14 DAY TRIAL // PopCap Games, a video games developer and publisher best known for its casual games, has announced that it was entering into an exclusive partnership with Renren, a Chinese social networking site, to deliver an exclusive version of its hit game Plants vs. Zombies.
The new release will have the added name Social Edition and will be created by the Shanghai PopCap studio, with a series of new exclusive game modes, a number of social features and other changes specifically tailored for the Chinese market.
The developers are saying that Chinese players will be able to create whole towns in Plants vs. Zombies Social Edition, reflecting their own play style, personalizing them and inviting other players to visit.
One of the new game modes will be called Rampage and PopCap Games will add leaderboards to allow for friendly rivalry between players.
The game is already available on the PC and a number of mobile devices in the West and it’s not clear whether PopCap is thinking about delivering an experience similar to the one of Renren on other social sites, including the mighty Facebook.
Neither PopCap Games nor their partners at Renren have said exactly when Plants vs. Zombies is launched, but the interest has already been significant, with close to 1 million players signing up to get it.
James Gwertzman, who is a vice president at PopCap for the Asia Pacific space, has stated, “The passion for Plants vs Zombies here in China is incredible. There is superb demand for the game and we are excited to deliver the world's first online multiplayer adaptation of Plants vs Zombies in China very soon.”
Recently, PopCap announced that it was working exclusively with Amazon to launch its first games on Android devices, set to arrive in the near future.
The company is also developing a new brand, specifically aimed at more experimental game design.