CEO of PopCap Interactive John Vechey who has been with the studio since the beginning as its co-founder and oversaw development on games like Plants vs. Zombies and Peggle has departed from the studio. Vechey is the final member of the original founding team to leave after Brian Fiete and Jason Kapalka departed in recent years.

Vechey’s marriage and spending time with his daughter his inspired him to do more in his life, according to a letter he sent his colleagues, and he will be joining an NPO for solving “peace and social justice issues, such as war abolition, prison reform, poverty and the effects of race and gender privilege.”

Vechey believes in EA CEO Andrew Wildon’s “vision of a company that puts its players first” and stated that, “The best years are ahead for both EA and PopCap, and I look forward to watching development teams live up to what it means to be electronic artists.”

Meanwhile, EA Labels presideent Frank Gibeau noted on the EA Blog that, “John is a rare breed. His personal vitality and true passion for fun helped to define the spirit of PopCap and the games they make.”

At least that “all new Peggle” is coming though, right?

PopCap Interactive’s Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare is already available for the Xbox One and Xbox 360. It will also be arriving for PC in June but EA have already begun teasing a PlayStation release for the near future.

This was indicated by the official Electronic Arts Twitter which posted the above image and said, “It’s time for an announcement…” The image shows the Pea-Shooter from Garden Warfare dressed up as Sly Cooper from Insomniac’s platforming franchise. Another image showed the Chompter dressed as Fat Princess.

It’s likely that Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare will be arriving for both PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3, with maybe a Vita release in the near future. As of now, it seems a given for PlayStation platforms at this point. Are you looking forward to it? Let us know what you think in the comments below along with whether Garden Warfare would make for a compelling PlayStation title.

Plants vs. Zombies 2: It’s About Time has been a monumental success for PopCap Interactive, despite launching so many months ago and Garden Warfare having recently released for home consoles. PopCap is still updating the game with extra content, adding a whole new Far Future update to the mobile tower defense game.

This includes new futuristic worlds, new levels, plants, zombies and much more are on offer, providing hours of new gameplay for free. PopCap promises more content in the coming months and it’ll certainly be interesting to see how the game further evolves, micro-transactions and all.

The Far Future update is available now for Plants vs. Zombies 2 for iOS and Android. Have you had a chance to play it yet and how are you finding the experience thus far? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below. Stay tuned for more updates to the game in the coming months as PopCap adds more content.

PopCap Interactive’s Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare is now available for Xbox One and Xbox 360, and while many players are still discovering the sheer variety and content on offer, the developer is readying its first DLC for the game.

There’s not much known at this point other than that it will be “amazingly hilarious” according to a recent tweet. Of course, there will also be a new level cap for players, thus increasing the maximum level past 80.

PopCap will also be adding a Mixed Mode playlist today which allows for combined Garden and Graveyards and Team Vanquish matches, along with two fresh sticker packs 20,000 coins each, the Incredi-Plant Pack for bringing new items to your favourite Plants and the Vengeful Zomboss Pack which equips Zombies with new items. One could say there’s almost TOO much bang for your buck.

Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare is still set to release for the PC, so stay tuned for more information on when that happens.

Despite the backlash that EA faced with games like SimCity, it seems that it hasn’t quite learned its lesson. PopCap Interactive’s Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare seemingly doesn’t allow you to play offline, according to a new video for the Xbox 360 version which reveals you must be connected to Xbox Live to play its game modes.

How bad is it? You can’t even go into the Options without connecting online. The offline split-screen mode is limited to the Xbox One, but it may not be offline as we suspected. The only explanation that’s been offered is that when micro-transactions are eventually introduced, they can be stored on the server rather than locally. Though micro-transactions haven’t been confirmed, PopCap hasn’t ruled them out.

Then again, it could just be the Xbox 360 version. We’ll find out for sure when the Xbox One and Xbox 360 versions release on February 25th, so stay tuned for more information.

While Eidos Montreal’s Thief reboot is hogging all the attention, a high profile Xbox exclusive will be hitting next week in the form of Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare. PopCap Interactive’s highly successful mobile franchise will now be in the form of a first person shooter/tower defense hybrid in Frostbite 3. A new video has surfaced for the game, which looks at the different classes and the Gardens & Graveyards mode.

Narrated by Larry “Major Nelson” Hryb, we get a look at how you can use unique abilities on both the Plants and Zombies side to defeat enemies. You’ll also find out how the in-game currency operates since it allows you to not only upgrade your abilities but bring on additional characters.

Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare releases on February 25th in North America and February 27th in Europe for Xbox One and Xbox 360, with a PC version still to be dated.

If you’ve played Plants vs. Zombies 2: It’s About Time, then you’re no doubt part of a small contingent that agrees to the game’s greatness despite the in-app purchases. In fact, despite initial criticisms, PvZ2 offered a refreshingly un-EA like way to handle micro-transactions.

At least, before the latest update. According to a user on Reddit, the newest update allows you buy lawnmowers after they’ve been used. You can buy them within the game using currency which can be obtained by either completing missions or dropping some real cash for the same. Given that the lawnmowers are the last line of defense for missions, they come across as essential. But no biggie because the game is fairly generous with its currency, right?

Apparently not. Now, not only can you retry Pinata events for coins, but if you do there won’t be any lawnmowers. You’ll need to buy them back. Which is again not a big deal since you can do this in the main story missions, right?

Apparently not (again). Now, no matter which mission you select, you won’t have any lawnmowers. You’ll only have the option of buying the same. EA has essentially removed what was a default mechanic for the game and is now charging you for the privilege of using it.

Is it a bug or a really crazy way to scam customers out of their cash? Did PopCap and EA really intend for lawnmowers to be removed by default and requiring their purchase at the start of every mission? It’s definitely worth investigating, especially since EA’s credibility has hit rock bottom following the release of Dungeon Keeper on mobiles. Other users have been experiencing the same but some report vastly different results.

Have you been seeing this issue in the game? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

PopCap Interactive’s Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare, which combines the game’s trademark tower defense with some new shooting mechanics, has been delayed. Originally meant to release on February 18th in North America and February 20th in Europe, it will now be out on Xbox One, Xbox 360 and PC on February 25th in NA and February 27th in Europe.

The Xbox One version gets a slight boost over the other versions by including two more modes in local co-op along with Kinect and SmartGlass implementation for the Boss Mode. Otherwise, all platform holders will be able to enjoy the Frostbite 3-developed madness over 10 maps and 24 person multiplayer.

Will you be picking up Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare and if so, then on which platform? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below, lest Disco Zombie find you and boogie bite you in your sleep (if that’s how it works, we don’t know).

There’s plenty to like about PopCap’s Plants vs. Zombies franchise these days, whether it’s with the recent PvZ2 or the upcoming Plants Vs Zombies: Garden Warfare – a third person shooter and tower defense hybrid that sees the plants finally waging an assault on the zombies. A multiplayer video for the game’s Xbox 360 version has been revealed by the developer. Check it out above.

Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare will feature support for 24 players, as executive producer Brian Lindley discusses about the unique features you can expect. That include zombie drones, healers, customization of avatars, dolphin shotguns, attack combos and much more. It’s awesome.

Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare will launch on February 18th in North America and February 20th in Europe for the Xbox One, Xbox 360 and PC. Are you looking forward to it? Let us know in the comments below what you think of the Xbox 360 version and the multiplayer as well.

PopCap Interactive’s Peggle series has a fairly strong following – so strong in fact, that Microsoft realized how beneficial it would be to have Peggle 2 serve as a timed exclusive for the Xbox One. Nonetheless, the Achievements for the game have already been revealed. They indicate 28 Achievements for a total Gamerscore of 1000 points. You can check them out below. We’d tell you to beware of spoilers but for crying out loud, it’s Peggle. We don’t think you’ll find out who killed Dumbledore by reading them.

Toured the Campus (50G)
Completed every level in the Peggle Institute

Insitutionalized (25G)
Completed every trial in the Peggle Institute

Trolled (50G)
Completed every level in Mountain Highs

Higher Ground (25G)
Completed every trial in Mountain Highs

Found Frozen Friends (50G)
Completed every level in Winter Blunderland

SSSSlide (25G)
Completed every trial in Winter Blunderland

Found So Many Contraptions (50G)
Completed every level in Gnorman’s Gneighborhood

Grounded (25G)
Completed every trial in Gnorman’s Gneighborhood

Not Too Scary (50G)
Completed every level in Gravely Grove

Trials and Some Tribulations (25G)
Completed every trial in the Gravely Grove

Peggle Master (100G)
Completed every Celestial Realm level

Cryptic Cryptid (50G)
Completed every Celestial Realm trial

Opt-in (25G)
Completed 30 Optional Objectives

Objection! (25G)
Completed 60 Optional Objectives

Half-Way Yay! (25G)
Completed 90 Optional Objectives

Extreme Objectification (25G)
Completed 120 Optional Objectives

Ultra Extreme Objectification (50G)
Completed 150 Optional Objectives

All the Cheevos! (100G)
Completed 180 Optional Objectives

Baller (50G)
Won a level with at least 12 balls left

Superior Shot (5G)
Earned 3 free balls on one shot

Stylin’ (25G)
Got 75,000 styleshot points in a shot

Coolest Clear (50G)
Won a level with the cool clear style shot

Every day I’m Pegglin’ (10G)
Hit 10000 blue pegs

Orange Crusher (10G)
Hit 5000 orange pegs

I’d Hit That (10G)
Hit 300 green pegs

I Got a Fever (5G)
Cleared all orange pegs in a level

Ace’d! (25G)
Beat your first ace score

Ultra Extreme Fever (35G)
Cleared all pegs in a level

Peggle 2 releases on December 9th for Europe and North America on the Xbox One.

(Source)