At PAX West 2025, I got to get some hands-on time with Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted, PopCap Studios’ and The Lost Pixels’ 4K upgrade of their original mobile game.
It’s just as addicting as I remember, with every mode in the 2009 original making its return. My preview started with the single-player Adventure mode, the typical tower defense experience where you defend the lawn’s five lanes with dozens of plants to post up with. Replanted is not getting a mobile release, with the developers saying that they want to reach as wide of a new audience as possible, and that their current library of mobile games is already robust.
I first played on mouse and keyboard, and gathering suns (resources you’ll collect throughout each mission to purchase plants for defense) was a breeze. Clicking through your arsenal of offensive and defensive plants was quick and easy. My real concern was seeing how this would translate to controller, which I played next. My fears were quelled, however, when it immediately became clear that playing with a controller was very intuitive, responsive, and easy to learn. You’ll cycle through the plants you want to deploy, using the left and right shoulder buttons, and set them with A (I was using an Xbox controller). Gathering suns is as easy as hovering over them with the cursor, although using a controller felt slightly more hectic than mouse and keyboard here. The addicting gameplay loop and chaotic play sessions that you’re familiar with from the original are back and better than ever, and I’m excited to check out the other extra modes, like Puzzle and Survival Mode.
Of course, Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted isn’t just a graphical upgrade. A host of new features are available, from co-op (which were only present on the Xbox Live and PlayStation Network releases), PVP, and Cloudy Day Mode, which blocks the sun out and limits the amount of resources you can gather. I particularly enjoyed Cloud Day Mode, as it adds a new challenge that really change the way you think about how to play, when and where to deploy plants, and better manage your resources. There’s also Rest in Peace, a permadeath option that I sadly wasn’t able to play.
I asked whether the team had plans to drop new content in the future, and the answer was no. The idea behind Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted is that they want to offer a complete, definitive package that both new and old fans can enjoy in glorious HD. The original PvZ is rich with content that offers hours and hours of entertainment, and I would have been perfectly happy with a 4K upgrade with just the original content. The addition of new modes and concept art is just the icing on the cake, especially since this will only cost $20. If you’re a physical game fan, unfortunately this will only launch digitally, but it’s hard to deny the insane value you’ll be getting with Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted.
Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted is an incredible upscaled version of one my favorite mobile games of all time, and its inclusion of new modes help ensure me that it isn’t just another soulless nostalgia grab. Cloudy Day Mode is a welcome new addition that I can’t wait to dive more into, and the 4K visuals lend themselves extremely well to the stylized, cartoon art style. The game comes out October 23 on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC.
Thank you to EA and PopCap Studios for the behind-closed-doors preview.
At PAX West 2025, I got to get some hands-on time with Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted, PopCap Studios’ and The Lost Pixels’ 4K upgrade of their original mobile game. It’s just as addicting as I remember, with every mode in…
At PAX West 2025, I got to get some hands-on time with Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted, PopCap Studios’ and The Lost Pixels’ 4K upgrade of their original mobile game.
It’s just as addicting as I remember, with every mode in the 2009 original making its return. My preview started with the single-player Adventure mode, the typical tower defense experience where you defend the lawn’s five lanes with dozens of plants to post up with. Replanted is not getting a mobile release, with the developers saying that they want to reach as wide of a new audience as possible, and that their current library of mobile games is already robust.
I first played on mouse and keyboard, and gathering suns (resources you’ll collect throughout each mission to purchase plants for defense) was a breeze. Clicking through your arsenal of offensive and defensive plants was quick and easy. My real concern was seeing how this would translate to controller, which I played next. My fears were quelled, however, when it immediately became clear that playing with a controller was very intuitive, responsive, and easy to learn. You’ll cycle through the plants you want to deploy, using the left and right shoulder buttons, and set them with A (I was using an Xbox controller). Gathering suns is as easy as hovering over them with the cursor, although using a controller felt slightly more hectic than mouse and keyboard here. The addicting gameplay loop and chaotic play sessions that you’re familiar with from the original are back and better than ever, and I’m excited to check out the other extra modes, like Puzzle and Survival Mode.
Of course, Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted isn’t just a graphical upgrade. A host of new features are available, from co-op (which were only present on the Xbox Live and PlayStation Network releases), PVP, and Cloudy Day Mode, which blocks the sun out and limits the amount of resources you can gather. I particularly enjoyed Cloud Day Mode, as it adds a new challenge that really change the way you think about how to play, when and where to deploy plants, and better manage your resources. There’s also Rest in Peace, a permadeath option that I sadly wasn’t able to play.
I asked whether the team had plans to drop new content in the future, and the answer was no. The idea behind Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted is that they want to offer a complete, definitive package that both new and old fans can enjoy in glorious HD. The original PvZ is rich with content that offers hours and hours of entertainment, and I would have been perfectly happy with a 4K upgrade with just the original content. The addition of new modes and concept art is just the icing on the cake, especially since this will only cost $20. If you’re a physical game fan, unfortunately this will only launch digitally, but it’s hard to deny the insane value you’ll be getting with Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted.
Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted is an incredible upscaled version of one my favorite mobile games of all time, and its inclusion of new modes help ensure me that it isn’t just another soulless nostalgia grab. Cloudy Day Mode is a welcome new addition that I can’t wait to dive more into, and the 4K visuals lend themselves extremely well to the stylized, cartoon art style. The game comes out October 23 on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC.
Thank you to EA and PopCap Studios for the behind-closed-doors preview.
by Myles Obenza
