User blog:Tecku/Big Wave Beach Part 2 First Thoughts

So.... Big Wave Beach Part 2 is out. It turned out... well.... *sigh*

It's plagued by the same problems as the first half, but hat pales in comparison to the behemoth that was the Octo Zombie. I mean..... really? Of all the zombies you've used in the past, Wizard Zombie was the one you wanted to model a new zombie after? And yet somehow, you managed to make it even worse. Unlike Surfer Zombie, I don't really fell like Octo Zombie was a good concept to begin with.

If you want feedback, then I would have made it so plants eventually wiggle free of the octopi. I mean, it makes sense, doesn't it? Plants should be fighting from the inside. Make the octopi slowly lose health, and let other plants speed up the process. This especially is true if the rightmost plant can be bound! For land's sake, if Homing Thistle can't target it, the only other plants that can target it are Banana Launcher and Split Pea. And of those two, the former's shots are too valuable to waste on that. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: one plant does not a defense make!

Fisherman Zombie is annoying. The real stinger is how easy the fix is: fork over White Radish, or a naval stand-in for it. That's it. Problem solved. End of story.

....Oh, alright..... let me explain. The PvZ2 team doesn't seem to understand how to handle a zombie that hangs out at the right edge of the screen (besides Imp Cannon). To make a "remote" zombie fun, it needs to either be counterable or negateable. Catapult Zombie could be countered by Umbrella Leaf, and didn't appear in super-high numbers. Imp Cannons were still annoying, but here are two things that made it tolerable. First, the Imp Cannons eventually leave if not defeated. They may have a negative consequence for when this happens, but it is a suitable mechanic to keep them from overstaying their welcome. Secondly, they mostly appear on the non-plank lanes, where there were less zombies. This makes them more vunerable to attack between Imp firings.

On the other hand, King Zombie and Fisherman Zombie have no true counters. King Zombies can immediately replace helms taken by Magnet-Shroom and Fisherman Zombie is tough enough to survive a Guacodile biting, and come too numerous for Banana Luancher to deal with. They stay until there are no other zombies on field, making them tedious to deal with.

So was there anything I did enjoy about the new levels. Well.....yes! The new plants did prove to be a lot of fun (though they are much more fun in the better worlds), and there were one or two good levels in there. I really had run on the Special Delivery level with the Banana Luanchers was particularly enjoyable. The Zomboss level was a downright blast. Using the Tangle Kelp was a great mechanic, and the plant frequecy was well balanced against Zomboss' attacks (take a note, Dark Dragon).

All in all, the levels were a pain, but there is some good stuff that shines through. If the PvZ team is willing to apply themselves, I'm willing to give them a third chance with their next world.