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Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
63,283
30,346



Plants vs. Zombies 2, which has been delayed until July 18 in the United States, is currently available for download from the New Zealand and Australian App Stores.

Allen Murray, the game's senior producer, spoke to Polygon today to explain that the company decided to soft launch in New Zealand and Australia in order to test features like server stability and pricing.

pvz2.jpg
"With Plants vs. Zombies 2 we're taking advantage of a lot of newer technologies," Murray said. "If you're connected to the internet, you can save your progress and share accounts across multiple devices -- and we need to make sure those systems, along with our ability to stream that content to players, works."
Plants vs. Zombies 2 utilizes cloud saving and is slated to be free with in-app purchases. According to Murray, PopCap plans to test and monitor player purchasing behavior to make pricing adjustments ahead of the game's wider launch. Players will likely see pricing fluctuations for content, which will include premium plants and coin packs that can be used for purchasing power-ups and upgrades.
"Our philosophy is to not be heavy-handed and very soft in our approach," Murray said. "Anyone with enough time and skill can unlock all content. But we have a unique challenge in that the game is widely loved -- by kids and grandparents, casual players and hardcore players, and everyone in between. It's a challenge to design something that will work for all audiences."
Gamers in New Zealand and Australia can download the app immediately from the App Store for free, while U.S. players will need to wait until later this month. Our sister site TouchArcade has gone hands on with the game and has a demo available for users who want an early peek at Plants vs. Zombies 2.

Article Link: 'Plants vs. Zombies 2' Soft Launches in New Zealand and Australia
 

T'hain Esh Kelch

macrumors 603
Aug 5, 2001
6,311
7,152
Denmark
The plants don't look as cute and well designed as in the first one. :(

Why change a perfect artstyle to something that looks like every other game on the App Store?
 

anthorumor

macrumors 6502a
Jun 16, 2009
996
1,118
Sydney, Australia
I downloaded the game, and from a few plays it is more or less the same as PVZ1. I haven't gone to the time travelling features yet but one neat (free) addition is the ability to temporarily supercharge your plants using seeds. The graphics are simpler but that's because each animated character now has more animation. Each character seems to have more 'bounce' and movement and fluid animation does make the game play better.

Unfortunately it looks like EA has really restricted the use of our favourite plants from PVZ1 to purchase-only upgrades. Favourites now cost $1.99 each (edit: $2.99? seriously! I bet this will drop to $1.99)

I think this is only going to make PVZ1 more popular.

Screenshots of Plants VS Zombies being EA'd
http://www.flickr.com/photos/83548270@N00/sets/72157634573159324/

And the screenshot that will make PVZ fans cry:
9249413361_4f86548b76_c.jpg
 

Some guy

macrumors member
Apr 12, 2013
63
1
Wow, the game actually looks worse...

I guess they spent too much money on their fancy 3D trailer, which, by the way, had nothing to do with the game as it didn't contain any gameplay from the actual game.
 

autrefois

macrumors 65816
Looks like they downgraded the graphics.

Maybe that'll be one of the in-app purchases, to get decent graphics back.

I love how NZ and AU are test beds for a soft launch :p

Request for people in Australia and New Zealand — please don't buy any of the in-app purchases during the soft launch period. The article says they're basing pricing and such in part based on how things go. Maybe if EA sees that no one is buying them they will convert some of them to free or at least lower the prices. You never know...

EDIT: Just to clarify, I think that developers deserve to be paid of course for their work, it's the freemium model that I disagree with — as others have said here and elsewhere, at least give an option to pay for the full game.
 
Last edited:

floatingspirit

macrumors 6502
Oct 13, 2001
398
0
Seattle, WA
I downloaded the game, and from a few plays it is more or less the same as PVZ1. I haven't gone to the time travelling features yet but one neat (free) addition is the ability to temporarily supercharge your plants using seeds. The graphics are simpler but that's because each animated character now has more animation. Each character seems to have more 'bounce' and movement and fluid animation does make the game play better.

Unfortunately it looks like EA has really restricted the use of our favourite plants from PVZ1 to purchase-only upgrades. Favourites now cost $1.99 each (edit: $2.99? seriously! I bet this will drop to $1.99)

I think this is only going to make PVZ1 more popular.

Screenshots of Plants VS Zombies being EA'd
http://www.flickr.com/photos/83548270@N00/sets/72157634573159324/

And the screenshot that will make PVZ fans cry:
Image

Wow. To think I was actually looking forward to this... I don't need another dollar sucker in my iPhone...
 

projectle

macrumors 6502a
Oct 11, 2005
525
57
Really sad the number of In-App Purchases that there are in this game...

Coins:
5,000 - $2.99
10,000 - $4.99
20,000 - $9.99
40,000 - $19.99
100,000 - $29.99
150,000 - $39.99
200000 - $49.99

Plants:
Squash - $2.99
Imitater - $2.99
Snow Pea - $2.99
Jalapeño - $2.99
Torchwood - $2.99
Power Lily - $2.99

Upgrades:
Shovel Bonus: $1.99 - 25% sun refund when shoveling
Plant Food Bonus: $1.99 - +1 Plant Food Slot
Sun Bonus: $1.99 - +25 Starting Sun
Bonus Seed Slot: $1.99 - +1 Seed Slots

Bundles:
Starter Bundle: $4.99 - Squash, 5,000 Coins, Shovel Bonus
Torch Bundle: $7.99 - Torchwood, 40,000 Coins, Bonus Seed Slot
Power Bundle: $9.99 - Jalapeño, 40,000 Coins, Sun Bonus
 

knight556

macrumors newbie
Jun 27, 2006
25
4
Christchurch, New Zealand
I've downloaded it and played the first few levels.
Overall it is very disappointing. I wrote in my 2-star App store review that it feels like a student project.
I won't be purchasing anything in the store with real money, but am still hoping that they let people buy using the in-game coins in the future.
 

chrono1081

macrumors G3
Jan 26, 2008
8,446
4,146
Isla Nublar
I was so excited for this game but these in app purchases are ridiculous. I shouldn't have to pay in sections to play the damn game.

I would gladly pay $10 up front for the full version but not this piecemeal crap. (I won't even buy it if all the in-app purchases equal $10, it sends the wrong message to the publisher.)

Popcap I wish you never sold out.
 

HardRain

macrumors regular
Mar 31, 2012
167
395
I am tired of complaining about the horrible nature of excessive IAP. I'm no longer angry, just sad, sad that the natural joy of gaming has come to be taken away. :(
 

AgentElliot007

macrumors 6502a
Mar 22, 2010
570
315
I've seen other places complaining about the graphics, but have you updated the patch in the beginning and installed it? If not, you're not running the retina graphics. That made a very, very big difference for me.

And for the record, it crashes on iOS 7 on both my 4th gen iPad and iPhone 5. I have it running on a 3rd generation iPad still running iOS 6 and another iPhone 5 running iOS 6 just fine (gotta love the fake Australian Apple ID!). I've been fine using iOS 7 though and it's one of the few apps for me that crashes at launch. Many stopped on beta 3, but not PvZ or PvZ 2. Oh well...
 

naryn

macrumors newbie
Jan 23, 2009
16
0
Also doesnt work at all on my iPad 2 and iPhone 4S running iOS7 b3. Which is rather annoying lol.
 

ArtOfWarfare

macrumors G3
Nov 26, 2007
9,544
6,042
Really sad the number of In-App Purchases that there are in this game...

Coins:
5,000 - $2.99
10,000 - $4.99
20,000 - $9.99
40,000 - $19.99
100,000 - $29.99
150,000 - $39.99
200000 - $49.99

Plants:
Squash - $2.99
Imitater - $2.99
Snow Pea - $2.99
Jalapeño - $2.99
Torchwood - $2.99
Power Lily - $2.99

Upgrades:
Shovel Bonus: $1.99 - 25% sun refund when shoveling
Plant Food Bonus: $1.99 - +1 Plant Food Slot
Sun Bonus: $1.99 - +25 Starting Sun
Bonus Seed Slot: $1.99 - +1 Seed Slots

Bundles:
Starter Bundle: $4.99 - Squash, 5,000 Coins, Shovel Bonus
Torch Bundle: $7.99 - Torchwood, 40,000 Coins, Bonus Seed Slot
Power Bundle: $9.99 - Jalapeño, 40,000 Coins, Sun Bonus

I wonder if they actually expect anyone to pay for the $5+ IAP or if they only put them there to make the $1-$3 IAP seem like good deals?

Either way, there's no way in hell I'm going to touch those. I might give the game a shot but the moment it seems like it's not possible without grinding or buying, I'm deleting.
 
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