Brain

*Not to be confused with Brian.*

In the *Plants vs. Zombies* series, **brains** are the favorite food of the zombies and the incentive for zombies attacking the player. In *Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare*, *Plants vs. Zombies Heroes,* and Versus Mode, they are the zombie equivalent of sun.

## History

### *Plants vs. Zombies*

In *Plants vs. Zombies*, the zombies attempt to invade the player's house to eat their brains.

In parts of the game, some zombies can be seen showing brains on pieces of their clothing or equipment. For example, the Zombie Bobsled Team has a brain picture on the front of their bobsled and the words "Brains or Bust" written on the side. The Dolphin Rider Zombie's Speedo-type outfit has a picture of a brain on it, the Snorkel Zombie has a shirt with the legend "I ❤ Brains," and the Flag Zombie carries a red flag with a picture of a brain on it. One of the Chinese zombies in the bottom of the achievement page has a takeout box with a picture of brains on the side.

Additionally, a message appears over the game that is in green goo saying "THE ZOMBIES ATE YOUR BRAINS!" will appear along with the voice screaming "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" if the zombies get inside the player's house.

#### Game modes

Brains appear in the mini-game Zombiquarium, where they are used to feed Snorkel Zombies so they do not die in order to generate 1000 sun to win the level. They cost 5 sun each, and up to three can be on the screen at one time.

The I, Zombie levels have the player placing zombies who must eat the brains at the end of every lane to pass the level. Each brain is usually worth one silver coin ($10), but can sometimes give a gold coin ($50), and the last remaining brain gives a money bag.

The brains are given a vital role in the Xbox Live Arcade and Nintendo DS versions in Versus Mode as the zombies' equivalent of sun. They are used to place zombies in a similar manner to placing plants in order to attack the opponent's lawn and try to eat their brains. Much like sun, brains will fall from the sky anywhere in the three lanes controlled by the player who is playing as zombies and will be produced from Zombie Gravestones at the same rate that Sunflowers produce sun.

### *Plants vs. Zombies Adventures* (Archived content)

#### Brainball

In *Plants vs. Zombies Adventures*, brains served a major purpose in Brainball. They were used as the scoring system. Players had to hide brains in their buildings and get brains from other people's buildings. To do that, they have to send zombies and win the attack. Brains do not count for the score if they are not stored in buildings. If the player attacks another player's town and gets brains, then the brains will automatically be placed in the Player's Town.

### *Plants vs. Zombies 2*

Brains do not have any usage in *Plants vs. Zombies 2*, unlike its predecessor. Like other games, when the zombies enter the player's house, a message says "THE ZOMBIES ATE YOUR BRAINS!," and an image of a brain on a silver plate with a bite taken out of it is shown. If the player taps on the brain, it will squiggle around and make a squishy sound. The player might hear the voice screaming "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" followed by the game over music of a specific world. The same brain also appears at the bottom of the credits. A brain also appears on one of Jester Zombie's plates on his costume during the Thanksgiving Food Fight Piñata Parties.

Aside from letting the zombies reach the house, it can also appear on some losing screens, such as:

* Failing any objectives since 1.7 update
	+ Exceptions are:
		- Levels with Dave's mold colonies after the objective description change (trying to plant into them will make the message "You can't plant on mold colonies" appear).
		- "Dont lose any lawn mowers " objective after its removal from the game
		- "Never have more than X plants" objective (certain circumstances. This objective is still able to be failed on certain ways, such as Witch Hazel producing Puff-shrooms or Fume-shrooms until the plant limit is exceeded)
* Finishing a Piñata Party level without reaching the target score
* Letting the zombies eat, destroy, or activate an endangered plant
* Planting on a flame trap tile or letting a zombie step into it as long as it is in the same lane as the plant needed to protect
* Letting an endangered Puff-shroom disappear in Dark Ages - Night 12

Brains are also the item that is thrown by Cardio Zombies in order to buff other zombies on the lawn in Arena.

Brains in PvZ2 are purple instead of pink.

### *Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare*

Unlike all previous games, in *Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare*, the objective of the zombies are not eating the player's brain. Brains only appear on the zombie side of Boss Mode. It serves a similar purpose as sun, as in Zomboss Boss Mode brains drop from the sky and need to be collected in order to build healing, spotting, and reviving stations, or make cone bombardments to support the team. Each falling brain collected worth 25 brains.

### *Plants vs. Zombies Heroes*

Unlike the other games in the series, in *Plants vs. Zombies Heroes*, zombie heroes use brains to play cards when in a match, similarly to how brains are used to place zombies in Versus Mode or to place stations in Boss Mode. When a match starts, the zombie hero starts with one brain, and this total normally increases by one after each turn. There are several cards that give or remove the number of brains the zombie hero has.

* Brain Vendor gives the zombie hero three brains upon being played.
* Gentleman Zombie gives the zombie hero two brains when it is the zombie hero's turn to play tricks.
* Medulla Nebula gives the zombie hero two brains when the zombie hero plays a zombie there.
* Mustache Waxer gives the zombie hero one brain when another mustache card is played.
* Cryo-Brain increases the number of brains, obtaining in the beginning of each turn, by one.
* Brainana removes all the remaining brains the zombie hero has when played. So far this is the only way that a plant can affect the brain count of zombies.

## Audio

The screaming sound that can be heard when the player loses.

## Trivia

### General

* When the player lets any zombies that do not eat plants (i.e. Catapult Zombie) reach your house, the game still displays "THE ZOMBIES ATE YOUR BRAINS!" despite not being eaten but instead crushed by the zombies.

### Specific to *Plants vs. Zombies*

* The green goo/blood on the game over screen could be one of the main reasons why *Plants vs. Zombies* is rated E10+ by the ESRB.
* In Zombiquarium, one brain costs five sun. This is odd because, in Versus Mode, one gives five times the amount of power one costs. Of course, these are in two completely unrelated game modes and maybe a brain costs 5 sun and it gives 25 sun.
	+ The mechanic of the mini-game mentioned above is a reference to Insaniquarium, another PopCap game, in which one pellet/fish food also costs five dollars
* Several zombies use pictures of brains on items they use or carry, like the Zombie Bobsled Team, which has a brain on their bobsled, or the brain on the Flag Zombie's flag.
* The clouds in the HD version of *Plants vs. Zombies* iPad in the Roof levels are shaped like brains.
	+ There are also brain clouds during the song Stop Zombie Mouth! in the part where an Imp flies with a tube of toothpaste, leaving a trail of toothpaste.

### Specific to *Plants vs. Zombies 2*

* If the player touches the picture of the brain after losing, it will make a "squish" sound and squish by tapping it.
* Despite the fact that the zombies are trying to eat the player's brain, Jester Zombies in Food Fight parties actually hold a pan with a brain (in his costume).
* The brain thrown by Cardio Zombie is different than the one which appears in the losing screen and the credit screen.

### Specific to *Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare*

* This is the first game in the series where the zombies do not try to eat the player's brains.
	+ However, on Team Vanquish Mode, when the plants reach 40 vanquishes, it is possible for Dr. Zomboss to say: "The Plants only need 10! Don't you want brains?"
		- This could mean that Dr. Zomboss has a supply of brains he is using to motivate the zombies to win.

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