Rodney McKay
Member
Earlier in December, PvZ2 was given a huge update that changed a lot of stuff with the game, but the explanation for these changes was very unclear. There wasnt even a press release from Popcap even though this is one of the most substantial updates Ive seen a game receive recently.
Having beat the original version of the game on Android (except for all the stars) and just now beating the updated version of the game, I thought Id make a thread going through all of the changes I have noticed, which ones are good, and which ones are didnt work so well.
Changes:
#1: No more keys (Great Change)
Keys were one of the biggest complaints with the original game and probably a big reason for this update. Originally you had to earn a certain number of keys to unlock new branches of the map in order to get new plants and upgrades. These keys were rare drops and were a very annoying progression barrier made even worse by the fact that it gives you the (very up front) option to BUY the keys.
The new update does away with the keys entirely, so theres one less annoying monetization method. The only key I was given when I updated the game was to unlock the new world that is hinted to be Coming Soon.
#2+3: Completely new progression structure and no more stars (Some Good, but overall Bad Change)
This is a combo change since they tie together very closely.
Originally PvZ2 had a Mario 3 style map which I actually quite liked. There was the main path you followed, but also optional paths that let you unlock new plants and abilities. These alternate routes usually focused on a different gameplay gimmick some of which were good and some of which were bad. There were stages where you are assigned the plants you have to use and mini-game style stages where you might have to play a tile memorization puzzle to kill the zombies. My only complaint with this map style is that the keys originally locked away the side branches (with the keys removed I would have preferred they kept it as it was) and the new worlds were locked with a Star Gate (ha). In each main stage there were 3 stars for you to unlock which gave you specific challenges to overcome or rules you had to follow. Stars basically acted as additional challenges for each level, which were nice to have. What I (and many others) didnt like was that you had to backtrack to get stars in order to unlock the next world (or pay to unlock the next world).
The update makes the game a completely straight line of 25-30 levels each world that you have to play through in a set order until you beat them. I guess this makes it easier to balance since the plant unlocks and upgrades are no longer optional. The problem I have with the new linear method is that Im forced to play a lot of level types that Id rather not. Most of the latter half of each worlds stages are the protect these plants, dont let the zombies cross this line, etc. stages which were originally optional (outside of needing more stars to unlock the next world). What makes it worse is that if you get stuck on a level you cant progress at all, which leads me to the next change
#4: Increased difficulty (Good/Bad change)
The update made the game noticeably more challenging which I appreciated, but it can occasionally be too much. On one hand I like to think they were catering to the audience that is really good at PvZ already, but being realistic it feels more like an attempt to force you to use the coin purchasable Cheat powers. I played every level of the new update and I did manage to beat them all WITHOUT using those coin powers, but one of them took me at least a dozen tries before I found what I can only imagine was the one perfect solution that you have to use.
Also, many of these later levels have an immediate fail condition built into them, especially if zombie hits a lawnmower. The lawnmowers are there so you DONT immediately fail a level, why would they make that a fail state if not to get you to use the coin powers (which flash when a zombie gets too close, ugh).
#5: Speed Up Button (Great change!)
Not much of a need to explain, they put in a button that makes the game run about 2-3 times faster. Great to use for slower early waves and when waiting to collect sunshine. Speaking of sunshine
#6: Each sunshine you tap gives you 50 sun instead of the original 25 (? Change)
I honestly dont know if this is a good or bad change, but it is a change. If someone knows if this is an upgrade you get over the course of the game, let me know, but I had this right when my game upgraded.
It could be that this was there to increase the speed of the matches, but I cant confirm if the zombies come faster or in bigger waves (since I cant play the original version anymore).
#7: Boss stages (Good change)
I was always a fan of the Gargantuans in the original game and Im happy to see them return with a new level type in each stage. Basically its a harder than normal stage that builds up to have quite a few Gargantuan zombies coming at you.
Whats the same and still not good
#1: No second playthrough harder difficulty mode (NG+)
There is the endless mode which gives the game some longevity, but the original PvZ had a full second playthrough of the campaign with harder waves and its a shame thats not in this game.
#2: Extremely overpriced (real money) plants and upgrades
The plants for the original game vary in price from $3-4 EACH and the same goes for upgrades like additional seed slot and +1 plant food slot. Between the plants and upgrades that makes 10 permanent DLC items you can buy which adds up to about $34 to own everything. The most I would ever pay for a bundle with ALL of the plants would be about $10. As they are, each of these plants and tiny upgrades are individually priced higher than most full mobile games that DONT have microtransactions.
There should be a way to buy these upgrades and plants with in-game coins and the coins should be the only thing thats monetized. Thats how the first game worked when they added in monetization and it did a great job of not getting in the way of the core game. Balanced properly that system would have worked very well for PvZ2 as well. People who wanted to rush a bit could have just bought some coins to get a plant they want, or be able to use more coin powers. People who didnt could still enjoy a well-paced game.
Overall I still like the game. I think the plant food mechanic is a great change to the series and makes the matches a bit more engaging for the player. The new plants they added are a lot of fun and I actually dont really miss any of the plants that are missing/sold as DLC (well, other than the Snow Peas and the Torchwood. Unsurprisingly the two most expensive plants to buy).
Let me know if there are any other updates I may have missed. I wish I hadn't updated the version of the game on my tablet so I could have compared and contrasted the two, but oh well.
Having beat the original version of the game on Android (except for all the stars) and just now beating the updated version of the game, I thought Id make a thread going through all of the changes I have noticed, which ones are good, and which ones are didnt work so well.
Changes:
#1: No more keys (Great Change)
Keys were one of the biggest complaints with the original game and probably a big reason for this update. Originally you had to earn a certain number of keys to unlock new branches of the map in order to get new plants and upgrades. These keys were rare drops and were a very annoying progression barrier made even worse by the fact that it gives you the (very up front) option to BUY the keys.
The new update does away with the keys entirely, so theres one less annoying monetization method. The only key I was given when I updated the game was to unlock the new world that is hinted to be Coming Soon.
Future World
#2+3: Completely new progression structure and no more stars (Some Good, but overall Bad Change)
This is a combo change since they tie together very closely.
Originally PvZ2 had a Mario 3 style map which I actually quite liked. There was the main path you followed, but also optional paths that let you unlock new plants and abilities. These alternate routes usually focused on a different gameplay gimmick some of which were good and some of which were bad. There were stages where you are assigned the plants you have to use and mini-game style stages where you might have to play a tile memorization puzzle to kill the zombies. My only complaint with this map style is that the keys originally locked away the side branches (with the keys removed I would have preferred they kept it as it was) and the new worlds were locked with a Star Gate (ha). In each main stage there were 3 stars for you to unlock which gave you specific challenges to overcome or rules you had to follow. Stars basically acted as additional challenges for each level, which were nice to have. What I (and many others) didnt like was that you had to backtrack to get stars in order to unlock the next world (or pay to unlock the next world).
The update makes the game a completely straight line of 25-30 levels each world that you have to play through in a set order until you beat them. I guess this makes it easier to balance since the plant unlocks and upgrades are no longer optional. The problem I have with the new linear method is that Im forced to play a lot of level types that Id rather not. Most of the latter half of each worlds stages are the protect these plants, dont let the zombies cross this line, etc. stages which were originally optional (outside of needing more stars to unlock the next world). What makes it worse is that if you get stuck on a level you cant progress at all, which leads me to the next change
#4: Increased difficulty (Good/Bad change)
The update made the game noticeably more challenging which I appreciated, but it can occasionally be too much. On one hand I like to think they were catering to the audience that is really good at PvZ already, but being realistic it feels more like an attempt to force you to use the coin purchasable Cheat powers. I played every level of the new update and I did manage to beat them all WITHOUT using those coin powers, but one of them took me at least a dozen tries before I found what I can only imagine was the one perfect solution that you have to use.
OK, I admit there was ONE other level that I used the coin power on because I made it all the way to the end and there was ONE SINGLE enemy left alive that was about to fail the mission
#5: Speed Up Button (Great change!)
Not much of a need to explain, they put in a button that makes the game run about 2-3 times faster. Great to use for slower early waves and when waiting to collect sunshine. Speaking of sunshine
#6: Each sunshine you tap gives you 50 sun instead of the original 25 (? Change)
I honestly dont know if this is a good or bad change, but it is a change. If someone knows if this is an upgrade you get over the course of the game, let me know, but I had this right when my game upgraded.
It could be that this was there to increase the speed of the matches, but I cant confirm if the zombies come faster or in bigger waves (since I cant play the original version anymore).
#7: Boss stages (Good change)
I was always a fan of the Gargantuans in the original game and Im happy to see them return with a new level type in each stage. Basically its a harder than normal stage that builds up to have quite a few Gargantuan zombies coming at you.
Whats the same and still not good
#1: No second playthrough harder difficulty mode (NG+)
There is the endless mode which gives the game some longevity, but the original PvZ had a full second playthrough of the campaign with harder waves and its a shame thats not in this game.
#2: Extremely overpriced (real money) plants and upgrades
The plants for the original game vary in price from $3-4 EACH and the same goes for upgrades like additional seed slot and +1 plant food slot. Between the plants and upgrades that makes 10 permanent DLC items you can buy which adds up to about $34 to own everything. The most I would ever pay for a bundle with ALL of the plants would be about $10. As they are, each of these plants and tiny upgrades are individually priced higher than most full mobile games that DONT have microtransactions.
There should be a way to buy these upgrades and plants with in-game coins and the coins should be the only thing thats monetized. Thats how the first game worked when they added in monetization and it did a great job of not getting in the way of the core game. Balanced properly that system would have worked very well for PvZ2 as well. People who wanted to rush a bit could have just bought some coins to get a plant they want, or be able to use more coin powers. People who didnt could still enjoy a well-paced game.
Overall I still like the game. I think the plant food mechanic is a great change to the series and makes the matches a bit more engaging for the player. The new plants they added are a lot of fun and I actually dont really miss any of the plants that are missing/sold as DLC (well, other than the Snow Peas and the Torchwood. Unsurprisingly the two most expensive plants to buy).
Let me know if there are any other updates I may have missed. I wish I hadn't updated the version of the game on my tablet so I could have compared and contrasted the two, but oh well.
