Plants vs Zombies 2 soft launches in Australia today

Plants vs Zombies 2 is soft-launching in Australia today, to test various aspects of the game as it prepares to roll out worldwide.

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Plans vs Zombies 2 may be "about time," but it's also about location. Following a delay, PopCap has announced that it will be issuing a soft launch in Australia and New Zealand today, to test various aspects of the game before its full release worldwide.

Polygon reports that the time down under will let PopCap test server capacity, cloud saving, and its free-to-play monetization structure. The company wanted to launch in a region that was smaller but otherwise similar to North America, according to senior producer Allen Murray.

Players who get in on the game now will probably see prices fluctuate as it observes player behavior to get the in-app purchases right. This version also won't be quite complete, as PopCap plans to have six more premium plants available in the store at launch. More plants will be available every few months.

PopCap stresses, though, that the entire game will be available without paying up. "Our philosophy is to not be heavy-handed and very soft in our approach," Murray said. "Anyone with enough time and skill can unlock all content. But we have a unique challenge in that the game is widely loved by kids and grandparents, casual players and hardcore players, and everyone in between. It's a challenge to design something that will work for all audiences."

He says they want to make sure it's a "fun, really stable experience," and the delay will ensure that critical parts like player save data doesn't go down. A North American date has not been set.

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  • reply
    July 9, 2013 2:00 PM

    Steve Watts posted a new article, Plants vs Zombies 2 soft launches in Australia today.

    Plants vs Zombies 2 is soft-launching in Australia today, to test various aspects of the game as it prepares to roll out worldwide.

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      July 9, 2013 2:02 PM

      pc? PC?? PEEEEEEEEEEECEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE??????????

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        July 9, 2013 2:16 PM

        i will airplay it to my pc and stream it on the internets. i will then capture your input with html5 and send it back to my ios device

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          July 9, 2013 2:17 PM

          Sounds good, let us know when it's ready so we can boot up our 3d3d3d Unix GUI systems and login securely.

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      July 9, 2013 2:07 PM

      But we have a unique challenge in that the game is widely loved by kids and grandparents, casual players and hardcore players, and everyone in between. It's a challenge to design something that will work for all audiences."

      He says they want to make sure it's a "fun, really stable experience,"

      I suggest not making it online and adding cash shop stuff. HEYOOO

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      July 9, 2013 2:15 PM

      This is exactly as I feared. They are doing it to see how the paid shit will work or not.

      It will hopefully help balance it. But I will likely avoid it just like Real Racing 3 because EA sucks.

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      July 9, 2013 2:38 PM

      or lunch it on steam and i'll pay you $15 for it you fokking wankers.

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      July 9, 2013 5:26 PM

      Are they still turning this into some kind of lame shooter?

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      July 9, 2013 10:07 PM

      I've been playing this a bunch today. Pretty weird.
      In game boosts. Collecting stars to unlock levels. Some kind of key drop system to unlock more stuff. Buying non level unlocked plants are $3 each. Really grindy. Lots of options to pay to skip the grind.

      As currently balanced would not recommend.

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      July 10, 2013 12:31 AM

      The new version is free to play, but some premium items should be purchased via IAP. It will also support multiple accounts on one single device and these accounts are allowed to share the items you purchase. Plants vs Zombies 2 is out for NZ and AU. Search AppsGoer to get a full review.

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      July 10, 2013 2:36 AM

      [deleted]

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      July 10, 2013 3:07 AM

      "a region that was smaller but otherwise similar to North America"

      Australia = small America

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