Format: PC/Mac

Release date: 05/05/2009

Price: $19.95

Official site: PopCap Games

It’s easy to utter a thousand praise packed sentences for the quite wonderful PopCap Games. Who here hasn’t been obscenely addicted to the likes of Peggle, Bejeweled, or Bookworm? They seem to churn out these brilliantly addictive titles with the kind of devilish ease most developers could only conjure up in their most favoured dreams.

Yet here we go once again with Plants vs. Zombies. You’re homestead is coming under attack by a plethora of differently skilled zombies, and you’ve only a batch of plants to protect yourself. Sounds like the most wicked mismatch since Alex Kidd bumped into Kratos from the God of War games after an alcohol filled night out. Now there’s an idea for you.

Thankfully, as the differing brands of zombies (ranging from simple slowly shambolic imbeciles, through to pole vaulters, and Zomboni drivers) slowly shuffle from right to left, you have the ability to place all kinds of wickedly aggressive plants in their way.

Using the in game currency of sun (which you simply click on to obtain when it drops down screen, or as your placed sunflowers gush a bit of brightly lit goodness) you can utilise exploding efforts, Pea Shooters, and various other plants ready and willing to face the oncoming hordes.

Essentially this is a heavily simplified Tower Defence title. But it’s been created with such an incredible amount of style and strategic depth that it’s impossible to not fall head over heels. PopCap offer a free 60 minute trial, and it’ll be interesting to see just how many immediately purchase the full game as soon as that trial period ends.

The sheer amount of strategic options is staggering. As zombies start to appear, do you plant more sunflowers to help boost your income? Or do you start to lay down some Pea Shooters to try and stave off this early threat? Only one heavily simple choice, but the basis of a multitude of choices you’ll need to speedily make as you plough through the perfectly pitched levels.

With a variety of modes to fiddle with, a cheap price point, and a stunning amount of fun crammed in, Plants vs. Zombies is yet another PopCap classic.

Rating: 5/5