After much delay, and months after the Xbox Live Arcade version hit consoles, the critically acclaimed Plants vs. Zombies has finally been released for the Playstation Network. It's still the PC game you know and love, albeit with some differences, but do these aforementioned differences provide an adequate reason to buy the game on this platform? Keep reading after the jump to find out.
Plants vs. Zombies has gained mass critical and commercial fame for a game released on the mediums it has, whether it was PC or more recently the Xbox Live Arcade. Now it's finally meandered over to the Playstation Network and seems to be, on the surface at least, pretty much the exact same game. Granted I don't have much experience with the previous iterations of the series, but from what I've witnessed and experienced, there doesn't seem to be much different here.
All the features of this tower defense game are pretty much the same. The plants from what I can tell are no different than there were in the PC version or XBLA one so there isn't much new here really. Some of the progression of levels and plants and gameplay mechanics have changed apparently but that's really nothing to write home about. It is a different version so it's not unexpected.
However, that being said, Plants vs. Zombies is probably the premiere tower defense game today on the PSN. It may not be the hardest one out there as I didn't even come within striking distance of actually losing until about 12 levels in, but what it lacks in difficulty, it more than makes up with in charm.
The names of many of the plants are puns which you may not realize at first, such as Re-Pea-Ter and others. The plants are designed in a semi-cartoonish manner that evokes happy go lucky cartoons of yesteryear. While there are in fact zombies attacking, there is no sense of morbidity until you reach the nighttime stage, where grave stones pop up and interrupt the proceedings. But even that's not scary nor is it meant to be. There are zombies with buckets on their heads, pole vaulters and ones sporting traffic cones. When you combine the cute names of the plants with the happy go lucky tone of the game and then add in zombies dressed in a foreign manner, you've got one game with charm coming out the wazoo. Then add in the award winning score, and you've got something special on your hands.
Plants vs. Zombies for the PSN may not be the most groundbreaking gamer out there and may just be seen as another entry in a tired genre, but for what this game lacks in innovation, it more than makes up for in charm and solid gameplay. It does make you earn it as you go on so even that problem is remedied but this game isn't about the difficulty. From Crazy Dave to the zombie attire to the music to the plant names, this game's all about the charm and humor and that's what you get in spades in Plants vs. Zombies. There's no more highly recommended tower defense game out there for PSN. It's not breaking the mold, but it's strengthening the one that already exists.
