Gadgetrepublic.com - News: Gaming

Ready, set, plant!

The premise seems slightly odd at first glance: there are zombies attacking your house and the frontline of defence is, well, plants. Even cute little sunflowers play their part.

Don't let this dissuade you from buying what is possibly one of the most addictive games for the iPhone this year.

I downloaded this with a pinch of enthusiasm and a whole bagful of boredom but soon got hooked thanks to the cute graphics, fun gameplay and silly but atmospheric soundtrack.

The aim of the game is to fend off the waves of the undead as they march slowly but surely up your garden and towards the front door, behind which, presumably, you are shaking in your boots.

Plants: not as harmless as you would think

You're not alone: you are given seeds to plant and the various plants perform various functions. The sunflowers gather sun over time and this is the energy needed to get plants like peashooters, frozen peashooters, potatoes, walnuts and carnivorous plants of some sort.

In case you were wondering, the walnut just sits there with a vacant grin on its face but it acts as a tough roadblock through which the zombies have to chew in order to march ahead. Meanwhile the potatoes are landmines - although they take a while to cultivate they eventually pop up and explode as soon as an unsuspecting zombie steps foot on them.

The last line of defence is the lawnmower. If the zombies break through your plucky perennials and eviscerating evergreens the mighty lawnmower cuts through everything in its path.

Everything about this game is fun and tongue-in-cheek. Buy it now and you'll find yourself playing a couple of levels every day just to see what plants you unlock next and how they can top pole-vaulting zombies and ones shuffling down the lawn in slippers with newspaper in hand.

Publisher: PopCap
Get it: iTunes App Store

By Marie Boran