Unlike most games, creating a Plants Vs Zombies strategy guide is not a simple and straightforward matter. While other, similar games organize the gameplay in a scene by scene fashion, Plants v. Zombies is an entirely different matter.
In fact, the best way to describe it is that it is what you would get if you merged a tower defense game and a time management game as it seems to take elements from each of those genres.
Success in PVZ involves a number of strategies being used in tandem with each other. This guide should give you some insight into the best ways to use each plant at your disposal as well as giving you an in-depth look at the strengths and weaknesses of each different type of minion in the zombie horde.
Success in PVZ involves a number of strategies being used in tandem with each other. This guide should give you some insight into the best ways to use each plant at your disposal as well as giving you an in-depth look at the strengths and weaknesses of each different type of minion in the zombie horde.
Plants
Peashooter
The most rudimentary plant. They shoot at approaching zombies and nothing else. They’re useful if you don’t have better options or are low on sunlight and peashooters can easily chew through a line of zombies if you have enough of them planted but they are hardly the best option. You should move on to better options as soon as you can.
Sunflower
A basic yet extremely vital plant. They drop additional sunlight. ALWAYS have at least three of them and preferably keep them near the back to protect them better.
Cherry Bomb
The most basic form of bomb available. You should move on to better stuff when possible but it’s good for blowing things up early on.
Chomper
Can devour zombies whole but they take time to finish eating. These plants should be used in pairs with one behind the other so when one is busy, the other can take over. Not a great choice for levels with an excess of zombies though.
Puff Shroom
Should only be used at night. They are free to plant but take 75 sun to awaken. They have a 3 square range so keep in mind they will only be able to kill one zombie at a time if lots of them attack at once.
Fume Shroom
Best to defend against screen door zombies. Can damage many zombies at once Avoid placing them on your lawn’s outskirts.
Grave Buster
Used to prevent dead zombies from returning to “life” later on.
Hypno Shroom
Used to turn zombies against their fellow zombies via hypnosis.
Scaredy Shroom
They’re used to back up defenses. Extremely cheap. They will run and hide when zombies approach them.
Doom Shroom
They are used to wipe out multiple zombies in one go. They kill off all zombies within 3 tiles in every direction and make the tiles they were on temporarily useless.
Squash
They kill any zombie they encounter and then vanish.
Threepeater
A peashooter that can cover three lanes at once. Most useful on the lawn edges.
Torchwood
Doubles the strength of any peashooter shooting through it.
Plantern
Clears fog from up to 3 lanes.
Split Pea
Peashooter that can fire both forward and backward at the same time.
Pumpkin
They provide protection when placed over other plants.
Kernel Pult
Their effectiveness is rather suspect so they should be used in pairs so if one does not attack when it should, the other will.
Garlic
Can be used to manipulate the zombies who will switch lanes to avoid it.
Cattail
They must be planted on lily pads and are best used to take out baloon zombies.
Cobcannon
The most expensive plants in the entire game, their attack affects 3 tiles in every direction but they have an incredibly long recharge time: 25 seconds.
Imitator
A peashooter that can fire in multiple directions and takes up several tiles. Using it reduces the time to wait for plants to recharge to plant another.
Zombies
Zombie
The basic zombie. They will walk forward and eat anything they make contact with.
Flag
The same as the basic just a little bit faster.
Conehead
Still similar to the basic zombie but takes a few more hits to bring down.
Pole Vaulting
Able to jump over the first plant they encounter. Make sure to have at least 2 plants when dealing with these.
Buckethead
Relatively similar to the basic rung but can take 5 times more punishment. If you don’t have powerful enough ranged plants, use one of the one-hit kill plants to deal with them.
Newspaper
Protected from direct hits. Use lobbed shots or attacks from behind to deal with them.
Screen Door
Shield must be removed with a Magnet shroom to kill them
Football
Buckethead 2.0
Dancing
Can summon backup. Kill him fast.
Backup Dancing
No real threat. Can be killed by anything.
Ducky Tube
An alternate version of one of the standard zombies but can swim.
Snorkel
Will stay underwater and must be removed with lily pads.
Zomboni
Extremely tough and driving a vehicle. Will crush your plants if given the chance. Use a squash or similar.
Dr. Zomboss
The final zombie boss. Use your lob attack and freeze him to deal with him.
There are more zombies than just these but that covers the main ones, for the most part.
There are more zombies than just these but that covers the main ones, for the most part.
While there will never be a definitive guide to PVZ, this should serve as a helpful set of basic tips for dealing with the various zombies found in the game as well as how to use the wide variety of available plants. If these tips are combined with some teamwork and basic common sense, you should find yourself both well equipped and prepared for most of what you will encounter here.