| Plants vs Zombies: Battle for Neighborville | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer | PopCap Vancouver[a] |
| Publisher | Electronic Arts |
| Directors |
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| Producers |
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| Designers |
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| Programmer | Gregory D'Esposito |
| Artists |
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| Writer | Amanda Oiron |
| Series | Plants vs. Zombies |
| Engine | Frostbite 3 |
| Platforms | PlayStation 4 Windows Xbox One Nintendo Switch |
| Release |
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| Genre | Third-person shooter |
| Modes | Single-player,multiplayer |
Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville is athird-person shootervideo game developed byPopCap Vancouver and published byElectronic Arts. It was originally released forPlayStation 4,Windows,Xbox One in October 2019, with aNintendo Switch version releasing in March 2021. It is a continuation of thePlants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfarespin-off series ofPlants vs. Zombies, being the third overall installment. The game was released as anearly access title in September 2019 before its full release in October the same year. It received generally positive reviews upon release.Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville is the last PopCap Vancouver game before its closure in 2021.
Similar to its predecessors, the game is athird-person shooter where players take control of the Plants (underCrazy Dave) or the Zombies (underDr. Zomboss) in either a cooperative or competitive multiplayer environment. The game features 23 customizable gameplay classes, nine of which are new to the franchise. They are classified into four groups: attackers, defenders, supporters or swarm.[1] Each team also has a new team play class that allows players of the same class to combine forms when they fight against enemies.[2] Players can compete against each other in various competitive multiplayer modes, including the objective-based Turf Takeover mode and theteam deathmatch variant Team Vanquish and many more. The game also features several player-versus-environment open zones which allow players to explore, find collectibles, and complete quests.[1]Split-screen local multiplayer is also available for all gameplay modes.[3]
PublisherElectronic Arts confirmed the development of a newPlants vs. Zombies shooter game in May 2019.[4] An alpha testing for the game, which was codenamed "Picnic", was held in early August.[5] The game was officially announced and released as anearly-access game on September 4, 2019. Players who purchased the Founder's Edition would receive regular content updates until the game's full launch on October 18, 2019, and exclusive cosmetic items every week until the game's official release.[6][7]
Battle for Neighborville received its last game update on September 29, 2020.[8]
On February 17, 2021, it was announced that the game would be released onNintendo Switch on March 19, 2021, during theNintendo Direct.[9] The version, subtitledComplete Edition, has nomicrotransactions with all content able to be acquired for free, has motion controls and can be played offline.[10]
| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| Metacritic | PC: 77/100[11] PS4: 77/100[12] XONE: 76/100[13] NS: 74/100[14] |
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| Computer Games Magazine | 7/10[21] |
| Destructoid | 7.5/10[19] |
| Game Informer | 7.75/10[18] |
| GameRevolution | 6/10[23] |
| IGN | 7.4/10[15] |
| Nintendo Life |   [17] |
| Nintendo World Report | 7.5/10[20] |
| Push Square | [16] |
| Shacknews | 9/10[22] |
On review aggregation website,Metacritic, the Xbox One version of the game has a score of 76/100, and 77/100 from both the PS4 and PC versions, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville was given positive reviews.Destructoid gave the game on PS4 a 7.5/10 said about the game as "Battle for Neighborville doesn't go out of its way to surpass expectations, but it's a silly, strange, joyful game – one I'm glad was greenlit."[24]GameRevolution gave the PC version 3/5 stars and said "Unfortunately, aside from its more robust [Plants vs. Zombies] offering and unique new characters, most of the other changes that have been made inPlants vs Zombies: Battle for Neighborville haven't been for the better."[25]
