Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 is primarily a multiplayer shooter- so in a sense, there’s not a whole lot that you would need help with. After all, simply by playing the games, you should be able to test things out, get a feel for how they work, unlock new stuff, and arrive at strategies best suited for your own style of play. Nevertheless, if you’re a newcomer looking to get the most out of the game, this guide is just the place to go to for you.

MULTIPLAYER

The true meat of the game in Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 is the multiplayer- all the game’s action takes place in the various multiplayer modes, all accessed via a pretty neat interactive hub known as the Backyard Battleground (think of Inkopolis in Splatoon, and you sort of get the idea).

While these modes are technically multiplayer modes, you can still play them locally with friends, or even solo, by substituting people with AI bots. However, if you do choose to play Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 online, then you will need an online subscription- PS Plus and Xbox Live Gold and PS4 and Xbox One respectively.

The multiplayer modes in Garden Warfare 2 are:

Vanquish Confirmed!: Collect orbs from enemies you take down to accumulate points for your team; collect them from your fallen teammates before the enemy team can, to deny them points.

Suburbination: Raise gardens (or tombstones, if you’re zombies), and try to suburbinate the other team.

Mixed Mode: Literally what it says- it’s a mode with a dash of every other mode.

Welcome Mat: The most vanilla game mode in the game, Welcome Mat disallows any customizations and weapon upgrades- the entire match is basically just a class versus class showdown, for the purest form of Plants vs Zombies action.

Team Vanquish: It’s basically Team Deathmatch- take down the opposing team to win the fight.

Turf Takeover: Fight for control of Suburbia! Plants and Zombies battle for control over an ever expanding map in this exciting game mode.

Gnome Bomb: Both sides battle it out to gain control of the Gnome Bomb, a powerful weapon that can lay the garden (or the graveyard!) to waste.

PLAYER BOASTS

Player Boasts are a lot like emblems- you’re awarded them after a match, and they signify your special achievements and performance during a multiplayer game. There are six emblems in Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare 2:

1st Strike Master: Got the first kill in a match

Heal Master: Healed the most players in a match

Revival Master: Revived the most players in a match

Vanquish Master: Killed the most players in a match

Vanquish Streak Master: Got the highest killstreak in a match

Assist Master: Got the most assists in a match

PLANTS

In Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare 2, you fight either as a Plant or a Zombie (duh). Plants are fighting to take Suburbia back from the invading, usurping Zombies. There are seven different kinds of Plant ‘classes’ or characters in the game, each with their own unique abilities- and only one ability can be assigned to each of their three ability slots.

The seven primary Plant types in Garden Warfare 2 are:

SUNFLOWER:
HP: 100
Abilities: Heal Beam/Rainbow Heal Beam, Sunbeam/Solar Flare Beam, Heal Flower/Dark Flower
Weapon: Sun Pulse

Sunflowers are the medic class- their abilities in general are focused on healing people and getting them out of trouble. They are also generally weak and fragile, with only 100 HP. With that said, their weapon, as well as their Sunbeam/Solar Flare Beam can dish out massive amounts of damage, so they are definitely not a class you want to take lightly- do so at your own peril.

KERNEL CORN:
HP: 125
Abilities: Butter Barrage, Husk Hop, Shuck Shot
Weapon: Cob Busters

Kernel Corns are heavy assault guys- they deal heavy and massive amounts of damage that can clear out huge groups of zombies with relative ease. Their weaknesses are their lack of long range viability, as well as their relatively low health.

CACTUS:
HP: 125
Abilities: Potato Mine/Potato Nugget Mine, Garlic Drone/Artichoke Drone, Tallnut/Iron Maiden
Weapon: Spike Shot

Cacti are snipers- this is emphasized with their abilities and their primary weapons, which have incredible accuracy and deal high damage, but which have a very low rate of fire. If playing as a cactus, your first task should be to find yourself a safe vantage point- from there, you can support your teammates and pick out those pesky zombies at your leisure.

CITRON:
HP: 200
Abilities: EMPeach, Citron Ball, Peel Shield
Weapon: Orange Beam

Citrons are tanks, with incredibly high HP, high defensive capacities, and a weapon that never runs out of ammunition, but which deals pretty low damage.

ROSE:
HP: 125
Abilities: Time Snare, Arcane Enigma, Goatify
Weapon: Magic Thistle

Roses are the mage class- and they are overpowered as all hell. Their abilities can wreak havoc on the battlefield, their weapon fires 20 times before needing a reload, and they can even become immune to damage using some of their abilities.

PEASHOOTER:
HP: 125
Abilities: Chili Bean Bomb/Sombrero Bean Bomb, Pea Gatling/Retro Gatling, Hyper/Super Pea Jump
Weapon: Pea Cannon

Peashooters are a basic assault class. Their weapons are automatic, with ten rounds, and their abilities generally emphasize explosion and large scale damage (except for Hyper/Super Pea Jump, which grants them mobility by letting them move really fast, really high).

CHOMPER:
HP: 175
Abilities: Goop/Super Sticky Goop/Chomp Cannon, Burrow/Sprint Burrow, Spikeweed/Spiky Spikeweed
Weapon: Melee

Chompers are close range, melee attackers- like berserkers or barbarians in RPGs, or Rollers in Splatoon. They dish out massive amounts of damage, but they need to be up close to you to do so- which means they are a risky class to play, but they also have the bite (and the fat) to back themselves up on the field.

ZOMBIES

In Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare 2, you fight either as a Plant or a Zombie (duh). Zombies are invaders, fighting to take Suburbia from the resident Plants. There are seven different kinds of Zombie ‘classes’ or characters in the game, each with their own unique abilities- and only one ability can be assigned to each of their three ability slots.

The seven primary Zombie types in Garden Warfare 2 are:

ALL-STAR:
HP: 200
Abilities: Imp Punt/Long Bomb, Sprint Tackle/Ultra Tackle, Dummy Shield/Shield Decoy
Weapon: Football Cannon

All-Stars are tanks, with an incredible amount of health and a weapon that never runs out of ammo (though it can overheat), capable of dishing massive amounts of damage.

SCIENTIST: 
HP: 100
Abilities: Heal Beam of Science/Zombie Heal Station/Armored Heal Station, Warp/Energy Warp, Sticky Explody Ball/Mega Heal Bomb
Weapon: Goo Blaster

Scientists are highly specialized medics, which should be clear by looking at their list of abilities. They do have decent firepower at close range, but their low health means they can’t take too much damage before they’re out of commission. Thankfully, they have a teleportation power that lets them warp ahead a short distance.

FOOT SOLDIER:
HP: 125
Abilities: Zombie Stink Cloud/Super Stink Cloud, Rocket Jump/Rocket Leap, ZPG/Multi-Rocket
Weapon: Z-1 Assault Blaster

Foot Soldiers are a basic assault class. Their abilities and weapons are all fine tuned for this, except for Rocket Jump/Rocket Leap, which grants them mobility by letting them move really fast, really high.

ENGINEER:
HP: 125
Abilities: Sonic Grenade/Proximity Sonic Mine, Big Bolt Blaster, Jackhammer/Turbo Jackhammer
Weapon: Concrete Launcher

In case the name didn’t give it away, Engineers are the engineer class. They can be devastating if they are allowed to set up traps and mines (which they can also fix), and they are also decent at holding their own against attacks.

SUPER BRAINZ:
HP: 200
Abilities: Super Ultra Ball, Turbo Twister, Heroic Kick
Weapon: Heroic Fists

Super Brainz are high impact melee warriors. They are lethal at close range, but they have no long range firepower, which means you can take them on from a distance.

CAPTAIN DEADBEARD:
HP: 125
Abilities: Barrel Blast, Parrot Pal, Cannon Rodeo
Weapon: Scurvy Scattershot

Captain Deadbeard is probably the most powerful zombie class, featuring an amalgamation of long and short range damage, as well as a mix of abilities that let them set traps, and dish out massive amounts of damage.

IMP:
HP: 50
Abilities: Gravity Grenade, Robo Call, Ipmakata
Weapon: Imp Blaster

Imps are incredibly weak, and can be taken out in just one hit- so why pick them? Because they are incredible as a support class. Their abilities let you gather plants in one place and keep them there, making them easy pickings, call in robotic mech assaulters to take on the plants, and make them a spinning gyroscope that launches an incredible amount of ammunition, spraying and raining damage far and wide.

Spawnable Zombies and Plants:

Plants:

In addition to the seven plant classes, you can also spawn one time use potted or mobile plants on the battlefield (either by planting them in flowerpots, or in dirt mounds). These plants are AI controlled bot players- they can be damaged and healed, and they can dish out damage to enemies and support your team. However, once killed, they cannot be revived. These plants cannot be ordinarily encountered or obtained in the game- the only way to get them is through the Sticker Shop, where packs of stickers may include some of these.

The spawnable plants you can get are:

Pumpkin Weed: Plants that deal damage

Terracotta Weed: Shield headgear

Dandelion: Explosive plants

Wood Shield Weed: Slightly stronger shields

Vase Weed: Weeds that can take a hit for you while dishing out damage

Porcelain Vase Weed: Weeds that can take a hit for you while dishing out damage

Heal Weed: Weeds that can heal players in their vicinity

Weed: Fragile plants that deal damage

Leaf Shield Weed: Basic shields

Flag Weed: Raises morale of plants in the vicinity

Hypno Shroom: Disorients nearby players

Pea Cannon: Long range single shot potted plant

Gatling Pea: Long range rapid fire potted plant

Ice Shroom: Close range potted plant that freezes zombies

Toxic Gloom Shroom: Close range potted plant that poisons zombies

Doom Shroom: Close range explosives. Take a while to regenerate.

Goop Shroom: Close range potted plant that covers zombies in a thick sludge, slowing them down.

Fume Shroom: Medium range potted plant that dissolves shields and armor.

Bambo Shoot: Long range air strike potted plant. Shoots bambo shoots.

Snap Dragon: Close range. Breathes fire. Like a dragon. Pyrosynthesis.

Heal Flower: Potted plant to heal nearby plants.

Scaredy Shroom: Long range sniping potted plant

Lightning Reed: Medium range plant that zaps enemies with electricity

Bonk Choy: Close range potted melee plant with devastating melee attacks

Zombies:

In addition to the seven zombie classes, you can also spawn one time use zombies on the battlefield (either walking zombies, or zombie bots). These zombies are AI controlled bot players- they can be damaged and healed, and they can dish out damage to enemies and support your team. However, once killed, they cannot be revived. These zombiesplants cannot be ordinarily encountered or obtained in the game- the only way to get them is through the Sticker Shop, where packs of stickers may include some of these.

The spawnable zombies you can get are:

Flag Zombie: Raises the morale of nearby zombies

Karate Zombie: Lands melee attacks on enemies close by

Gattling Bot: Long range rapid fire bot

Rocket Bot: Long range high damage bot

Hide-n-Shoot Bot: Long range sniping bot

Mr. Freezy: Long range bot that freezes plants

Boxer Bot: Close range melee bot

Mr. Toasty: Close range bot that attacks with fire attacks

Mr. Electro: Medium range bot that attacks with electricity

Explody Bot: Close range explosive bot

Browncoat Zombie: Basic zombie munch attack

Conehead Zombie: A browncoat with slightly more health

Buckethead Zombie: A browncoat with even more health

Exploding Imp: It runs in close towards enemies, and then explodes

Loudmouth Bot: Medium range bot that stuns enemies

Breaker Bot: Medium range bot that can break armor and shields

Uplink Bot: Long range air strike bot

Mr. Toxic: Medium range bot that poisons plants

Dr. Heals: Heals nearby zombies

Newspaper Zombie: Low grade shield zombie

Screen Door Zombie: Higher grade shield zombie

Coffin Zombie: Extremely well shielded, but low mobility

Outhouse Zombie: Uses an outhouse as a shield

Heal Zombie: Heals nearby zombies

Zombie and Plant Bosses:

Plant Bosses:

Plant bosses are incredibly tough AI controlled plants that show up in Graveyard Ops during boss waves, or in Backyard Battleground if you get too close to a Plant Base as a zombie. There are four of these that you need to watch out for- if they show up, don’t try to take them on yourself! That will end in almost certain failure. Instead, get a team of at least three or four guys, and then take them out:

Super Bean: Moves extremely fast, has a shield that protects it from damage, attacks with a laser beam, and can warp to other side of the map.

Sunflower Queen: Uses long range solar beams to hit you. Is surrounded by smaller, regular sunflowers who heal her and will also attack anybody who gets too close.

Big Stump: Close range melee attacks; can suck in enemies to bring them in range before dishing damage out to them.

Giga Torchwood: Devastating melee attacks up close, and flame attacks from afar. Cannot be damaged with fire attacks.

Zombie Bosses:

Zombies bosses are incredibly tough AI controlled zombies that show up in GraveyardGarden Ops during boss waves, or in Backyard Battleground if you get too close to a Zombie Base as a plant. There are four of these that you need to watch out for- if they show up, don’t try to take them on yourself! That will end in almost certain failure. Instead, get a team of at least three or four guys, and then take them out:

Mecha Gargantuar: An extremely powerful, close range melee boss

Disco Zombie: Fires laser attacks long range, and also has a spinning melee attack if you get too close

Baron von Bat: Moves from one part of the map to the other by transforming into bats, steals health from plants using rainbow beams and melee attacks, and can summon and surround himself with minion bats.

Yeti: Tanky boss that deals massive ice damage at close, medium, and long ranges. Moves slowly.

Gargantuar: Immune to ice, with devastating close range melee attacks, and long range explosive attacks

Giga Gargantuar: Like the Gargantuar, except it can also shoot electricity

Zen Sensei: Lethal close range melee attacks, with some degree of long range explosive attacks too

GARDEN GNOMES

Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 may be a multiplayer shooter, but it still features loads and loads of collectibles.

All 54 Golden Gnome Locations

All 10 Secret Fish Activate Locations

All 50 Snow Globe Locations

Miscellaneous:

Solving The Gold Gnome Lever Puzzle

Every Ability And Skill:

Leveling Up And Gaining XP Faster:

How To earn coins faster:

Modifiers:

GENERAL TIPS AND SUGGESTIONS

Switch character classes by getting into the dressing room at the base of the team you are playing for.

Use the XP multipliers. Completing quests on the quest board gives you a new XP multiplier. Having a higher multiplier means more XP, and more XP means you level up faster.

Once a character levels up, you can upgrade it. Just click the customize option (X on Xbox One, Square on PS4) when choosing a character to find the character upgrades section. Upgrades level up your health, your abilities, and general gameplay aspects like spawning ands health regeneration time.

Each class or character has variations, that you can unlock. These variations are unlocked through Sticker Packs at the Sticker Shop. Each variation ranks independently of each other- for instance having multiple Cactus character variants doesn’t mean they all have the same XP pool- they each have individual XP and growth.

ACHIEVEMENTS AND TROPHIES

Of course, Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 has its own Achievements and Trophies, too. Honestly, most of these are really pretty easy to get- you are bound to get these in the course of ordinary, regular gameplay.

Time to Go Outside 

Promote a single character 5 times.

Star Crazy

Spend your first star.

Rinsed ‘Em 

Vanquish 5000 Zombies.

Gramma Z Says… 

Vanquish 5000 Plants.

Insanity 

Complete an Ops game on CRRRRRAAAZY Difficulty.

Catching Waves 

Complete 100 waves in Ops.

Not the Boss of Me 

Defeat 3 Super Boss Waves in Ops.

It’s My Island 

Reach the boss wave using the Flag of Power in the Backyard Battleground.

Really Epic! 

Complete 10 Epic Quests.

The Boss is Watching 

Max out your XP Multiplier on the quest board.

Stomp the Yard 

Vanquish 50 Plants with the Z-Mech’s Robo Stomp.

Just Peachy! 

Stun 50 Z-Mechs using Citron’s EMPeach.

Simply Super 

As Super Brainz, vanquish 25 Plants with Heroic Fists, and 25 Plants with the Heroic Beam.

My Place or Yours

Vanquish 25 Plants with the Scurvy Scattershot, and 25 Plants with the Spyglass Shot.

Specialist 

Promote a character for the first time.

Hawkguy 

Earn a S-Rank in the Crazy Target Range.

Prance vs Samba

Gesture immediately after vanquishing a player.

Who Can You Trust?

Vanquish a friend in their Backyard Battleground.

Always IMProvising 

Apply a weapon skin to a Zombie’s weapon.

Hero to Zero 

Vanquish an opponent using a Potted Plant or Zombot Turret

Skinchanger 

In solo ops, swap to another character.

VIPs Only! 

Play a private match with your own custom rules.

You’ve Goat to Be Kidding Me! 

As Rose, Goatify 100 Zombies.

Aww Shucks! 

As Kernel Corn, vanquish 25 Zombies with the Shuck Shot.

Corn Identity 

Enter the Zombie Stats room as a Plant.

Gnomore! 

Find all hidden Garden Gnomes.

Gnome Man’s Land 

Enter the Chamber of Gnomes.

My Favourite Z-Mech on the Citadel

As a Plant, vanquish the Z7 Imp.

Goat Any Last Words? 

As a Goat, vanquish a Plant.

Goatmeal 

As the Chomper, swallow a Goat.

Behind Enemy Vines 

Enter the Plant Stats room as a Zombie.

Secret Achievements

Just Sprouted 

Complete ‘Boom the Tombs’

On the Cob 

Complete ‘Zero Bark Thirty’

Her Majesty 

Complete ‘Well That Escalated Quickly’

Mango Tango 

Complete ‘Showdown’

Curseproof 

Complete ‘Pirate’s Curse’

Yuck! 

Complete ‘Yuck!’.

The Bean Situation 

Complete ‘The Bean Situation’.

Got Golden 

Complete ‘Gold Rush’.

Warp Tour 

Complete ‘Steve-cation’.

What a Trip 

Complete ‘Goin’ for a Trip’

What’s the Catch? 

Train with the Mysterious Fish.

Lawn Care 

Customize your Backyard with an Epic Item.

West Indian Lilac 

Enter Infinity as a Plant.

String Theory 

Enter Infinity as a Zombie.

King of Summer 

Defeat Yellow Gnome King

King of Winter 

Defeat Blue Gnome King

King of Spring 

Defeat Green Gnome King

King of Autumn 

Defeat Red Gnome King

RGBY 

Vanquish Gnomus, the Gnome King!