Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare

"Shooters just got weird."

- Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare

 is a third person shooter game released by PopCap Games.

It was first heard on EA's E3 press conference on June 10th, 2013, in which the trailer and gameplay were shown. The game was released on the Xbox 360 and the Xbox One on February 25 in North America and February 28 in Europe in 2014. A PC release came out on June 24, 2014, and a PlayStation 3 and a PlayStation 4 release came out on August 18, 2014. It is followed by Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2, another third person shooter made by PopCap Games.

About
''Dig into the trenches with an explosive new action experience. Enter a massive, mind-blowing PvZ world where plants and zombies are battle-ready troops in epic new challenges. Join forces with friends in Garden Ops, or choose your side in “Gardens & Graveyards” Multiplayer. Get ready for the next generation of PvZ action and sow the seeds of victory!''

Features

 * Powerful character classes for both plants and zombies
 * Choose your side, plants or zombies, in 24-player online battles
 * Join forces with friends in online 4-player cooperative mode
 * Personalize your favorite plants and zombies with hundreds of unique items and customizations
 * Over 10 unique multiplayer and cooperative battlegrounds

Update history

 * June 10, 2013: Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare was announced at the 2013 E3 press-conference. Beta Garden Ops gameplay was shown with the four main plant class characters.
 * November 2013: Beta Team Vanquish gameplay was shown with the characters: Peashooter, Agent Pea, Sunflower, Power Flower, Chomper, Cactus, Ice Cactus, Camo Ranger, Welder, Scientist, Marine Biologist and All-Star. The map shown was Garden Center.
 * December 17, 2013: Beta Gardens and Graveyards gameplay was shown with the eight main class characters. The HUD and some abilities were different from the last video. The map shown was Driftwood Shores.
 * January 16, 2014: Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare was made available for preorder on Windows, Xbox 360 and Xbox One systems. Also, new gameplay of Garden Ops was shown by the Dev team with four characters: Ice Pea, Mystic Flower, Hot Rod Chomper and Future Cactus. This introduced special waves, more potted plants, more waves, Berserkers, the Yeti Zombie boss, the Giga Gargantuar boss and the landing zone. Also, some HUD and abilities changed from the last video as well. The Zomboss Slots icon of the Giga-gargantuar was the only thing different from the final release's gameplay.
 * February 2014: Gameplay on Split Screen exclusively to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One systems was shown.
 * February 25, 2014: Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare was globally released on Xbox 360 and Xbox One consoles.
 * March 5, 2014: Two new packs were released, the Incredi-Plant Pack and Vengeful Zomboss Pack. Both of them are Supremium packs with only stickers to that certain team, for example, the Incredi-Plant Pack will only give plant stickers. Also, Mixed Mode was introduced and the value of completing Team Vanquish, Welcome Mat and Classic Team Vanquish has increased. This wasn't a DLC, though, the features came automatically with the game as soon as this was released.
 * March 19, 2014: The first DLC update, the Garden Variety pack containing new abilities for each class was officially released. Also, over 100 new customization items were added, the Astronaut no longer wears glasses inside his space helmet, the new map Chomp Town was added with also a new gamemode.
 * April 15, 2014: Next DLC update, the Zomboss Down pack was officially released showing one new map, new customization items and eight new characters.
 * June 1, 2014: Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare was announced to release on the PlayStation 3 and 4 systems and was available to preorder.
 * June 24, 2014: The Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare was globally released on PC, including Jewel Junction and its night version, available on PC a week before its console release.
 * June 30, 2014: Another new DLC update known as Tactical Taco Party Pack was released exclusively to Xbox and Xbox One console containing the new game mode - Vanquish Confirmed! along with one new map and two new characters. It also included nerfs for characters such as the Camo Cactus and Fire Cactus.
 * July 21, 2014: First new PC-only DLC update known as Tactical Taco Party PC edition was released adding the Vanquish Confirmed! mode also for PC.
 * August 11, 2014: The new DLC update named Suburbination pack adding the Plasma Pea, Crash Course and new Suburbination game mode was announced to come out August 12. It was not released for PlayStation consoles until the Legends of the Lawn DLC was added.
 * August 11, 2014: The trailer announcing the PlayStation release pack known as Operation Yukon was shown.
 * August 19, 2014: Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare was globally released on PlayStation consoles.
 * August 19, 2014: PopCap teamed up with producer of the popular Cheetos brand releasing two new Cheetos-based characters that were available only through purchase of specially marked bags at Target store locations.
 * September 5, 2014: Due to player problems with getting codes outside of Target, PopCap announced to make both new characters free.
 * September 23, 2014: PopCap starts showing concept arts of new upcoming characters to the game.
 * September 29, 2014: PopCap announced the Legends of the Lawn DLC. Legends of the Lawn DLC pack will be bundled with Suburbination for PlayStation consoles.
 * September 30, 2014: The Legends of the Lawn DLC pack was released, it contained new variants for all the characters except Peashooter, Alien Flower, Chomp Thing, Jade Cactus, Centurion, Sanitation Expert, Paleontologist and Golf Star. The Suburbination patches were added for PlayStation consoles along with this DLC. Also, this DLC introduced a new gamemode, and more.
 * October 11, 2014: Popcap gave out a Halloween Trick or Treat pack for every day of October from this date, the packs contained Halloween related customisation items, cosmetics and exclusive potted plants and Spawnable zombie Frankenshroom, Cat Dragon and the Pumpkin Browncoat. Also if some players missed items from the packs Popcap allowed players to pay 30,000 coins for a Happy Haloween pack after October 31, 2014.
 * November 25, 2014: Turkey Attack Pack was distributed to everyone for free, which introduced a Thanksgiving themed new Spawnable Zombie: Turkey Browncoat.
 * December 1, 2014: Joyous Holiday Packs are released in every day from 1-25 of December, containing Christmas themed customization, and three new consumables: Snow-Shroom, Cariboom and Holiday Browncoats.
 * December 6, 2014: EA gave out the PS4 version for the game for free for a limited time during the 20th anniversary of Playstation.
 * February 25, 2015: Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare celebrated its first anniversary. From now until March 5, 2015 all character variants except for the level 10 variants were unlocked for every player to use. Also during this time period a new playlist was released called the Wild Wild West, as well as there being 10% off all sticker packs which lasted until March 7, 2015 instead of March 5, 2015.
 * March, 2015: PopCap announces the discontinuity on the game, with no more possible DLC's and updates to the game.
 * March 20, 2015: PopCap announces the L.E.A.F transmissions giving first signs on the upcoming sequel to the game.
 * May 5, 2015: To celebrate Plants vs. Zombies' sixth anniversary, PopCap gave out 100 skip challenge stars to every player for free in the form of 5 Super Duper Packs, each pack contained 20 skip challenge stars.

Game modes

 * Garden Ops
 * Gardens & Graveyards
 * Team Vanquish
 * Welcome Mat
 * Gnome Bomb
 * Vanquish Confirmed!
 * Suburbination
 * Taco Bandits
 * Mixed Mode

Welcome Mat/Garden Ops/Team Vanquish/Gnome Bomb/Vanquish Confirmed!/Suburbination/Taco Bandits
Note: Maps during the Taco Bandits gameplay feature additional platforms to help players aiming
 * Garden Center
 * Suburban Flats
 * Sharkbite Shores
 * Zomboss Estate
 * Chomp Town
 * Port Scallywag
 * Jewel Junction
 * Crash Course

Gardens & Graveyards
The zombies must enter a cannon and launch themselves to the Mega Sunflower Lighthouse, trying to destroy it while dodging fire from the Flax Cannon. The zombies must go to the Tactical Cuke and arm four bombs, while dodging giant explosive corn cobs being shot by the Corn Mortars. Get five zombies into the mansion, while Tallnut Cannons are shooting Tallnuts down the street killing both plants and zombies. Plants defend a giant cactus signaling the 18th hole in golf, the zombies must defend the golf-bomb while pushing it until it goes in.
 * Driftwood Shores
 * Main Street
 * Wall-nut Hills
 * Cactus Canyon

Reception
 has received mixed reviews from critic websites. Some reviews praise it in its lighthearted, team-based, and comical aspects, but others criticize its lack of diversity and content. Many reviews also praised for its strong balance between the varied classes, enough so that none feel over-powered or weak. However, the greatest common problem among reviewers is its lack of diversity from other shooters available at the time of release.

Trivia

 * The title "Garden Warfare" parodies Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.
 * Sunflower now has offensive capabilities and the mushrooms are no longer nocturnal. Although a few of them are stronger at nighttime maps.
 * Even if the All-Star and the Engineer are considered as new zombies, they are based on Football Zombie and Digger Zombie respectively.
 * Coincidentally, the four main plant classes are on the loading screen of the original Plants vs. Zombies.
 * This is the first game in where the Sunflower is an offensive plant.
 * The Giga Gargantuar is now dressed in black and wears sunglasses. This also applies to its Giga Imp.
 * It is still possible to view the Giga Gargantuar's red eyes from the side however.
 * This is the only game where the zombies do not attempt to eat your brains.
 * However, in Team Vanquish Mode, when the plants reach 40 vanquishes, Dr. Zomboss will say: "The Plants only need 10! Don't you want brains?"
 * Every Imp in this game utilizes an ability to explode on contact with player or surface.
 * There is an Easter Egg in the Garden Center map. If the player selects the Cactus and finds a wall with sheets of paper on them, he or she can blast away the debris in front of the wall and then use the Cactus' super aim to see some entertaining notes. One says "Achievement Hunters needed." This is a reference to the YouTube channel also named "achievement hunters." It even has their logo on the sheet. Another sheet says "What does the fox say?", a nod to the song "The Fox."
 * There is another Easter Egg in Driftwood Shores in the marina area. On a red boat along the side of the area, it is shown that the name of the boat is "The King of Red Dandelions" this is a reference to The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker in which the boat is called "The King of Red Lions".
 * Another boat near "The King of Red Dandelions" is called "Pea Pod" which references the plant with the same name in Plants vs. Zombies 2.
 * There is another reference to The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker in the marina area of Driftwood shores, if you look at the background behind the boats to the side of the map, Outset island from The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker is visible.
 * There is another Easter Egg that if you are in Zomboss Estate and you look behind the thin trees, Slenderman can be seen.
 * On consoles Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4, Slenderman can be seen standing still in the bushes.
 * On the PC version, Slenderman can be seen being eaten by a Chomper.
 * There is another Easter Egg in Chomp Town. When you find a bulletin and used snipe, you will see that Zombie Yeti is Wanted.
 * There is also one paper that says someone has been stealing road cones. This is possible that it is the Conehead Zombie(s), as (he) they wear(s) road cones on their (his) head(s).
 * In Chomp Town, you can find an spray in one wall that says "All your brainz r belong to us", a reference to the internet meme "All your base are belong to us".
 * It could also be a reference to the I, Zombie level "All your brainz r belong to us" in Plants vs. Zombies.
 * In the PC version, if you go to Zomboss Estate. If you go to where Slenderman is, it shows a Chomper swallowing Slenderman. Neither the Chomper nor Slenderman are affected by damage.
 * Another Easter egg is on Sharkbite Shores  where a building showed Whats Up Dock? This is a pun of Bugs Bunny's catchphrase, "What's up, doc?"
 * Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare for PC was free to play from 8/15/2014 to 8/25/2014 in Origin.
 * In the official E3 trailer, the player can see plants and zombies fighting each other and drones flying. Not only that, you can also hear the "NOOOOOOOOOOOO!" from the other games, especially the ordinary zombie growl, "Brains..."
 * Also in the trailer, the word "Garden Warfare" is black and white.
 * The Sombrero Bean Bomb yells out "Andale!" and "Arriba!" after thrown by the Peashooter and is about to blow up the Gargantuar, but the bean's voice is squeaky.
 * The Sunflower's Sunbeam in the trailer looks different than the one in-game.
 * The Engineer's Sonic Grenade in the trailer sounds different than the one in-game.
 * If a character dies while either chomping or using an ability, the sound may glitch out which results in endless loops of the sounds used during the ability.
 * In Garden Ops, there is a glitch where in the middle of a game, a SECOND garden may spawn in one of the other two locations. Both gardens will need to be defended and both have potted plants.
 * This is the second game where the player can play as the zombies, the first being I, Zombie from Plants vs. Zombies.