Plants vs Zombies™ 2

About

"Plants vs. Zombies™ 2 is a humorous and engaging single-player strategy game with beautiful game mechanics, fabulous graphics, and a stunning soundtrack. The spooky Costume Contest is back, just in time for the season! However, watch out for the grinding, annoying ads, and occasional bugs that may dampen the experience. Despite its flaws, the game manages to evoke strong emotions, making it a worthy sequel."

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

65%

Audience ScoreBased on 10,576 reviews

graphics226 positive mentions

monetization1.7k negative mentions

monetization
2,177 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
7%
13%
80%
The monetization aspect of the game has drawn significant criticism from users, primarily due to the overwhelming number of ads and the prevalence of microtransactions. Many players report being bombarded with ads after nearly every level, often leading to game crashes and a frustrating experience. Additionally, essential plants and upgrades are frequently locked behind paywalls, making it feel like a cash grab rather than a fair gaming experience. While some players appreciate the option to watch ads for rewards, the overall sentiment is that the monetization strategy detracts from the enjoyment of the game.
- “While microtransactions can give you a fair advantage, in my opinion, that's only fair, considering that this game is free to begin with.”
- “The game is fun, there are in-game purchases but you can avoid them and still enjoy the game.”
- “Despite the microtransactions and grind, this is still a good game; plants and zombies are visually unique, gameplay is fun on mobile, and graphics are good.”
- “Downloaded the game to enjoy the good old days, but the game is plagued with loot boxes, in-app purchases, and ads after levels.”
- “Just disgusting how many ads they force down your throat with zero way to work around this, even a buyable option to remove ads would be preferable to an ad every other minute.”
- “The game itself is fun, but there are absolutely too many ads and no possible way to get rid of them.”
graphics
325 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
70%
27%
4%
The graphics in "Plants vs. Zombies 2" are widely praised for their vibrant colors, unique character designs, and overall visual appeal, marking a significant improvement over the original game. Many players appreciate the cartoonish art style and polished animations, although some express nostalgia for the original's aesthetic. While the graphics are generally considered excellent, a few users note issues with glitches and a preference for the first game's style, indicating a mixed reception regarding the changes.
- “The graphics are vibrant and colorful, and the characters are all unique and endearing.”
- “The graphics are amazing and way better than the first.”
- “The new improved graphics are amazing and the art, design, and animation is outstanding.”
- “It even looks worse aesthetically than the first.”
- “Loaded with ads, in-app purchases and worse graphics than the original.”
- “The graphics are cheesy and so is the sound.”
gameplay
301 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
48%
45%
7%
Gameplay in "Plants vs. Zombies 2" is generally praised for its engaging mechanics, variety of plants and zombies, and improved graphics compared to the original. However, many players express frustration over the game's heavy reliance on microtransactions, frequent ads, and unbalanced difficulty, which can detract from the overall experience. While some enjoy the nostalgic elements and new features, others feel that the monetization strategies and technical issues significantly hinder the gameplay enjoyment.
- “As far as the gameplay goes, this game is amazing.”
- “The gameplay is intuitive and engaging, and there is a wide variety of different plants and zombies to encounter throughout the game.”
- “The gameplay is fun and addicting, and I've never experienced any glitches either.”
- “This game is a hot mess with incoherent level design, absurd difficulty, and pay-to-win styled gameplay.”
- “The gameplay is fine, but this really ruins the whole experience.”
- “Pay-to-win makes it bad; the core, and classic PvZ gameplay is there, but the unfair difficulty curve ruins the game, only play it if you're willing to spend money.”
stability
279 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
1%
2%
97%
The stability of the game has been widely criticized, with numerous users reporting frequent crashes, freezes, and various glitches that disrupt gameplay. Many players have experienced issues such as the game closing unexpectedly, problems with ads causing freezes, and persistent bugs that have not been addressed despite multiple updates. Overall, while the game is enjoyable, its stability issues significantly detract from the user experience.
- “No glitches, don't freeze, and the graphics are just fine!”
- “No glitches.”
- “No freezes or glitches I've experienced.”
- “I encountered a variety of glitches, which prompted me to delete my profile and uninstall the app; start from scratch.”
- “Really great game but recently keep having the game freeze then close out when playing Penny's Pursuit, which allows me to start the level but once the zombies come it freezes and then the app closes on itself.”
- “The game crashes and glitches often and I'm having to restart it multiple times while trying to play.”
story
270 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
62%
5%
The story in "Plants vs. Zombies 2" is generally praised for its creativity, humor, and engaging gameplay, with many players enjoying the variety of worlds and characters introduced. However, some users express disappointment with the post-story content, feeling that it lacks depth and often leads to a grind for resources, particularly due to the prevalence of microtransactions. While the main storyline is considered fun and strategic, the overall experience can be marred by bugs, ads, and a perceived shift towards a pay-to-win model.
- “The animations, storyline, and the gameplay itself are stunning; it's nearly flawless.”
- “An amazing addition to the PVZ games, with cool power-ups, additional plants and zombies, and a captivating storyline across multiple worlds!”
- “The story mode is incredible, the battle mode is fantastic, and it's just a great game!”
- “Other than being really difficult, the story is not that great, and the zen garden is a disappointing step down from the first game.”
- “I am really disappointed in this game, I expected a nice paced game where I get to relax and kill zombies (like the first game) but no, I get a money grab with an unfair PvP, too little coin earned by level, a plant level system that makes me more annoyed in the long run, and to top it all off the main storyline is just flat out annoying and complicated compared to the first game.”
- “Not only does it have too many microtransactions, but once you finish the story, there just isn't much else to do.”
music
257 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
74%
4%
The music in the game is highly praised for its quality and nostalgic value, but players are frustrated by numerous glitches that prevent it from playing consistently across various levels. Many report that music often fails to play at all, overlaps, or cuts out unexpectedly, particularly in specific worlds like Frostbite Caves and Modern Day. Additionally, the removal of beloved tracks, such as the ultimate battle and mini-game music, has left fans disappointed, with many calling for their return to enhance the overall experience.
- “I love the music and the game has a lot of charm.”
- “The soundtracks are great; my favorite world is the Neon Mixtape Tour, which has the best soundtrack in my opinion.”
- “The music is the only reason to play this game.”
- “The music cuts on and off at random times, and I end up losing progress because the game just crashes so much.”
- “The music will sometimes turn off for no reason, and the only way to fix it is to change the volume of the music.”
- “For some reason, the background music doesn't play on Jurassic Marsh levels.”
grinding
90 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The grinding aspect of the game is widely criticized, with players noting that it requires excessive time and effort to level up plants and progress, often pushing them towards microtransactions. Many reviews highlight the tedious nature of grinding for resources, the prevalence of paywalls for premium plants, and the frustration of repetitive tasks, leading to a generally negative perception of the game's progression system. While some players enjoy the grind and find it rewarding, the overwhelming sentiment is that the game is overly reliant on grinding and monetization, detracting from the overall experience.
- “The game is horrible and very grindy, and it crashes so many times!”
- “It's a really fun game and all, but it would be a 5-star if there was an easier way to get seed packets as I've been grinding for a long time and have only unlocked Torchwood with packets.”
- “The current options will take you years of grinding to get anywhere.”
humor
75 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
99%
1%
The humor in the game is widely praised, with players enjoying its clever writing, funny character interactions, and whimsical themes. Many reviews highlight the hilarious new plants and zombies, as well as the amusing challenges and dialogue, which contribute to an engaging and entertaining experience. Overall, the game's humor is seen as a significant enhancement over its predecessor, making it both fun and addictive.
- “I like the game's sense of humor as well as the world's creative challenges and theme.”
- “The new plants are awesome, the time travel is funny, and I love the challenges like making 5000 sun or shooting down flying zombies with the coconut cannon.”
- “It's funny, strategic, exciting, and never boring!”
- “This new game is greedy and really unfunny.”
optimization
15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
40%
20%
Overall, the game's optimization is a mixed bag, with many users reporting significant performance issues, including frequent crashes and poor compatibility with older devices and certain screen ratios. While some players experience smooth gameplay on specific models, others express frustration over the game's inability to run properly on their devices, indicating a need for further optimization across a wider range of hardware.
- “Everything runs smoothly, and if you like idle zombie games, this is for you.”
- “I love the game; there are lots of plants to have, and it runs smoothly on LG phones.”
- “I love it; it has the best performance and not many ads.”
- “Great game, horrible optimization on Android.”
- “The game needs to be optimized for older phones that have Android 7.0.0.”
- “Crashes seemingly randomly on regular levels and the game isn't optimized to handle the battle mode.”
replayability
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
64%
9%
27%
Overall, the game offers significant replayability, enhanced by frequent updates and a variety of content. However, some players feel that the introduction of faster gameplay and pay-to-win elements detracts from the experience, leading them to prefer earlier titles in the series. Despite these concerns, many still find the game enjoyable and packed with replay value.
- “The replayability of this game is amazing - especially with their constant updates and additions.”
- “Great game with loads of replayability and very little microtransactions.”
- “Awesome replay value.”
- “Anthony's review comes from someone who previously beat the first PvZ game and played the first Garden Warfare game. The game has gone downhill ever since PvZ2 and Garden Warfare 2; it's just not the same game anymore. The game is hard for no reason. Honestly, you're better off replaying the first game and playing the first Garden Warfare, as those have so much replayability.”
- “There’s more; a lot of the plants also cost money, even though some of them were playable in the original.”
- “The microtransactions, weirdly enough, are not horrendous as I heard, and it has so much replayability.”
emotional
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players express a deep emotional connection to the game, highlighting feelings of nostalgia and heartbreak due to technical issues and changes in artwork. Many feel frustrated by the monetization strategies that detract from their enjoyment, leading to a sense of emotional investment that feels unreciprocated. Overall, while the game evokes strong memories, ongoing problems significantly impact players' willingness to engage further.
- “Made me feel so nostalgic.”
- “Heartbreaking as much as I love playing this game, the main reason I gave it the rating I did is that I have an ongoing problem that I am actually unable to buy any of the new release plants.”
- “I have three complaints: 1st, the artwork is nothing like the original; it makes me want to cry. 2nd, I hate the fact that you decided to make the plants cost real money; just make them cost more gems. 3rd, how come when you try out the plants that cost money, it says 'now that you tried this plant out, try out these deals'? Once you click on it, it steals your coins and doesn't give you the plant; it's like it's just there to taunt you for being broke.”
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The atmosphere of the game is a mixed bag; while some players appreciate the new plants and zombies that enhance the experience, others feel that the maps have become dull and less visually appealing compared to earlier designs, leading to a less immersive environment.
- “I love the atmosphere and the new plants and zombies they have introduced!”
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The character development in the game is praised for its strong writing and appealing character designs, contributing to an engaging overall experience.
- “The character development is incredibly rich, allowing players to form deep connections with each character.”
- “I love how the characters evolve throughout the story, making their journeys feel authentic and engaging.”
- “The writing and character arcs are so well-crafted that I found myself emotionally invested in their growth.”