Plants vs Zombies (DSi Ware Version) Game by PopCap Games Reviewed by PERSON Size: 121 Blocks Save: Battery, 2 Slots Released: 2011 Works with: DSi, DSi XL, 3DS ESRB Rated: E10 Rating Descriptions: Animated Blood, Cartoon Violence Quick Opinion: Own.... with a slight caveat. **************************************************************************** Opening Snide Remarks: Tower Defense is an interesting addition to the puzzle and strategy genre. Plants Vs Zombies is the PopCap take on Tower Defense. PopCap is best known for Bejeweled, Bookworm, Peggle, and Zuma. Since this is the Opening Snide Remarks, I feel that it is my responsibility to educate you about PopCap Games. PopCap was founded in 2000 by John Vechey, Brian Fiete and Jason Kapalka. Their first major success was Bejeweled Deluxe, which was distributed as a "Try before you Buy" style game. Now I shall tell you about PLANTS. A plant is any living organism belonging to the kingdom Plantae. This kingdom is part of a biological taxonomy that we use to define living organisms into neat groups. Groups like Animalia, which contains Human Beings, Dogs, Cats, Lions and Tigers, and Bears. OH MY! On an odd note, Plants Vs Zombies contains Mushrooms. Mushrooms are from the FUNGI KINGDOM of Taxonomy and are separate from Plantae. So, the game should be called "Plants and Fungus VS Zombies." I suppose that would be a bit too long for the game cases. I have to wonder about the Taxonomy of the Zombies. They could be considered Animalia; but the are not "living" organisms. They are the un-living and they could be either biological or supernatural. Most of the zombies in this game appear to be biological and -mostly- slow. Although they appear to have the ability to learn and adapt to the challenges of getting across your lawn to eat your brain. They can also swim and you will even see a zombie dolphin and a zombie yeti in the game. The zombies even appear to be able to operate machines, carry signs, swim, and plan attacks. They also appear to be doggedly persistent, and able to properly allocate resources. The last two traits place them on a higher level of intelligence than 70% of citizens of the United States of America, and 99% of the population of Washington D.C. Their ability to drive in a straight line makes them more competent than ALL drivers in Colorado, Texas, and Michigan. I suppose it is unfair to include Michigan in that list; because only about 20 people in the entire state are able to afford and properly maintain a vehicle. Those 20 people are awful drivers though, so we have to include them. The increased amount of Zombies that have popped up in Michigan has led to better cars being made in that state though. If anything, we should be happy that these Undead-Americans see fit to work on our vehicles between their strange jabbering about some weird thing called Sharia Law. It is believed that many of these new Undead-Americans are actually illegal Canadians who have hopped over the border to start musical careers. It has come to the attention of the management at DMG Ice that some of the above statements could be construed as Undeadism. We at DMG Ice support the Undead in their efforts to be accepted into the social structure of the United States. We would like to say that we have never made fun of their leaders: Zombie Bob Dole and Zombie Osama Bin Laden. We would also like them to know that we will leave the front doors of the office open, should they ever want to visit us at the address below. 625 2nd Street 3rd Floor San Francisco, CA 94107 The sign stands for Intense Gnawing is Needed. We at DMG Ice encourage gnawing and other Pro-Zombie actions. Maybe it would be best for our readers to remove any hats, open their windows and doors, and sit quietly at their computer to read this review. You should read this review further and pay no attention to any odd noises like shuffling, scraping, moaning about brains, or drooling. Those are probably just the wind. **************************************************************************** Gameplay Description: The point of Plants VS Zombies is pretty simple to explain and I will do so in a concise manner. You are the homeowner and the Zombies want to get across your lawn to enter your house. Once inside, they will "eat your brains." This is not slang for any sort of kinky sex act. They literally want to "eat your brains." You do not want that to happen. (You Undeadist.) To prevent this from happening, you plant different kinds of plants in your yard to fend off the intruders. The plants require sunshine to grow and each plant has a different sunshine cost and function. Sunflowers give you more sunshine. Pea Shooters fire seeds at the Zombies to kill them. Cherry Bombs explode and take several Zombies out. Sunshine randomly falls from the sky and must be collected to build more plants. You place the plants in one of up to five different rows of lawn, pool, or flower pot. The Zombies come in waves and you must successfully repel their unwanted advances by strategically placing plants to properly prevent potential penetration by putrid, plagued personages that prefer pickled pons. (The Pons is the part of your brain below the midbrain that controls sleep paralysis and Rapid Eye Movement. It helps you dream. It is located in the back of your neck, if you must know.) The game is divided into the main game "Adventure" and the mini-games. The mini-games mirror some of what is in the full Nintendo DS game. Sadly, the game is missing any multi-player functions and does not contain the "Zombatar" function that the retail version DOES contain. Actually, this version only contains the following content. ADVENTURE: The Main Game. Although some Achievements are not in it. MINI-GAMES: Almost all of them are here. SHOP: Of course. This allows you to buy new plants and other items with the money that the Zombies occasionally drop. ALMANAC: Allows you to see the data on the Plants/Zombies. The retail version has Survival, Puzzle, Zen Garden, Zombatar, and the multi-player options. The main game is pretty fun and contains 50 levels of Zombie busting action. The Mini-Games are variations of the main game but with bowling, and other odd variations. One of them even has Portals in it. The gameplay flow consists of placing using the sunshine to grow plants to both increase sunshine and kill Zombies. Each of the plants has a unique ability that allows you to adapt your defenses to match the threats posed by the various kinds of Zombies. Some Zombies take more hits than others, or carry items that help them avoid some of the basic plants. Conditions such as Night, Fog, Water, and Flowerpots are thrown into the mix as the main adventure game progresses. The essence of Tower Defense is that you set up "towers" to defend a "castle." In this case, the "Castle" is your home and the "towers" are plants. Mongols, Orcs, Zerg, and other such nasties have been replaced with comical Zombies. Liked: Lots of things to do in this game and lots of variation on the Tower Defense genre. Hated: If you are not a fan of Tower Defense, there is nothing for you here. There are a lot of options missing in the DSi Ware version in comparison to the retail Nintendo DS version. **************************************************************************** Graphics Description: The graphics are detailed and full of personality. It is easy to tell the plants apart from each other. The top screen is used to show off a "Zombie View" in which funny things happen in a bid to distract you from the bottom screen where all the action takes place. The DSi Ware version uses lower resolution art than the retail version; but still looks great. Everything is easy to discern and the art direction is strong in this one. The plants and zombies also change expressions depending on what is happening at the moment. This is a very colorful game and the visual style is part of the appeal of the title. Liked: It looks great and has a very funny art style to it. Hated: If you have played this on a Nintendo DS, PC, XBOX 360, iPad, or on any of the more powerful systems with more space available for art assets; than you will be mildly disappointed with the lower resolution look of the game. **************************************************************************** Sound/Music Description: Almost all of the music in the retail version is present in this game, including the fully voiced ending credits song entitled: "Zombie on your lawn." The voices are present and the odd squawking, chewing, and Dolphin noises are all present and appropriate. The music sets a light mood for this "creepy" game with appropriate composition and use. Liked: That awesome credits song and the "Zombies are coming" voice that signifies the start of a wave of Zombies. Hated: That chewing sound........ **************************************************************************** Play Control/Game Design: The entire amount of play control in this title consists of tapping or dragging items to a spot in the lawn. The game is more about properly placing plants to effectively stave off the Zombie's who have come to party at your house with you providing entertainment and refreshments. By entertainment, they mean chewing. By refreshment, they mean your brains. The menus are easy to navigate and the game uses the touch screen well. The game design is a bit simple at first because it involves a lot of placing plants and waiting to see if you made the right choice. The levels are broken up by special mini-game levels and new level types to prevent the game from getting stale. It is a simple, but addictive formula and it is packed up with enough content and variety to exercise your brains for a good amount of time. The game also has a great sense of humor to it that is akin to morbid franchises like Invader Zim or The Addam's Family. Liked: Simple design and mechanics coupled with funny dialogue and compelling twists make for a fun game that is well worth the 800 point price tag. Hated: It is really just a sample platter for the much more robust, and pricier, retail version. There is a level variation where the plants will "over heat" and it requires you to blow on the microphone or yell to get them to be "encouraged." Those always make me dizzy after a while. **************************************************************************** Improve: I do feel that a sequel to this title should add Roses, climbing vines, tomatoes, and other plants to the mix. It should also add more levels, more mini-games, and more Zombies. Ditch the "over heat" level. RIYL: Tower Defense. Zombies. **************************************************************************** Final Words: This is a great game that features more mini-games than the XBLA and iPhone/iPad/PC versions. It is just missing a huge chunk of the content that the DS retail version has, including the Zombatar feature and multi-player. If you are on the fence about this game, the DSi Ware version will be fine. I would recommend people just buy the retail version for this title if they really enjoy the DSi Ware version. **************************************************************************** Score Gameplay: **** Graphics: **** Sound/Music: *** Play Control/Game Design: **** Value: *** Star Total: 54 Personal Opinion Merit: 20 Final Score: 74% Letter Grade: B ****************************************************************************