Parents' Guide to

Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare

By Marc Saltzman, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 11+

Comedic, cartoonish shooter should be OK for younger teens.

Game Windows, Xbox 360, Xbox One 2014
Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this game.

  • Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare Game: Screenshot #1
  • Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare Game: Screenshot #2
  • Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare Game: Screenshot #3

Community Reviews

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age 8+

Based on 10 parent reviews

Logan B.
Logan B. Adult
December 27, 2022
age 4+

This game rocks

Thuis game is good highly recommended this is my childhood going on the pc to play pvz now on ps3 it is a good third person shooter for kids to get them used to third person shooters you may think this is to young it is not this is a kids game and teen and adult i still play it all the games there for all ages and EA makes them pay to win and that almost all why its good the zombies look stupid and creepy and weird the plants look weird realistic but the zombies are weird and realistic I recommend playing
1 person found this helpful.
BlitzGuy20
BlitzGuy20 Parent of 8-year-old
July 8, 2021
age 8+

Amazing, fun and silly game has cartoonish violence

Garden Warfare is a fun and innovative online multiplayer game about well… plants and zombies! In this you will play through a much more kid friendly Call of Duty type game and you may come in contact with others, however voice chat doesn’t appear often, and offline options and friend only options are available! VIOLENCE: Cartoonish shooting and explosions with cartoon weapons such as corn launchers, football launchers, lasers, peas, projectile lasers, explosive zombies, a garbage type launcher and even are devoured by “chompers” with no detail. When zombies are “vanquished” they are cartoonishly dismembered along with a spray of green blood, however the zombies are made to look funny and the cartoon violence is unrealistic and is accompanied by dinging noises and silly sounds instead of realistic bullet hits etc. and the gameplay is almost completely a kid friendly arcade shooter. CRUDE HUMOR: The “engineer” class character has his butt crack visible for laughs, some writing on walls are played for laughs but usually only contain mild potty humor and NO foul language. OVERALL: If Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare were a movie, it would be rated PG for sequences of cartoon violence and action, and for crude humor.
1 person found this helpful.
See all 10 parent reviews

What’s It About?

Based on the hugely popular Plants vs Zombies game franchise, PLANTS VS ZOMBIES: GARDEN WARFARE is a game for Xbox One, Xbox 360, and Windows PC played from an entirely new perspective. Opposed to a two-dimensional "tower defense" game like its predecessors, which had players stopping zombies from invading via the right side of the screen, Garden Warfare is in full 3-D, so zombies attack from all sides. This also means players can use the environment to their benefit, planting barriers and defensive plants in strategic locations. And instead of playing against the game's artificial intelligence (computer-controlled opponents), many modes pit players against other humans controlling the zombies. Garden Warfare also offers deep customization, allowing players to personalize their favorite plants and zombies with hundreds of unique items. Note: all versions of the game are more or less the same, but Xbox One owners can also take advantage of an exclusive split-screen offline co-op mode with another player. The Xbox One edition also offers SmartGlass and Kinect gameplay in Boss mode, in which players command the battlefield from Crazy Dave's RV or Zomboss' blimp.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (10):
Kids say (46):

It may be a deviation from preexisting Plants vs Zombies games, but Garden Warfare is still a lot of fun -- especially for those who like online shooters mixed with strategy and humor. The colorful graphics and charming sound effects help bring this fresh and unique game to life, but it's the many multiplayer modes, unlockables, and customizations that will keep players glued to their TVs and monitors until the wee hours.

But while there are plenty of competitive multiplayer modes to play with, it's a bit disappointing to find no single-player campaign at all. That said, the 4-player co-op and 2-player split-screen options (the latter available only to Xbox One owners) somewhat make up for it. The price is also a bit steep for what you get -- $40 for the Xbox One edition and ten dollar less for the other two. Still, fans of the franchise will find this a worthy and charming addition to the series. Hopefully, EA will release more content via digital download to justify the price a little more.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about whether one ought to distinguish the peas and cactus needles in this game from the bullets used in more realistic shooters. Does this humorous fantasy theme make the game more appropriate for younger players, or is it essentially the same as other third-person shooters? Common Sense Media also offers a comprehensive list of games with a high learning rating.

Game Details

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