Plants vs. Zombies 2 is a strategic tower defense game. When Plants vs. Zombies was first released, it set the world on fire. Between its colorful graphics, its quirky premise, and its surprisingly deep tactical gameplay, it set a standard for what mobile games could potentially be. Plants vs. Zombies 2 is largely more of the same, but it's bigger, better, and more tightly polished than the original.

The pitch of Plants vs. Zombies 2 is simple. You're tasked with protecting your home from an endless horde of zombies. To accomplish this, you have to plant a variety of offensive plants along the grid that serves as your lawn. Zombies march eternally forward, but your army of plants offer a wide variety of tactical advantages. Different breeds of zombie have different weaknesses, forcing you to make use of a wide range of plants, and the necessity of using resource gathering sunflowers to maintain your currency offers a push and pull between defense and production.

The world of Plants vs. Zombies 2 is wilder than its predecessor, with environments throughout the world, but apart from the addition of new plants and zombies and a few variations on the central gameplay, the same solid systems are at play.