Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare is the newest successor to the wildly popular tower defense strategy game. In PvZ: Garden Warfare the plants have uprooted and are taking the fight to the zombies.
The landscapes and characters are a bit cartoonish, but that doesn’t detract from the action. The environments are really lovely, and sometimes I find myself cheating quick detours during battle just to explore the worlds PopCap has created. PvZ is full of unique characters and vibrant landscapes. This game has potential for some great machinima.
The shooting is fun and accurate. The balance of the characters feels fair. Every actor in this game has its weaknesses and strengths. Learn to exploit the strengths and you’ll do well. Or hopefully better than I do! The stat board consistently surprises me at the end of each match. The game has a way of making me feel like I’ve done better than I have. Props to PopCap for making a great game.
I haven’t heard any real strategy being discussed over multiplayer. Seems like I only ever hear eight year olds whom I immediately mute. All of the adults are either silent, or not present. I’ve played several successful matches without any strategizing, but my suspicion is on more difficult Co-op Garden modes strategy and cooperation are absolutely integral for a successful match. That or upgraded armaments.
The clunkiest part of this game is the walking mechanism. Every character has a set speed. Smaller units move faster than larger ones. There's no walk or run, just go. The only annoyance is that some areas of the map, such as doors and stairs, serve as bottle necks and won’t allow more than one character to cross through at a time. This can cause congestion and slow down the action.
Overall, Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare is a lot of fun. $30 on Xbox 360 and $40 on the Xbox One. It’ll be available on PC in Spring 2014 for $35. I’ve enjoyed playing PvZ. But be warned those of you who have lives; it’s a game that a lot of time can be sunk into. My wife, as she pulverized a sunflower said, “This game is a black hole. It’ll eat all of your time.”
Yes, well, game on, then.