The original Plants Vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare was a sleeper hit when it launched on the Xbox One in 2014. Could Garden Warfare 2 be another sleeper hit that improves on the formula? You can try it out yourself as the open beta for the cartoon-ish third-person shooter just went live on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
The Plants Vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 open beta is available to download from the Xbox Store now and will go live on the PlayStation Store at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT. It will be playable through Monday, January 18. The download weighs in at 16.61 GB so plan your time accordingly.
Those that jump into the PvZ: Garden Warfare 2 beta will have the Backyard Battlegronud hub world to play in along with six multiplayer modes on four maps. The big 24-player multiplayer matches are Herbal Assault and the classic Gardens & Graveyards. Meanwhile, Team Vanquish, Vanquish Confirmed, Gnome Bomb, and Suburbination will all be rotated into the playlists.
Old favorite characters will be available along with six new character classes – Kernel Korn, Rose, Citron, Imp & Z-Mech, Super Brainz, and Captain Deadbeard.
The Backyard Battleground is the surprise addition to Plants Vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2. It’s a sizable hub world divided between both factions with a “neutral zone” in the middle. A flag sits dead center in the map that kicks off a king of the hill style survival mode that can be played with four players. Other mini-games and secrets are hidden around the hubworld too, though not all are available in the beta.
Plants Vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 is set to release for the PS4, Xbox One, and PC on February 23.
[Image via Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2]
