Aaah, PvZ2. A game that I both love and hate, with many plants I love and others that I truly despise. So, there's no shortage of entries to either list here, is there?
You know the drill already, I'm basing this on creativity, usefulness and design.
Top 15 Best Plants[]
15th: The Stinger[]
One of the most creative plants around, the Red Stinger is very useful as either a hard-hitting plant, or a semi-defensive plant. However, as a full defender, it's not that good for the cost, and the lack of AoE limits its usefulness as an attacker, despite the high damage output.
14th: The Flying Starfruit[]
What do you get if you cross a helicopter and a Starfruit? Rotobaga of course! It's a decent damage plant that can actually be useful even without grouping them up, and it's surprisingly useful for fighting Weasels of death. Rotobaga is however, a little too similar to Starfruit to go any higher.
13th: The Plant of Power[]
These names are getting really rubbish. Anyway, Power Lily is a great plant, because although its purpose is simple, it's a very useful one, and a staple in EZs...which is why it SHOULD NOT BE PREMIUM. The fact that it's premium really hurts it, and stops it from going higher in the list where it really deserves to be.
12th: The Sun Laser[]
Magnifying Grass is a very unique plant. It allows you to output lots of damage very fast, faster than any other plant in the entire game, but only if you have enough sun to power it. In ordinary levels, you can often use just Magnifying Grass and spam Twin Sunflowers or Sun-shrooms, and you can annihilate the zombies. This plant is extremely potent, but can also be difficult to use, which stops it from being OP. Sure, some people hate it, but I wouldn't have gotten as far as I have in Tiki Torch-er without it.
11th: The Cannon[]
Well, that's what it is, right?
Coconut Cannon is among the strongest plants in the game and the fact that you control when to fire it makes it even better. You can clear out crowds or save it for stronger enemies, you can do whatever you want with it. And it's helped me out in the later levels of DMB too. I still can hardly believe I'm at level 200, even though I reached that level many months ago. It's not too special, but it's still very useful and deserves a spot.
10th: The Anti-Ambush Plant[]
Cactus in PvZ1...one of the worst plants.
Cactus in PvZ2...Y U PREMIUM? ME WANT YOU!
From what I've seen of it and the few levels I've been able to use it in, I know that Cactus is a great plant. Ranged AoE capabilities combined with self-preservation that turns it into a Spikeweed. Add to that a permanent PF effect and you have a not only creative, but highly powerful plant. As Tecku said, it's an anti-ambush plant, as it can pack damage at a distance while preserving itself if something gets close...and damaging that thing in the process.
9th: The Little Tree[]
I like Sap-fling. I know a lot of people don't, but it made it onto the last list of good plants and it's here too.
Sap-fling is purely designed for slowing zombies, at the cost of dealing no damage. Not only does it offer a slightly stronger slowing effect than chilling, but it happens to be AoE for only 150 sun. Snow Pea has nothing on this, the damage advantage is not enough to make it worth using over this guy.
As well as usefulness, he has creativity going for him, since a ranged attacker that is purely for stalling is something that only describes Sap-fling, no other plant is like that.
8th: The Best Bean[]
Laser Bean is a little too good, as I've said before. But, he's not too good to the point that I hate him, like Spring Blovers or Thyme Warp, so he's in this list. He may not deal much damage, but he is the ultimate crowd-controller, as his attack cannot be stopped by anything, the only enemy capable of countering Laser Bean is the stupidly annoying Glitter Zombie, and even that technically does not "stop" his laser, it just protects the zombies behind so the laser doesn't hurt them.
To sum up, Laser Bean is basically just a really useful AoE plant, sorta like Gloom-shroom but long-ranged and packing less punch. So yeah, onto the next plant.
7th: The Explodonator[]
In PvZ1, I didn't use him much.
In PvZ2, I consider it suicidal to not choose him in most levels.
Cherry Bomb is just the plant to use when you have a massive bunch of zombies that your other plants aren't cut out to kill, as you can wipe them out so, so fast, buying yourself some more time to get up better defences. Cherry Bomb is therefore basically vital...but is he really creative? Considering that he's such a basic plant and was the very third plant in PvZ1...not particularly. That's why he isn't any higher.
6th: The Haunting Volcano[]
Hey look, a joint entry! I do those now! I think the last time I did that was...oh yeah, Spring Blovers.
Lava Guava and Ghost Pepper are very similar and yet also quite different. First, Ghost Pepper.
Ghost Pepper deals fairly heavy damage over time in a wide area, and will self-destruct a short time after it begins attacking, allowing it to deal a burst of damage to nearby enemies. Very useful as an early attacker and later in the game, especially due to being near-invincible.
Lava Guava on the other hand does things the other way around. It explodes first, then leaves behind something that can massively damage zombies in a small area. Even more useful later in the game due to high-health zombies showing up and the fact that it usually won't die before erupting.
Which is better? Well...I don't think either of them are. Ghost Pepper is arguably more creative as it came first, but Lava Guava, it could be argued, has more utility than Ghost Pepper. That's why I'm putting them here as a joint entry. And there will be one later, just you wait and see.
5th: The Pusher[]
Wanna push zombies back and then hold them off a little longer when they get back?
Then pick Chard Guard.
Chard Guard is a great defensive plant, as it can stall almost anything, including Gargantuars. Yes, Chard Guard is a Garg staller, in case you didn't already know. And a much better one than that spiky rock. It's also pretty creative, despite the similarity to Spring Bean, so it's not really a let-down in any department...
Except for longevity. I mean, you need to constantly replace Chard Guards whenever they run out of leaves, as they have very little usefulness once that happens, and this means they cost a lot to maintain. There's the reason it isn't OP.
4th: The Holo-nut[]
Infi-nut, in my opinion, is slightly better than Chard Guard. Infi-nut isn't as good at stalling zombies, but it's got the longest lifespan of all defensive plants, as few zombies actually kill it totally. And if you don't kill it totally, it will keep coming back. This makes Infi-nut very potent and means it doesn't require much maintenence. If you use other stalling tactics like Winter Melons, Icebergs, and similar plants, then zombies will have trouble getting past the eaten Infi-nut before it regenerates, making it even better.
Then, there's also the PF effect that can withstand Gargs...but not Mecha-Footballers or Glitter Zombies. BUCK YOU GLITTER ZOMBIES, YOU WILL GET YOUR PLACE IN THE LIST OF BAD ZOMBIES!!!
3rd: The Copier Again[]
He was great in the original, he's great here. If anything, he's better in the sequel due to being able to imitate ANYTHING. Use it on Power Lilies, Cherry Bombs, Sun-shrooms, Twin Sunflowers, Chard Guards, heck, if you're a noob then use it on Thyme Warps and watch as no zombie can get close to your house. It has so many possible uses, it is such a good plant, why wouldn't you use it?
Oh yeah, it's premium. Popcap, why?
2nd: The God of Pults[]
In an attempt to be less predictable, Winter Melon is second, not first.
Well, I don't need to say much. Except that in the sequel it was massively buffed due to no longer requiring Melon-pults, dealing more splash damage, having a wider splash radius and having a quicker recharge...so, yeah, what could beat it?
1st: The Stallers[]
Well...think about it. Iceberg Lettuce, Stunion, Stallia, most of us use at least one of those in every level. Each one has strengths and weaknesses, but all of them are great for holding off early zombies, buying just a little more time so you can get Coco Cannons, or Repeaters, or Red Stingers, or the God of Pults. Without them, imagine how much harder PvZ2 would be. I'd likely have ragequit during Lost City, because even that stage would be pure evil without those stalling plants.
They are cheap, they are great in the early game, and they each have uses in the later parts of levels. All are great plants, and all deserve a spot in this list. The same, top spot.
Which means that Winter Melon is technically in fourth place. Huh. I dread to think how low Gloomy would be if he existed in this game.
Top 15 Worst Plants[]
Oh well, it's got to be done. And I am not putting in combos here due to the backlash at my inclusion of Spring Blovers in the last list. Dishonorable Mentions:
- Split Pea. Because he still has very little use.
- Threepeater. Because he still has very little use.
- Bloomerang. Because Laser Bean makes him useless.
- Endurian. Because he deals so little damage and doesn't have enough health.
- Phat Beet. Because nerfing Gloom-shroom and putting it in a world that includes buffed up Jack-in-the-Box Zombies is a GREAT idea.
15th: The Crocogator[]
What do you get if you cross a crocodile with a plant? This guy! And admittedly, he's not absolutely RUBBISH, but I never used him, and the SOS level where you have to protect him is horrible even by BWB standards due to Fishermen triggering them, rather than simply pulling them forward. So yeah, don't like him. Moving on.
14th: The plant I used to like[]
Not Bloomerang, since he's a dishonorable mention. No, Lightning Reed. A long time ago, it was pretty useful in all situations. With the inclusion of Gargs and the modifications made to zombie density and level pacing, it is literally useless aside from fighting Chickens. Great job PopCap, you made Lightning Reed go from awesome to useless without nerfing it OR introducing a superior plant.
13th: The Five Heads[]
If I want to spend 500+ sun on something, it'll be the God of Pults. Not a faster-shooting Peashooter.
12th: The Shooting Star[]
It's worse than in PvZ1, yet only 12th on the list. It's useless because of Rotobaga, it costs more than before, it's premium and oh look, it has no crowd control, which is practically a requirement in PvZ2 for almost all plants. And yet so many plants are even worse than this.
11th: The Head Thief[]
The inclusion of Punks makes this guy useful in one stage. One stage out of nine. So, I don't hate him as much in PvZ2 as I did once upon a time, but I still hate him.
10th: The God of Nothing[]
Ooh! A plant that costs as much as He who annihilates everything except for Jesters and Parasols! He's gotta be good!
Oh come on! A bad version of Cob Cannon?
That was my reaction to this plant. If I want on-demand firepower in PvZ2, I go to Coco Cannon or M Grass, not this guy.
9th: The Nutty Pea[]
You shoot peas AND block off zombies? So cool! NOT!
This guy sucks, and it doesn't help that every level in DA where you can use him includes his biggest weakness: Jesters. Wall-nut is a much better choice than Pea-nut when faced with Jesters...sheesh.
8th: The Three Bowlers[]
Me: Wall-nut, meet your new bowling rivals!
Wall-nut: "These guys? They couldn't get a strike from a foot away."
Bowling Bulbs: "CAN TOO! We can so get a spare from a foot away!"
Jokes aside, these guys are a joke. As far as ranged attackers go, you don't get much BLEEP-ier than this. So...yeah.
7th: The Cattail Clone[]
It's Cattail except in PvZ2, and without being one of few weaknesses a zombie has, and being a gemium, and the only good thing about it compared to Cattail is it isn't water-bound.
Good? No. Rubbish. Worse than rubbish, it's a piece of carp.
Why in Tartarus would anyone want to use this thing?
6th: The Salty Potato[]
I called it Sour last time, I came up with something different this time. Now, to be fair, I've been able to use Sweet Potato a few times, which is why she's not as high in the list now...but only in highly specialized strategies that I would never use in normal gameplay. The cost is too much, Sweet Potato diverts the wrong way and dies WAAAY too fast, being such a massive drain on sun as you replace it every time it recharges.
5th: The Chilling Blover[]
A plant I only ever use in conjunction with Sweet Potato, so never in an ordinary strategy. It's a bad stalling plant, and I think Jalapeno is generally better...even though I generally dislike Jalapeno.
Hurrikale really isn't very good, if you look at the stats, it should cost 75 sun and push zombies back further. Oh well...
4th: The Pirahna Plant[]
You like insta-killing zombies then having to wait an age to kill another one? Chomper is for you! Just don't ever compare to Toadstool, Peashooter, or Homing Thistle, or anything else really, and it'll look like an awesome plant that totally isn't even worse in the sequel than in the original and totally doesn't use his idle animation when he should be biting!
Seriously, this guy is a steaming pile of uselessness.
3rd: The Boxer[]
You all know I hate Bonk Choy, and you all know why. Not enough damage at close range, costs 150 sun yet can't even handle multiple basic zombies or a single Conehead without help...it really has no redeeming features. If I want a short-ranged fighter for 150 sun, I'll go Snapdragon, for the multi-row attack and crowd control, even if he deals less damage per second.
2nd: The Time Traveller[]
Let's do the thyme warp! Not.
I may not be putting Spring Blovers on this list, but Thyme Warp is here for the EXACT same reason. It's flipping OP. It is so stupidly powerful that it would take an utter idiot to lose a choose-your-seeds level when they've chosen Thyme Warp. 75 sun to send EVERY SINGLE ZOMBIE back to the start of the lawn?
But, I hear you say, "it heals them too!"
Yes, but it still gives you plenty of time for insta-kills to recharge or time to save up for Winter Melons, and if you use it repeatedly, the zombies will never eat your brains, ESPECIALLY if you have Imitater and use that to your advantage.
It should cost about 200 sun and have a longer recharge, while being usable in all stages. THEN IT IS BALANCED. But as it is, it's an abomination. It's horrible. It's the second worst plant in PvZ2.
And what could beat it?
1st: The Weather Controller[]
Electric Blueberry, the plant that makes storm clouds, the only plant that can insta-kill Gargs without PF...is my least favourite, no wait, MOST HATED plant in PvZ2. It. Is. Useless. More useless than Bonk Choy if it punched once every two seconds. More useless than Chomper if it took a whole minute to chew.
More useless than...CHOMP THING.
Electric Blueberry can insta-kill Gargs, sure, but look at the downsides:
Very, very slow attack speed.
Very, very slow recharge time (I can just barely get four in a two-flag level).
Attacks semi-randomly, with a higher chance of attacking the WEAKER ZOMBIES, the zombies you really don't want it to ever attack, than it has of attacking strong zombies.
And worse at crowd control overall than even Citron or Chomper.
The ONLY plant in the ENTIRE series worse than this guy is...Gold Magnet. Heck, I like Popcorn more than him.
You know what the worst part is? PopCap expects me to spend £4.99 on it after Day 31 of NMT showed me how bad it is!
That, and the fact that if it attacked high-health zombies first, rather than attacking randomly and favouring weak zombies...it'd actually be really useful. It'd be worth the cost.
This is Milesprower2, finishing this blog and trying to forget about the existence of Electric Blueberry.