In a quiet suburb with manicured lawns, where the houses were sparkling clean, there lived an ordinary, albeit a little crazy, guy named Dave. He loved his home and, of course, his garden.
His life was quiet and predictable. But one day, something unexpected happened: zombies started crawling out of the ground! At first, they were few, but the number grew every day. The only thing they wanted was to get Dave's brains! However, the guy did not want to put up with such a fate at all. Dave started studying plants from his garden and found that some of them had amazing properties. Peas, for example, were shot very accurately. Sunflowers could energize other plants. And cherries were highly explosive! This is how Dave put together his team of plants to face the zombies, who were getting more creative every day...
It's a familiar story, isn't it? It was she who formed the basis for the famous game Plants vs. Zombies!
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How it all started: the idea behind the game
The year is 2008. George Fan, founder of PopCap Games, decided to come up with a sequel to Insaniquarium. After playing different games, he was attracted to the tower defense genre. Initially, George wanted aliens to be the enemies in the new game, but after creating the first sketch, he realized that he had turned out to be a “perfect zombie”.
It was planned that the enemy army would attack the fish tank, as in the first part of the game, but George eventually moved away from this concept. Instead, he made the plant's main protectors. The gameplay was also influenced by a scene from the movie The Swiss Robinson Family, where the family protected themselves from pirates.
What do you call the ship...
The game was originally called Weedlings, but then they started using the working name Plants vs. Zombies, which eventually stuck and decided not to change it. By the way, other titles included Lawn of the Dead, Bloom & Doom, and Residential Evil.
Mad Dave
George Fan found an artist for the game during development. It was Rich Werner, with whom the creator was pleased with the collaboration. The game's main character, Dave, had a prototype in real life. They knew George Fan, but they made the character more insane in the game.
The musical accompaniment matters
The soundtrack for Plants vs. Zombies was written by George Feng's girlfriend, composer Laura Shigihara. According to her, the music was dark but stupid. Laura used a mix of very different styles: she combined serious music, pop and other light genres. Famous musicologist Kevin Donnelly called the Plants vs. Zombies soundtrack “vivid and cartoonish.” It should be noted that Laura wrote some songs after she played the game herself shortly before its release. This allowed her to convey her gameplay experience through music.
George Phan's girlfriend is also the author of a music video called “Zombies On Your Lawn”, which can be seen during the end credits.
The game is coming to the world!
Plants vs. Zombies was released in 2009. The game was released on iOS and became a real hit, winning numerous awards. As a result, Plants vs. Zombies has become one of the most popular games of all time: it has sequels, spin-offs, and even its own movie.
Note to young developers: the mystery of the popularity of Plants vs. Zombies
The secret of the game lies in its simple but unique and varied gameplay. Plants vs. Zombies introduced a fresh take on the tower defense genre. Its humorous component and attractive visuals make it interesting for users. The game is available to players of all ages and skill levels. Plants vs. Zombies has plenty of levels, the ability to discover new plants and zombies, and bonus challenges. All this keeps players interested in the game for many hours.
Plants vs. Zombies is an example of how a simple but ingenious idea can turn into a hit. George Feng's game has brought joy to millions of players around the world and has become one of the most popular games of all time.
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