When Popcap announces the “final” new version of its beloved original plants versus zombies, the studio reflected the evolution of franchise on -garden tower defense – and revealed why there is now the right time to return to the roots on the computer and console, after a pair of sequels focused on smartphones.
Talking to IGN, the general director of the POPCAP studio, Nick Reinhart, said that freshly arranged plants versus zombies: replanted was an opportunity to “restore” what fans loved in the series, while making modern consoles available, with refined 4K graphics.
Plants vs. Zombie: called on October 23, 2025 at the price of $ 19.99 on PC (via the EA, Epic Games Store and Steam application) and on consoles for Nintendo Switch, Switch 2, PlayStation 4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.
The new functions include local cooperation and PvP options, two additional game modes (Roguelike Permadeath offering Rest in Peace and Cloud Day Mode, which increases the difficulty by limiting sunlight) and an art gallery showing previously unrelated concepts.
Describing the package as “the final PVZ remaster”, executive producer Jake Neri said that this is a way of popcap to “keep the magic of the original, while giving it freshness, which allows her to live for the next 20 years.”
“For a long time we have heard that people would love the remaster of this game,” Neri continued, asked why he was exaggerated now. “Time is critical.”
The replanted announcement appears at an interesting time for the Plants series versus Zombies, after at least six years of POPCAP operation testing different versions of plants versus zombies 3 on smartphones. PVZ 3, published all over the world in January 2024, was then downloaded offline in October 2024. In the case of another “grave review” – and almost a year later it is to be back.
“My official answer here is that at the moment I have nothing to say about PVZ 3,” said Reinhart, when asked about updating the status of Mia Threequel. At least in 2025, the concentration of franchise seems to be exaggerated – although there are no “plans” to overdo it on smartphones, something that would leave the catwalk so that PVZ would return there at some point.
“Is this a reset?” Reinhart said he asked if the launch of replanted is a franchise reset to its beginnings, after various spin-offs and continuations. “I think this is an intriguing way to set up a question. I would say that I think it is more knowledge about what our roots are and what games we should think and what we should do.”
“Has the brand have ever disappeared? No,” Reinhart continued. “Resetting for me almost implies” well, it was dead on vine “and we are trying to restore it or something. I don’t think it is there. I think it is an opportunity for us to restore that it is a brand that people love that there are still many stories about the neighborhood what we have done there. “
Of course, POPCAP decided to restart the original plants versus zombies after watching the reaction to its latest games in the series. Plants only for smartphones in 2013 vs Zombies 2 were popular and long -lasting, although they included improvements to the touch screen and microtransactions that succumbed to some players. In recent years, the franchise console has focused on a 3D shooter, thanks to the spin-off franchise Garden Warfare-although for now the entrance battle in 2019. It seems that it is the last.
Even POPCAP herself, an previously fertile creator of strange but compulsive ideas for games (feeding madness! Zuma! Bookworm!) He consolidated his goal in recent years. Bejewled Stars will have a decade next year, and Peggle 2 is already 12 years old, without a trace of the third entry on the horizon.
“I would say that the passion of the community is an critical thing that must be galvanized and recognized,” said Reinhart, discussing why Popcap returned to the PVZ roots. “As much as inspiring our design decisions is the way we make sure that we keep something that is familiar, which does not quite break the compact, which we did with the players base, but that we can also start iteer and move it forward.”
“This game gave us the opportunity to enter and dive and try to find out exactly what people love in PVZ,” Neri added. “And there is a lot of teachings that we did about Zanitess of the IP and how it speaks to people in this way, and this helps us lead us and facilitate us be faithful to expectation.”
This desire to maintain fans’ expectations helped to inform that Popcap to choose new modes for exaggerated, Neri continued, because while the developer had many ideas and could go to “different directions”, instead of the Repplanted team was aimed at, as fans thought.
“We are treated very much, how many innovations we bring in it,” Reinhart agreed, “And not just trying to alienate the basic impressions for players … When we look at the future, we look at the brand more holistically and say what is still at?
“We did a lot of explorations about what people loved in all different versions of PVZ and trying to restore it to this version,” Neri added. “Going forward, I definitely hope that it will be exaggerated for us an anchor, which people can look and understand – because the original PVZ still lives in human hearts and minds.”
What about the future? Does the return to more well -established original plants versus zombies in exaggerated offer a clue where the franchise can go further? Can he cause release of other popcap classics again?
“We absolutely talked about – if it is fruitful, if it meets the expectations of fans … Is it a template?” Reinhart said. “I think there is a lot of enthusiasm in this. Now, regardless of whether plans are in fact, we cannot say it, but I would say that we are very interested in how it goes and what it may mean that other real estate may follow a similar path.
“PVZ is incredibly strong,” Reinhart summed up, “and the possibility of passing on to the modern audience, in order to wake up people’s nostalgia and their feelings, especially in times when the world could employ some joy and crazy, it just seems to be the right time.”
Tom Phillips is the editor of Ign. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on BlueSky @tomphillipseg.bsky.Social
