Plants vs. Zombies explained

Plants vs. Zombies
Developer:PopCap Games
Creator:George Fan
Artist:Rich Werner
Composer:Laura Shigihara
First Release Version:Plants vs. Zombies
First Release Date:May 5, 2009
Latest Release Version:Plants vs. Zombies 3: Welcome to Zomburbia
Latest Release Date:January 17, 2024 (soft launch)

Plants vs. Zombies is a video game franchise developed by PopCap Games, a subsidiary of Electronic Arts (EA). The series follows the affiliates of David "Crazy Dave" Blazing as they use his plants to defend against a zombie invasion, led by Dr. Edgar George Zomboss. The first game, Plants vs. Zombies (2009), was developed and released by PopCap before its acquisition by EA. After PopCap Games's acquisition, EA expanded the game into a franchise with games on many different platforms.

The series has a variety of game genres. The original game and its sequels Plants vs. Zombies Adventures, Plants vs. Zombies 2, and Plants vs Zombies 3 are tower defense games where the player has to use plants with different abilities to defend against a zombie invasion. The spin-off Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare and its sequels are third-person shooters where the player can play as either the plants or zombies in multiplayer (and beginning in , single player) matches. Plants vs; Zombies Heroes is a digital collectable card game with characters from previous installments.

History

Main series

On April 1, 2009, PopCap released a music video for the song "Zombies on Your Lawn" by Laura Shigihara to promote Plants vs. Zombies.[1] A PopCap spokesperson, Garth Chouteau, revealed in an IGN interview that Plants vs. Zombies would be released soon on PC and Mac.[2] On April 22, 2009, PopCap released an official game trailer of Plants vs. Zombies on YouTube.[3] [4] During the promotion of Plants vs. Zombies, PopCap released a demo version of the game that could be played for thirty minutes.[5] Plants vs. Zombies was officially released on May 5, 2009, for PC and Mac,[6] by 2013 switching from a $2.99 gameplay cost to free-to-play on iOS and Android devices. Critics on mobile devices give the game an average of 4.3-4.8 star ratings.[7]

PopCap Games and its assets were bought by EA on July 12, 2011, for 750 million US dollars.[8] Fifty employees were laid off in the Seattle studio of PopCap Games on August 21, 2012, to mark a switch of focus to mobile and social gaming.[9]

On August 20, 2012, PopCap announced that they were working on a sequel to Plants vs. Zombies.[10] Its release date would be set at late spring of 2013.[11] However, the game's status was in doubt shortly after the announcement when the company went through a period of layoffs.[9]

In May 2013, PopCap Games released a trailer revealing a sequel to the first game, titled .[12] [13] The game was soft-launched for the iOS in Australia and New Zealand on July 10, 2013,[14] and was officially released on August 14, 2013, as a freemium title.[15] The game featured new locations and plants along with the addition of plant food, a power-up that can be used to enhance a plant for a short period and can either be bought using in-game currency or acquired by defeating zombies that are glowing green.[16] There are four other power-ups in the game, all of which are bought with coins, the in-game currency. Along with these new add ons, the game continues to make updates from time to time. According to EA News, the Arena and Penny's Pursuit updates, which are different game modes within the game, have been some of their latest major updates, aside from all the mini add ons.[17]

In July 2019, EA announced Plants vs. Zombies 3, another free-to-play mobile title in the series. It was launched in a pre-alpha state for Android in July 2019.[18] [19] The game soft-launched in February 2020 in the Philippines, Romania, and Ireland.[20] It was then made unavailable in October 2020, becoming unplayable in November 2020. EA has plans to release an improved version of the game in the future.[21] On September 7, 2021, Plants vs. Zombies 3 was soft-launched again with substantial changes, such as two-dimensional graphics and the return of the Sunflower as a plantable plant, having the same purpose in the previous iterations.[22] On January 17, 2024, Plants vs. Zombies 3 was soft launched again, this time as Plants vs. Zombies 3: Welcome to Zomburbia in select regions,[23] adapting storylines and characters from the Plants vs. Zombies comic book series (written by Paul Tobin, illustrated by Ron Chan, and published by Dark Horse Comics), including Tugboat the Zombie and Patrice Blazing.[24]

Spin-offs

A spin-off called Plants vs. Zombies Adventures was announced in March 2013[25] and was released on May 20, 2013 on Facebook. The game added new locations and new plants. It also had a gameplay feature in which the player had a limited amount of plants and had to grow more plants at an in-game farm.[26] In July 2014, it was announced that Plants vs. Zombies Adventures would close on October 12, 2014.[27]

was announced at E3 2013 as a multiplayer third-person shooter game made for PC and consoles.[28] [29] Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare was released on February 25, 2014, in North America and on February 27, 2014, in Europe.[30] A sequel, , was teased in June 2015 and was officially announced at E3 2015.[31] [32] The game was released on February 23, 2016.[33] On March 10, 2016, PopCap announced Plants vs. Zombies Heroes, a digital collectible card game in the style of tower defense. It was soft released to certain countries on the same day,[34] and was fully released internationally on October 18, 2016.[35]

In August 2019, a closed beta of a sequel to Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 codenamed "Picnic" was made available to select players through invites.[36] On September 4, 2019, EA announced the sequel's title; . It was released in an early access state that same date. The game was fully released on October 18, 2019.[37] [38]

A cancelled single player Plants vs. Zombies game had been in the works within EA from about 2015 to 2017. Known as "Project Hot Tub" in reference to Hot Tub Time Machine, the game was to have been an action game along the lines of the Uncharted series but maintaining its family-friendly nature, featuring two teenage siblings that travelled through time to fight zombies. The game was being developed by PopCap Vancouver. While a vertical slice of the game had been shown off to EA executives in 2017, EA opted to cancel the project to pull in more resources to Visceral Games to support their work on the Star Wars game under the name Project Ragtag, which had been languishing for several years. Despite this, EA cancelled Project Ragtag in October 2017, shutting down Visceral Games, and the former PopCap Vancouver team was relocated across other EA studios.[39]

Other media

Comics

Since July 2013, Dark Horse Comics has published a Plants vs. Zombies ongoing comic book series, following teenagers Nate Timely and Patrice Blazing as they protect Neighborville from the zombie armies of Dr. Edgar Zomboss, with the help of Patrice's uncle, David "Crazy Dave" Blazing, and his own legion of genetically-modified sentient plants, accessible via the Plants vs. Zombies Comics app.[40] Elements and characters from the comic book series were later adapted to the franchise's video game instalments, and vice-versa.[41]

External links

Notes and References

  1. PopCap Reveals Plants vs. Zombies . NG . Keane . April 1, 2009 . The Escapist . December 3, 2020 . February 1, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190201214040/https://v1.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/90635-PopCap-Reveals-Plants-vs-Zombies . live .
  2. No Joke — PopCap Reveals Plants vs. Zombies . August 11, 2010 . Ocampo . Jason . April 4, 2009 . IGN . PC and Mac initially, with other platforms under consideration. . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20090405054348/http://uk.pc.ign.com/articles/969/969145p1.html . April 5, 2009.
  3. Battle Plants With Your Own Zombies . NG . Keane . The Escapist . April 24, 2009 . December 3, 2020 . January 20, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210120183920/https://v1.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/91224-Battle-Plants-With-Your-Own-Zombie . live .
  4. News: SPUDOW! Plants Vs Zombies Trailer, Zombie Maker . Walker . John . Rock, Paper, Shotgun . April 24, 2009 . January 26, 2021.
  5. News: Plants vs. Zombies demo eating brains right now . Chester . Nick . . May 4, 2009 . December 4, 2020.
  6. News: PopCap Launches Plants vs. Zombies Game for PC and Mac . . IGN . May 5, 2009 . December 3, 2020 . September 13, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180913132436/http://www.ign.com/articles/2009/05/05/popcap-launches-plants-vs-zombies-game-for-pc-and-mac . live .
  7. News: 2014-02-13 . Plants vs Zombies drops in-app fee . en-GB . BBC News . 2022-10-24.
  8. Web site: Electronic Arts buys PopCap for $750M . Takahashi . Dean . Lynley . Matthew . VentureBeat . July 12, 2011 . January 4, 2021 . November 4, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201104031452/https://venturebeat.com/2011/07/12/ea-popcap-acquire-750m/ . live .
  9. Web site: Report: Layoffs Hit PopCap, International Studios Shuttered . Goldfarb . Andrew . . August 21, 2012 . January 4, 2021 . November 16, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181116100601/https://www.ign.com/articles/2012/08/21/report-layoffs-hit-popcap-international-studios-shuttered . live .
  10. Plants vs. Zombies 2 announced: 'hordes of new plant and zombie types' . Tom . Senior . PC Gamer . August 20, 2012 . January 7, 2021 . November 12, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201112024816/https://www.pcgamer.com/plants-vs-zombies-2-announced-hordes-of-new-plant-and-zombie-types/ . live .
  11. Web site: Plants VS. Zombies Sequel out Late Spring 2013 . Krupa . Daniel . IGN . August 20, 2012 . January 7, 2021 . May 26, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160526214540/http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/08/20/plants-vs-zombies-sequel-out-late-spring-2013 . live .
  12. News: 'Plants vs. Zombies' sequel shambling toward release in July . Yannick . LeJacq . May 6, 2013 . NBC News . January 7, 2021 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20130512184635/http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/plants-vs-zombies-sequel-shambling-toward-release-july-6C9801258 . May 12, 2013 .
  13. Web site: Plants Vs. Zombies 2: It's About Time Coming in July . Goldfarp . Andrew . IGN . May 6, 2013 . January 7, 2021 . November 11, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201111232224/https://www.ign.com/articles/2013/05/06/plants-vs-zombies-2-its-about-time-coming-in-july . live .
  14. Web site: Plants Vs Zombies 2 Is Weeks Away, But Aussies Get To Play Today . Fahey . Mike . Kotaku . July 10, 2013 . January 1, 2021 . December 25, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161225212440/http://www.kotaku.com.au/2013/07/plants-vs-zombies-2-is-weeks-away-but-aussies-get-to-play-today/ . live .
  15. Web site: Plants vs. Zombies 2 Launching Worldwide Tonight . Davis . Justin . IGN . August 14, 2013 . January 8, 2021 . January 11, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210111005449/https://www.ign.com/articles/2013/08/14/plants-vs-zombies-2-launching-worldwide-tonight . live .
  16. Web site: Plants vs. Zombies 2 Review . Shea . Cam . IGN . July 17, 2013 . January 8, 2021.
  17. Web site: Arts . Electronic . 2016-11-15 . Plants vs. Zombies 2 - Free Mobile Game - EA Official Site . 2022-10-24 . Electronic Arts Inc. . en.
  18. News: 'Plants vs. Zombies 3' is on the way and you can test it now . Kris . Holt . July 18, 2019 . July 18, 2019 . Engadget . July 18, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190718175732/http://www.engadget.com/2019/07/18/plants-vs-zombies-3/ . live .
  19. News: EA announces Plants vs. Zombies 3 . Andrew . Webster . July 18, 2019 . July 18, 2019 . The Verge . July 18, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190718150908/https://www.theverge.com/2019/7/18/20699135/plants-vs-zombies-3-announced-alpha-android-google-play . live .
  20. Web site: 'Plants Vs. Zombies 3' from PopCap and EA Has Soft Launched in Philippines, Romania, and Ireland . Madnani . Mikhail . Touch Arcade . February 28, 2020 . January 9, 2021 . January 11, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210111200606/https://toucharcade.com/2020/02/28/plants-vs-zombies-3-soft-launch-available-now-free-online/ . live .
  21. News: EA pulls Plants vs. Zombies 3 from soft launch . Forde . Matthew . Pocket Gamer . October 19, 2020 . January 9, 2021 . January 7, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210107161828/https://www.pocketgamer.biz/news/74798/ea-pulls-plants-vs-zombies-3-from-soft-launch/ . live .
  22. Web site: A New Vision for PVZ 3 Has Taken Root!. September 7, 2021.
  23. News: Plants vs. Zombies™ 3 Soft Launch!. Electronic Arts. 17 January 2024. 22 January 2024.
  24. Chan. Ron. RonDanChan. 1748408830558667117. OMG! Looks like Patrice Blazing, the character @PaulTobin and I created for the Plants vs. Zombies comics published by @DarkHorseComics, has made her way into the actual games!.
  25. Web site: Plants vs. Zombies shuffles to Facebook; sequel due in summer . Grubb . Jeff . VentureBeat . March 26, 2013 . January 7, 2021 . September 16, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160916234301/http://venturebeat.com/2013/03/26/pvz-adventures-coming-soon/ . live .
  26. News: 'Plants vs. Zombies Adventures' is a Facebook game you'll actually want to play . Webster . Andrew . The Verge . May 20, 2013 . January 7, 2021 . December 6, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161206033226/http://www.theverge.com/2013/5/20/4348376/plants-vs-zombies-adventures-facebook-game-youll-want-to-play . live .
  27. Web site: EA Announces Closure of Plants vs Zombies Adventures on Facebook . Shaul . Brandon . . July 24, 2014 . January 8, 2021 . January 9, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210109005212/https://www.adweek.com/performance-marketing/ea-announces-closure-of-plants-vs-zombies-adventures-on-facebook/ . live .
  28. Web site: Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare coming to E3 . Yoan . Andrew . Shacknews . June 9, 2013 . January 8, 2021 . January 20, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210120184116/https://www.shacknews.com/article/79567/plants-vs-zombies-garden-warfare-coming-to-e3 . live .
  29. Web site: E3 2013: Plants Vs Zombies: Garden Warfare Announced . Goldfarb . Andrew . IGN . June 10, 2013 . January 20, 2021 . January 11, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210111005505/https://www.ign.com/articles/2013/06/10/e3-2013-plants-vs-zombies-garden-warfare-announced . live .
  30. Web site: Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare Delayed . Karmali . Luke . January 16, 2014 . IGN . January 8, 2021 . January 17, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140117102658/https://www.ign.com/articles/2014/01/16/plants-vs-zombies-garden-warfare-delayed . live .
  31. News: Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 teased ahead of E3 reveal . Tom . Phillips . Eurogamer . June 8, 2015 . June 21, 2015 . June 10, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150610153112/http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2015-06-08-plants-vs-zombies-garden-warfare-2-teased-ahead-of-e3-reveal . live .
  32. Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 announced . Savage . Phil . PC Gamer . January 8, 2021 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20150617205831/http://www.pcgamer.com/plants-vs-zombies-garden-warfare-2-announced/ . June 17, 2015 .
  33. Web site: Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 . IGN . January 8, 2021 . January 11, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210111005654/https://www.ign.com/games/plants-vs-zombies-garden-warfare-2 . live .
  34. https://web.archive.org/web/20161108061053/http://www.ew.com/article/2016/03/10/plants-vs-zombies-heroes-card-game . November 8, 2016 . live . Collectible card game 'Plants vs. Zombies Heroes' in the works . Jonathon . Dornbush . March 10, 2016 . . November 6, 2016 .
  35. News: Plants vs. Zombies Heroes enters the mobile digital card game arena . Minotti . Mike . VentureBeat . October 18, 2016 . January 9, 2021 . November 8, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201108120609/http://venturebeat.com/2016/10/18/plants-vs-zombies-heroes-enters-the-mobile-digital-card-game-arena/ . live .
  36. EA sending out alpha invites for new Plants vs. Zombies shooter . McWhertor . Mike . . July 22, 2019 . January 9, 2021 . January 11, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210111210950/https://www.polygon.com/2019/7/22/20703831/plants-vs-zombies-shooter-picnic-alpha-garden-warfare-3 . live .
  37. Web site: New Plants Vs. Zombies Shooter Announced, Goes Live Today . Mike . Fahey . Kotaku . April 9, 2019 . January 9, 2021 . September 15, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190915024732/https://kotaku.com/new-plants-vs-zombies-shooter-announced-goes-live-tod-1837874728 . live .
  38. How EA and Plants vs. Zombies are battling binge culture . Xavier . Nelson . Polygon . September 11, 2019 . January 9, 2021 . September 14, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190914004246/https://www.polygon.com/2019/9/11/20859185/plants-vs-zombies-ea-release-neighborville . live .
  39. Web site: How a Plants vs. Zombies Game Died so a Star Wars Game Could Live (and Then Also Die) . Rebekah . Valentine . October 8, 2022 . October 23, 2022 . .
  40. Web site: Mosseri . Adam . Plants vs. Zombies Comics Now Available on the App Store . iClarified . 19 July 2013 . 19 July 2013.
  41. The Art of Plants vs. Zombies. Dark Horse Comics, 2013.

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