open up your wallet.? The "Founder's Edition" is available across PC, PS4, and Xbox One, and it's essentially a brief early access rollout before the finished game lands.

The idea is to release new content on a weekly basis until launch, at which point the price tag will be bumped from $30 up to $40, and PopCap Vancouver will take things from there. We're currently two weeks into the six-week Founder's Edition roadmap, and after spending a dozen hours with Battle for Neighborville, I have some stray thoughts to ?share. Is it worth jumping in yet? It depends.

As it stands, the main attractions are two PvE zones – the very on-brand Town Center, for plant players, and the camp-themed Weirding Woods for team zombie – along with a social hub, separate home bases for both sides, and a pair of PvP modes. Whether you're playing solo or teaming up to explore and take on tough AI bounties in one of the open-world levels, Battle for Neighborville is an online experience through and through. Back at ba??se, you can watch people spend their in-game currency to roll the dice on cosmetic unlocks, a concept I'm not thrilled about, even if it's been done before.

Garden Warfare 2 had open-ended spaces, but Battle for Neighborville feels like more of a conscious approach. It's attempting to scratch that Destiny Patrol itch, albeit without incremental loot.

There's an almost overwhelming amount of collectibles to suss out, from treasure chests to hidden gnomes to exercise tapes. (My inner Donkey Kong 64 fan is kind of in heaven.) As you poke around, you'll face AI-controlled foes at regular intervals, to say nothing of story quests with a few genuinely neat boss fights and optional missions that mirror some of the past Garden Warfare modes.

So while there may only be two PvE regions to mess with, there's a lot to sink y?our teeth into. 12 hours in, I still have a lot of secrets to uncover. Two more levels – the plant zone Mount Steep, and the zombie's spin on Town Center – are scheduled for September 24 and October 1, respectively.

If you're strictly into competitive multiplayer, heads up: you'll only have access to the objective-oriented Turf Takeover mode and Team Vanquish right now. Other PvP offerings, including the 4v4 Battle Arena mode, are yet to come. There's also the matter of game balance, something the previous titles struggled to consistently stay on top of. Battle for Neighborville is no exception?? – Night Cap, the new ninja class, is on just about everyone's shit list – ?but I'm cautiously optimistic about the future.

Garden Warfare 2 leaned heavily into variant classes (in short: you could have a Fire Pea or a Rock Pea or a Toxic Pea, and so on and so forth), but they're nowhere to be found in Battle for Neighborville. I liked the flexibility of that system, but the grind to unlock tho??se sub-classes got out of hand, a??nd I can only imagine what a nightmare it was to keep every variant of every character in check.

The new concept is much simpler, for better or worse. Characters are classified as attackers, defenders, or support, and you'll equip perks to tailor them to your preferred playstyle. There's a finite amount of perk slots, with each "upgrade??" costing a certain amount of points depending on its potency, and you can unlock new upgrades by leveling your troops in PvE or PvP. As a healer main (hey, someone's gotta!), I'm all about upgrades like Revive Reward and Vampire Flower that regenerate health when I revive teammates or deal damage. Some upgrades are general across-the-board buffs (one is a flat-out XP boost), while others affect individual abilities, allowing for a slight sense of personalization.

I'm not sure if this kind of approach will keep players engaged long-term, but if the trade-off is more characters and overall better game balance, I'm all for it. Speaking of which, the new roster feels at home in the Plants vs. Zombies universe. Ch?aracters like Acorn and Space Cadet can tran?sform into powerful (but highly conspicuous) forms, and the fire-breathing Snapdragon puts in work.

Aside from certain characters (mostly on the zombie side) feeling weak and a tad underwhelming to play as, I've also noticed some hit-detection issues – or at least the illusion th??at shots aren't quite landing as they should. That haziness, combined with the all-around chaos of players slinging eye-catching abilities like there's no tomorrow, can make it hard to get a rea??d on the action.

These should be fixable problems. I wouldn't recommend going for the Founder's Edition if you never quite got Garden Warfare, but if this series is two for two as far as you're concerned, by all means – save yourself ten bucks. Garden and Gravey?ard Ops are lined up for next week (September 17), and I feel like that'll be more of a turning point. That said, there's already plenty of stuff to keep you occupied.

[Update: It's out of early access. Consult our Battle for Neighborville review for my expanded thoughts.]

_{[This impressions piece is based on the Founder's Edition build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

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The final version will follow shortly on October 18

Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 3 is here! (Sort of.) PopCap and EA have announced Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville – the third game in their wacky multiplayer shooter series – and in a semi-surprising turn of events, it's playable today across PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. The current not-quite-fi??nished Founder's Edition is $30 ahead of the game's full $40 launch on October 18, 2019.

I heard chatter about Plants vs. Zombies trying its hand at "early access" this morning and recoiled a bit, but once I saw this gameplay trailer, those thoughts started to slip away. I am too mesmerized by Night Cap, the new ninja mushroom, to say nothing of the bow-firing '80s Action Hero zombie. There's also fun-sized characters like Acorn and Space Cadet, which can transform ??into a bulky Oak and Space Station, respectively, and even let other players hop aboard for team-up attacks. This game looks wild.

PopCap has gone on record to say that Battle for Neighborville's "modes and features are already final," and this Founder's Edition run is about "polishing performance." This early-access version will only be purch?asable until September 30, and over the next six weeks leading ??up to the October 18 launch, the game will get weekly content updates to flesh out PvP, PvE, and free-roam. Your progress carries over.

I've been vaguely anticipating the next game from the Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare team for a while now – this series is my jam, through and through – but I didn't expect Battle for Neighborville to make this good of a first impression. Now they just need to avoid squandering that ?po??tential.

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Early harvest

A trailer has unofficially surfaced online for the next game in Electronic Arts' tower strategy series Plants vs. Zombies. As predicted by the European trademark spotted?? l?ast week, Plants vs Zombies: Battle for Neighborville will be the title of this upcoming release.

The video features a funky song about the titular town, along with footage of various ??characters, on both sides of the war, battling it out within a colourful suburb. Keep an eye out for a particularly edgy looking ninja toadstool.

This appears to be a very rough cut of the preview, still timestamped and without platform information or a release date. As is often the case with these things, the original upload has since been removed, but the video is al??ready sprouting up elsewhere.

Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville is currently in development at Electronic Arts.

Plants ??vs Zombies: Battle for Neighborville trailer?? leaked [Gematsu / ScopesUncharted]

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War never changes

Electronic Arts has filed a new trademark with the European Union Intellectual Property Office for a project known as Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville.

There are no substantial details relating to this mystery title, but the trademark conveniently comes while the publisher is at work on a new PvZ entry for PS4 and Xbox One. Select players were recently invited by email to beta test this console release, currently known only as "Picnic". Plants vs. Zombies 3, which was announced just last month, is also in the works for mobile platforms, so Neighborville could also be a re-titling for that entry.

We will, of course, keep you i??nformed whenever EA decide to spill the gre??en beans on this trademark.

Plants vs. Zombie??s: Battle for Neighborville trademarked [Gematsu via @the_marmolade]

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Pre-alpha available on Android

We'll always have the original Plants vs. Zombies. I'm just putting that out there now.

This week, PopCap and EA began testing Plants vs. Zombies 3 with a pre-alpha version available to Android users. You'll need at least a Galaxy S7 running And??roid 6.0 (Marshmallow) or higher.

Here's the catch: "A limited number of downloads will be available for players i??n phases, so if the option to ?download isn't available at first, be sure to check the page another day for your chance to play."

The first few screenshots sh?ow 3D character models and multiple types of items to stoc?kpile, though EA has noted that the pre-alpha build is free-to-play and lacks any active microtransactions.

This early playable build certainly looks the part, and on that front, the developers are only taking in feedback regarding "combat features." I'd expect the models, animation, and balancing to come into place later. According to Plants vs. Zombie 3's Google Play listing, they're "saving a lot more ?for later."

Lastly, EA reiterated that PvZ 2 isn't go??ing anywhere. So far, I'm not too stoked.

Lend Us Your Brains -- Plan??ts?? vs. Zombies 3 is Under Construction [EA]

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The team is 'hard at work'

Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 3 – or whatever the next PvZ shooter ends up being named – is skipping EA Play 2019, the company's E3-adjacent reveal event that kic??ks off tomo??rrow morning.

Shaun Laker, the live producer on Garden Warfare 2, took to Twitter to set expectations.

While we won't be at EA Play this year, the team is hard at work making our next PvZ Shooter great! In the meantime, look forward to a taco-filled Summer of #PvZGW2 events and weekly challenges starting July 16th. pic.twitter.com/n4MWnhUgU7

— Shaun Laker (@slaker) June 7, 2019

It's not the news I was hoping for, but I'm glad to hear a confirmation ahead of time. No need to wonder. That said, I can't wait to see what approach the next Plants vs. Zombies shooter takes to stand out and reach the younger player base. We're living in a post-Fortnite world. Things aren't the same.

Another vaguely-discussed title, this year's Need for Speed, is also sitting out EA Play 2019.

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George Fan speaks

You might not know George Fan, but odds are he knows you. As one of the brightest minds at PopCap Games, he's lived vicariously through all of your endless Insaniquarium sessions and Plants vs. Zombies runs.

Fan worked at the studio for eight long years before departing in 2012 due to issues with Plants vs. Zombies 2, and has since been enjoying life and sticking with his passion for game development. With the 10th anniversary of Plants vs. Zombies steadily appr??oaching this weekend on May 5, we made some time to sit down with the legend himself.

After informing him that Insaniquarium does indeed "still slap" in 2019, things got off on the ??right f?oot. I used this shared love of that old classic to segue into how Fan manages to make his games so damn timeless.

His response echoes the mantra of many other gaming greats, like Blizzard Entertainment: "First of all, can I just say how utterly awesome it is that people are still talking about Insaniquarium in 2019? I never I would've expected that! As far as creating a timeless game goes, the first ingredient is: Don't name your game after something that references pop culture, such as naming your zombies versus plants game 'Lawn of the Dead.' I kid, of course! (For those that aren't aware, that is what Plants vs. Zombies was called for most of its development, and some of us are still sad that it didn't end up with that name.) The real answer, though, is to focus on making your gameplay stellar. Your ?state-of-the-art graphics  aren't going to age as well 10 years from now and classic gameplay i??s still classic."

Fan, of course, didn't have the same resources Blizzard did in 2009. He recalls how the main framework was "a team of three people" (designer, artist, programmer), who spent "about a year to two years making a game." He says that PvZ "pretty much" followed that same framework, but ?with the caveat of Fan being based out of San Francisco, while their main artist was out of Seattle.

Speaking of art, one of the most enigmatic Plants vs. Zombies characters has to be Crazy Dave, and as it turns out there is a story behind his creation. I'll let Fan tell it: "Crazy Dave was loosely based off of someone we knew in real life, only with craziness turned up to eleven. So maybe it's that combination of grounded 'realness' plus sheer lunacy that makes him so memorable? Some of the inspiration came from those craaazy car salesmen you'd see on daytime TV: 'We're slashing all our prices because we're craaaaazy!' Fun Fact: I actually did the voicework for Crazy Dave. I? just reached deep inside and spouted off multiple takes of all the craziest gibberish I could imagine and we just kept all the best takes!"

Dave, the plants, the zombies: practically every facet of PvZ was memorable, and I just had to know "what was cut?" Fan told us that there was a "timestopper plant" that was basically an apple as a clock face, which was removed because it made the game unfun to play while that ability was popping off. As for Fan's most beloved character? "The Zombie Bobs?led Team still cracks me up the most," he said. His wishlist included a Tennis Zombie, who would defle?ct your peashooters, but there's actually a funny story regarding the Newspaper Zombie, which I informed him was my favorite.

"Fun fact: Right after PvZ came out??, my brother called me to ask 'Was Newspaper Zombie based on Dad?,'" he said. "You see, growing up, me and my brother saw our dad spend a lot of time reading newspapers, and a good portion of that newspaper reading was while our dad was... well... on the toilet. When I handed off the design, I had no such intentions in mind, it was simply a zombie reading a newspaper. It was artist Rich Werner w?ho added the touches that made it seem like the character had been on the toilet right before getting zombified."

That's kind of Fan's MO: there's a story behind everything he touches. But in the end, he doesn't really have any regrets. When asked if there's anything he wishes he added to the final build, he responded "not really." Fan followed that up by clarifying: "With PvZ I was given the time and resources to make the best game I possibly could, so I don't wish anything different. What's so unique about working on PvZ for me is nothing I've worked on before or after has gone near??ly as smoothly, so what I do wish is I underst??ood what the secret sauce was that made it so, be it the timing, the right combination of people, and/or PopCap setting up the right environment for us to do our best work in."

Fan was memorialized by his efforts. The Plants vs. Zombies homages and references still pile on to this day, but one of his absolute favorites was the "Grave Bramble" Magic: The Gathering card. I told him to geek out about it, and will post his full response: "Oh, I'm gonna geek out all right! I absolutely loved that Grave Bramble homage, and have over 100 copies of that card. I just about lost my mind when a few years after the Grave Bramble homage they asked me to design a Magic card for their M15 set. I designed Genesis Hydra for them, and they sent me a giant Magic card of it, which I do have lovingly framed."

He continues: "I thought nothing could top that, but I also recently attended a War of the Spark pre-release... a War of the Spark employee pre-release! You see, last July I started a temporary stint at Wizards of the Coast designing Magic! It's been an absolute blast and I now sit right next to Magic's head designer Mark Rosewater!! Ok, I'm done geekin??g out now." I'm sure we could have gone with a bit more geeking out, but that'll do!

It has indeed been a full decade since Plants vs. Zombies was unleashed upon this Earth, and it's been on a wild journey after it changed hands as a part of EA's empire. But Fan still has love for the series, noting "It's really cool that Plants vs. Zombies spans more than just the tower defense genre now. PvZ Heroes makes sense in that very early on, PvZ was designed as a card game with t??ower defense." He reminds us that the seed packets wer??e actually influenced by card games, after all.

One thing he never predicted though was Garden Warfare. Initially he thought it couldn't be done because of the locomotion limitations of the plant characters, but he's happy to admit that he was wrong (I think a lot of people doubted it too!). Fan ends the interview on a hopeful note: "I'd love to see PvZ continue this trend and expand to other genres, each time bringing with it the stylings the original PvZ had." If they continue to be of quality, I agr??ee.

As far as I'm concerned Fan has already cemented his legacy and is living his best life. Plants vs. Zombies was one of the first games I played with my wife so many years ago after we were married, and we created countless memories surrounding it: we even still hum the theme song frequently (composed and performed by ??;Laura Shigihar??a). Whatever he's up to next, it'll be on my to-do list.

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None other than Wall-nut Hills

As confirmed earlier this week, a new Plants vs. Zombies game is in development for "consoles and PC." While there could one day be another classic-style PvZ title (and I'd be one-hundred percent down for that if it stayed away from microtransactions), most of us assume EA means Garden Warfare 3.

I'm a little concerned about what form it might take given the genre's battle-royale-loving landscape, but we'll see. A third installment that takes the best from GW1 and GW2 would hit the spot this year.

More immediately, though, PopCap has prepared a pleasant surprise for Garden Warfare 2 players. Wall-nut Hills, arguably the best map in the original Garden Warfare, is coming over to Garden Warfare 2 this month. It's the one with the treehouse, playground, and hilltop? mansion. It's good as hell.

Coming soon! Will be a dedicated mix mode for 1 week AND added permanently into Turf Takeover map rotation. //t.co/t5m87MI7Pk

— Shaun Laker (@slaker) February 7, 2019

February will also bring a new Garden Warfare 2 mode, Soil Survivor, which has a familiar-sounding playable area that "shrinks over time" and "team-based sudden death elimination rounds." According to creative director Justin Wiebe, it'll only stick around for a limited time through th??e Mystery Portal. "We'd like to see how players enjoy the experience before we consider making it more permanent."

Considering Garden Warfare is fondly remembered for its maps, Wall-nut Hills is a great get for GW2.

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And 'related Titanfall experiences'

As of late, EA's short-term release schedule has been something of a mystery. We've known we're getting Anthem later this month, and, just yesterday, Apex Legends stealth-launched. ?Today, EA has added some franchises to the calendar year.

As part of its 2019 third quarter fiscal report to investors, EA has confirmed new entries in popular series that should launch later this year. Need for Speed and Plants vs. Zombies are both getting new games. Further, EA says the Respawn-developed Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order ??;is expected to launch this fall alongside the regular glut of sports titles.

More ambiguously, EA also mentions it's "grow[ing] Apex Legends and related Titanfall experiences." It's anyone's guess as to what sort of Titanfall project is in the works, because it evidently isn't Titanfall 3. Maybe the entirety of Star Wars is canonically set in the Titanfall universe.

Electronic Arts Reports Q3 FY19 Financial Results [Electronic Arts]

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I'm cautiously optimistic

I wasn't sure we'd see a direct follow-up to Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 anytime soon, but a third game in the zany ??third-person shooter series might be on the horizon.

The source here is an odd one, to be sure. The Amazon listing for the upcoming comic Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare Volume 2 references Garden Warfare 3 with the following passage:

"Paul Tobin returns to write the official comic book bridge between video games PvZ: GW2 and PvZ: GW3 with Tim Lattie returning to deliver artwork!"

It's also worth no?ting that this comic is set to be published on September 25, 201??8.

I enjoyed the last game quite a bit, but it didn't have the same staying power as the original Garden Warfare, and making a compelling sequel will require more than just adding to the existing foundation. I think a potential Garden Warfare 3 will need to undergo a not-insignificant rethink if it's going to meet expectations. Competition is fierce, too. Kids are way into Fortnite Battle Royale these days.

That said, if GW3 c?omes to fruition, I'm down. I love these chara?cter classes so much.

Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare Volume 2 [Amazon via reddit]

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'When I'm not making games I can usually be found playing them'

George Fan is pretty modest for someone who created Insaniquarium and Plants vs. Zombies, two of the most memorable and replayable games ever released. His career has spanned almost two decades, from freaky Flash games to creating a major franchise in Zombies, which is endlessly iterated upon by industry behemoth Electronic Ar?ts.

In speaking to him about his upcoming release, Octogeddon, he fondly recalled his humble origins on a gaming portal t??hat he refers to as an "online version of Chuck E. Cheese," and described himself as a "gnomish tinkerer." I could immediately tell that this is someone who never wants to stop making things.

A lot of people don't know who Fan is, and given that he's tried to keep it that way, that would make sense. I wasn't kidding when I said he was humble, as his first gig was way back in the early days of the wild w??est of internet gaming. That era when your teacher showed everyone in class a "don't worry be happy" smiley face flash meme before ever?yone knew what memes were.

Fan recalls his early years and how he got started with PopCap: "My first job in the industry was making Java games for this website Prizegames.com, which was basically an online version of Chuck E. Cheese. In doing research on other Java games, I came across PopCap.com and their very earliest set of games (like Mummy Maze and Seven Seas) and thought 'Hey, these are really good!', as they were a cut above all the other Java games that I 'researched.' Right after leaving Prizegames.com, I made the first version of Insaniquarium, which I entered in the 2002 Independent Games Festival. I was in an internet cafe in Hawaii when I found out Insaniquarium made it as a finalist, and I remember just screaming at the top of my lungs, probably startling everyone in there. I immediately contacted PopCap, who I'd been corresponding with, and asked if they'd be at GDC that year. They came to visit me at my finalist booth, and we just kinda ?hit it off from there."

That was 2002, but Fan had been making games before then. I really wanted to know more about his first project, Wrath of the Gopher (check out this screen I was given), and ended up learning a lot about Fan in the process. When recalling Gopher Fan told me, "[Wrath] was the very first 'real' game I finished. Before that, I had serious doubts about whether I was cut out to? be a game designer. I remember cutting up index cards to do a paper prototype of wha??t would end up being a simple puzzle game where you play as a gopher, trying to eat all the cabbages in a path without backtracking. I believe you can still play it on my very old and very out of date website, but you'll need to have Java installed, and no one I know has Java in their browser these days."

He didn't always have that same Insaniquarium luck though, as several of his projects were either canceled or unannounced at PopCap. I vividly remember when Yeti Train was discovered by secondhand sources, but it never saw the light of day. Fan gave me a little kernel to go off of: "Yeti Train was about... well... a yeti on a train. You played as a yeti stuck in a desert trying to get back to his snowy mountain cave. Inexplicably, you have a train. So you'd travel from location to location, collecting fossils to turn in for upgrades, recruiting yeti friends, and fending off dinosaurs by throwing snowballs at them. At the high level, it's me paring the RPG genre down to its essentials, much in same the way I tried to strip down RTS games with Insaniquarium, tower defense games with Plants vs. Zombies, and elements of roguelike games with Octogeddon."

Octogeddon is his newest project, which plays like a shoot-'em-up of sorts with the same level of charm as Plants vs. Zombies; notably because the game involves some of the same staff members. I immediately asked Fan to paint us a picture of his new studio that set out to carry on t??he mission of game development, All Yes Good, and he was happy to oblige.

"We're a really small studio with a simple purpose, so it's not gonna require much paint! All Yes Good is pretty much just a company I created so I could make games the way I want to. For Octogeddon, I'm working with a really small team of just me, Rich Werner (artist on PvZ), and Kurt Pfeifer (programmer on the XBLA adaptation of PvZ). We're also working with Jimmy Hinson, who's done an amazing soundtrack for us. Our long-term goals are nothing fancy, just: 1. Make game. 2. Hope that game makes enough mone?y to make another game. 3??. Repeat."

Fan isn't always working though, and is prone to a few passions, including Magic: The Gathering and LEGO. When asked what he does with his spare time, he remarked: "When I'm not making games I can usually be found playing them. I'm a pretty huge fan of Magic, and most weekends will involve having friends over for a Magic-a-thon, or heading over to Edmund McMillen's place for a [Magic] draft. 2018's looking like it's going to be a good year for me, as I just bought $500 worth of LEGOs and plan on holing up for extended periods of time like some gnomish tinkerer building Rube Goldberg machines out of 'em. Like this one!"

Everything is looking up for Fan even if sales for Octogeddon don't go through the roof, but I wanted to also get his take on where the Plants vs. Zombies series went after he left. Although the whole situation is bittersweet after he left following some disagreements over Plants vs. Zombies 2 (the details of which are still unknown), he does still have a soft spot for it. "I was only involved in PvZ 2 at a conceptual level in the early stages. I've only played Garden Warfare for a tiny bit, (haven't really gotten into shooters besides Splatoon) but I did play a decent amount of Heroes and had a good time doing so. For a few of the character designs I was like 'Eek! Who came up with t?hat??', but I'd say overall it lived up? to the spirit of the original!"

George Fan's newest game, Octogeddon, is due out on Fe?bruary 8 on Steam. You can read a review of it here around the time of its launch.

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Easily the cutest thing I've seen today

Laura Shigihara is a composer, singer, and pianist, a triple threat best known for her work on the ending song from Plants Vs. Zombies. She not only wrote the song, she performed as the lead vocalist, providing the voice of the Sunflower. She's worked on several other games and has provided music and voice work for titles like World of Warcraft and To the Moon. If you've seen any of her other videos&n??bsp;though, it's pretty clear she associates most with the Sunflower.

Her most recent project has been working on an indie role playing game called Rakuen, and it's been in development for about four years. There are two in??terconnected plot threads. The main story follows a young boy confined to a hospital bed who find?s escape through the fantasy stories his mother reads to him. He learns more about the other people in the hospital as the game progresses. The second lets the boy explore his favorite story, which tells of a tribe who sailed to a paradise called Rakuen, leaving behind one of their own.

Shigihara composed over 50 new tracks for the game, but this time she's also doing design, story, programming, and pixel characters. She's assisted by Emmy Toyonaga and Matt Holmberg, who's worked on games like Peggle and Chrono Trigger. It's been in development for a long time, but it appears it'll be o??ut sooner rather than later.

Everything about Rakuen looks ridiculously cute, though it appears that the story may take a dark turn or two along the way. The gameplay sounds like it takes cues from adventure games, and the Rakuen website says that you'll focus on solving puzzles and mysteries rather than combat. It's hard to say, but this one might end up being popular with the same group that made Undertale such a success last year.

Rakuen just got a Steam page and should be released in early 2017. The soundtrack is finished and will be available January 22.

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Free update with limited-time modes

With another free update for Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 dropping today, there will be more modes to play and, as a result, more things to unlock for your characters. It never ends.

The "Trials of Gnomus" update adds the Mystery Portal, a gateway that grants access to limited-time modes in Garden Warfare 2 including Cats vs. Dinos, Boss Hunt, and Super Mix Mode. By competing in some of the new activities, ??like the gnomes' new Trials of Eternity, you can ear??n rare customization items. Again, I say, it never ends!

A fresh face, Rux the Deal B??reaker, is also lurking around Zomburbia. He'll trade "precious goods" for your coins, with new items coming into his ?inventory weekly.

So many reasons to check back in on a daily basis for bonuses, but I keep neglecting Garden Warfare 2. My ?plants are probably all sad and wit?hered by now. Zombies can't go bad, at least.

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Available now on PS4 and Xbox One, soon on PC

Oh, hey, this sounds familiar! EA is offering a ten-hour trial for Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2. That's plenty of time to figure out if this particular type of team-based shooter is to your liking. I know it can be hard to carve out time away from Overwatch, but it's worth an extended look.

The promo starts today on PS4 and Xbox One, and it lasts until August 30, 2016 at 10:00am Paci??fic.

During that time, the full, permanent version of Garden Warfare 2 will be sold at half price, with your progress and achievements carrying over from the trial should you choose to upgrade. PC players will have to wait until August 16 for the ten-hour demo to appear on ?Origin.

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Nice, nice

Before BioWare became a Hollywood action studio somewhere after Mass Effect 2, it was a true old school RPG factory. Players had choices (here's an accurate depiction of a lot of modern RPGs), outcomes for decisions weren't always obvious, and even in some of the more action oriented games like KOTOR, it always felt like you were playing a role. That couldn't be more true of Jade Empire, a game that ??I'll use any excuse I can to gush over.

It will join the Origin Access program on PC this summer, accompanied by Crysis, Crysis 2, Crysis 3, Crysis 4: Crytek in Crisis, Mini Metro, Plants vs. Zombies, and SimCity 2000. To be frank, besides Jade, I'm most interes?ted in the latter -- I spent many many days tending to my Arcologies.

Just to clarify things a bit because I know it's confusing -- EA Access is on Xbox One, and Origin Access is on PC.

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Those first two join The Vault next Tuesday

If you like the occasional EA-published game, own an Xbox One, and are pat??ient enough to hold off on new releases for several months or so, EA Access can be a ridiculous value.

The $4.99 per month subscription program is adding three new games to its free-play list: Need for Speed (2015) and Unravel on July 12, and Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 on August 30.

I'd say all three are worth playing, albeit to varying degrees. Need for Speed is decent cheesy fun but doesn't live up to the series' name. Unravel is worth it for the adorable Yarny alone. And Garden Warfare 2? It's one of the best current multiplayer shooters this side of Overwatch.

I don't subscribe to Access, but I do wish EA and Sony could work something out to bring it over to Play?Station 4. Selfishly, the program could help breathe new life into old games I play on the platform.

Coming Soon To EA Access [EA]

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Available in the latest free update

PopCap has followed up its last big Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 update, Trouble in Zombopolis, with a part two. The free update expands the Backyard Battleground open world with Delivery Time Challenges (races, essentially) and offers another way to earn stuff: Community Challenges.

These challenges are time-limited events in which all players can work together to collectively meet some goal -- say, earning 15 million vanquishes -- to unlock rewards like coins, packs, or "special items." Each challenge has three reward tiers, and you can check everyone's progress near the Town Hall or on this web page. It's essentially just another way to keep ?people engaged (you have to physically log in and go claim your prizes), which is fine by me. Keep the numbers up!

You can glance over the full patch notes right here. It sounds like the game balance has shifted quite a bit since I've last played (and there are of course even more changes with this update), so I'll be curious to see if I've fallen way behind the regulars. Given how many variant characters there are in Garden Warfare 2, I do not envy the folks wo?rking to keep things relatively fair.

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Trouble in Zombopolis

PopCap is rolling out a major free update for Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 today called "Trouble in Zombopolis: Part One." The main draw is another Herbal Assault Map, Zombopolis, and a pair of v?ariant characters: Toxic Citrus and the waffle-firing Breakfast Brainz.

And as if there aren't already way too many cosmetic unlocks to spend your coins on, the update also introduces 1,200 new customization items. I'm glad I've been able to que??ll my completionist tendencies.

You can read through the full list of features, bug fixes, and character balance changes over here. There's a lot! I'm especially hopefu?l for "Additional stability improvements to Infinity Time Mode," as I've had issues with the ?connection randomly dropping and putting my runs in jeopardy.

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Inline with the first game

In a very non-EA move, Plants vs. Zombies 2: Garden Warfare is getting a huge free update soon. Titled "Trouble in Zombopolis: Part One," the DLC will? provide an all-new map (with its own miniboss), two new characters (Breakfast Brai??nz and Toxic Citron), more customization options, and a "Boat Blast" shooting gallery minigame. It'll arrive sometime this summer.

I say "non-EA," but really, they deserve a lot of credit for the Garden Warfare franchise in general. They supported the original with free DLC for a long while, and it seems like the trend is set to continue wit??h the sequel. As long as PopCap can keep making these games with as m?uch care as they've put into this pair, I'm totally ok with it.

Trouble In Zombopolis [EA]

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