Plants vs. Zombies 2 was not announced specifically at E3 this year, but we did get our first glimpse of actual gameplay. Veterans of the Plants vs. Zombies games (really just one game ported across multiple systems including iOS and Windows) will recognize the artistic style used in the 3d character models the players take control of during play. What is not familiar to veterans of the franchise is the perspective. The game is 3rd person and fully 3d.
The general feel of the original simple tower-defense-based game remains intact. The character models are true to everything we have seen in the past. Players control plants based directly off the ‘towers’ summoned in the prior incarnations of the series and are easily recognizable, using similar mechanics.
The differences start with multiplayer. Having multiple people playing at once makes a major difference to the overall feeling of the game, evoking memories of the Sanctum series. The surprising persistence of the Plants vs. Zombies aesthetic speaks very well of the future of the series.
