Plants vs Zombies (PC)
Christo van Gemert
One Friday, a while before deadline (just in case the editor reads this [She does! You’re busted! Ed]), we were bored. In a quest to find a bit of light-hearted entertainment to pass the hours before clocking out, we ran out of luck at all our usual spots.

Good Flash-based games are either too easy or too difficult. There’s also no longevity in them.
So off we went to PopCap games. This independent developer is responsible for a lot of point-and-click-style games. The kind where the intellectual buy-in is low: there’s no need to “know video games” to start enjoying a PopCap title.

The most amusing title on the front page was Plants vs Zombies: 50 levels, 26 different zombies and 49 various plants, the product page boasted. Then we saw it had both PC and Mac versions. Credit cards out, R180 spent, game downloaded. And what a fantastic purchase.

The premise for Plants vs Zombies is simple. Zombies are trying to invade your house. Between them and you is a garden (later on, a backyard) and various seeds. Peashooters do just that: shoot peas. Sunflowers produce sunshine, needed to grow more plants. Eventually you get to invest in more powerful, faster firing plants. The zombies will also get more powerful, eventually arriving en masse, ready for the slaughter.

What makes Plants vs Zombies so much fun is that the playful music and cutesy graphics are completely at odds with the whole idea of zombies: the terrifying undead, hoarding to eat your brains. There is no violence or blood, punching or swearing.

That doesn’t make it any less challenging. Careful resource management is required to make sure you have enough sunshine in reserve for those big waves of zombies. Strategy is a key element, too. Plant too many peashooters, and you’ll soon find your house invaded. Defence is vital, as you plant rows of wallnuts (sic) to slow down the invaders.

In addition to the 50 main levels, there are also mini games and extra challenges. These can be played to amass money, which can then be used to unlock extra items for the main campaign. Things like extra seed slots, to have a larger variety of plants in each battle, or firewood tree stumps, which will turn the peashooter peas into fireballs of death. Muhahahah!

IIn summary
Rating: 85%
Best for: Beginners, casual gamers and hardcore gamers
Digital Life says: A fine way to pass that last hour at the office on a Friday afternoon
Plus: Addictive gameplay; cute graphics; easy learning curve
Minus: Addictive gameplay; gets quite difficult; pricey for a basic game
Contact: PopCap Games: www.popcap.com
Price: R180