There’s something oddly poetic about the rhythm of game releases in Australia. Some days drop quietly, leaving little more than digital tumbleweeds. Others, like August 4, punch well above their weight, delivering wildly different yet equally memorable experiences.
On this date, Aussie gamers were introduced to a charmingly absurd animal-matching puzzler for Game Boy Advance, a touch-screen tactical tower defence romp about the undead invading the living room, and a stylised, story-rich JRPG that would redefine Western appreciation for the genre. And now, without much further ado, let’s go and say hello to ’em all over again.
Zoo Keeper (GBA) 2003
At A Glance
Zoo Keeper is what happens when a match-three puzzler eats a bucket of sugar, dons a safari hat, and barrels into your GBA with all the subtlety of a howler monkey on espresso. Looking back, Zoo Keeper was a pixel-perfect port of a Japanese browser game that somehow convinced kids and adults alike that babysitting squares with googly eyes constituted a valid career path.
The goal here? Match rows of wide-eyed giraffes, lions, and elephants while under pressure from an increasingly aggressive zookeeper boss who is either very passionate about animal order or deeply unwell. This was not just another puzzle clone. It was a cult classic in cargo shorts.
Gameplay Gist
At its core, Zoo Keeper is a tile-matching puzzle game in the spirit of Bejeweled, only with a bonkers animal theme and slightly sharper teeth. You swap adjacent animal tiles to form horizontal or vertical lines of three or more, clearing them from the board and scoring points.
The twist lies in the different gameplay modes. There’s normal mode for casual keepers, time attack mode for masochists, and a bizarre “Quest” mode that throws random challenges like “catch five lions while blindfolded, metaphorically.” The pace picks up fast, and as levels progress, tiles drop with furious speed, demanding eagle-eyed pattern recognition and reflexes that would make a meerkat jealous.
Behind The Scenes Trivia
Originally developed as a web game called Zooo by Japanese studio BottleCube, the game’s concept was later picked up and published by Success Corporation and Ignition Entertainment. The GBA version was one of the few puzzle games of its kind to get a physical cartridge release outside Japan, and it later got a high-profile Nintendo DS remake that made it to launch day in both the US and Europe.
Its hand-drawn art style and slapstick animations were reportedly inspired by 1960s Japanese TV cartoons. Interestingly, the developers chose animal tiles because early testing showed that coloured shapes were “too boring” to keep players engaged.
Connoisseur Cheat Sheet
- Zoo Keeper was one of the first match-three games on GBA to use animated tiles with character personality
- The DS remake of Zoo Keeper was a Nintendo DS launch title in Europe and Japan
- Quest mode in Zoo Keeper introduced timed objectives and randomness years before Candy Crush Saga
- Zoo Keeper was a rare Japanese indie Flash game that successfully transitioned to console
Kinda Similar
Bejeweled, Puzzle League, Meteos
Where To Play It Today
Search eBay Australia for Zoo Keeper (GBA)
Plants vs. Zombies (DS) 2011
At A Glance
Plants vs. Zombies on DS is the gardening gig you never knew you wanted. Basically, this touchscreen twist on tower defence asks you to stop a zombie apocalypse using little more than sunlight and potted plants. With a cheerfully deranged art style and an off-kilter sense of humour, Plants vs. Zombies turned home landscaping into a tactical battlefield where pea-shooting flora faced off against pole-vaulting undead in pool lanes. It was delightfully ridiculous and strangely tense, and the DS version brought all that leafy mayhem to your pocket with surprising fidelity.
Gameplay Gist
In Plants vs. Zombies, you lay out various plant units on a grid-like lawn, each with unique abilities, to stop waves of increasingly oddball zombies from invading your house and eating your brains. Sunflowers generate energy, Peashooters attack, Wall-nuts absorb damage, and so on. The gameplay is real-time, but with a gentle pace that lulls you into a false sense of security before a sudden onslaught of dolphin-riding or screen-door-wielding ghouls throws your strategy into chaos. The DS version smartly adapted mouse-driven controls to stylus taps, keeping the action tactile and satisfying while maintaining all the charm of the original PC hit.
Behind The Scenes Trivia
Originally developed by PopCap Games, Plants vs. Zombies was designed by George Fan, who reportedly drew inspiration from Warcraft III mods and Insaniquarium, another quirky PopCap title. The DS version was ported by Black Lantern Studios and published by PopCap in collaboration with Mastertronic and Nintendo. While the core gameplay remained intact, the DS version removed some content like Survival Mode and limited mini-games due to hardware constraints. Despite that, it retained the game’s addictive loop and became one of the better-reviewed late DS puzzle-strategy hybrids. Its sound compression is often joked about among fans, as it gave Crazy Dave’s gibberish even more comedic bite.
Connoisseur Cheat Sheet
- Plants vs. Zombies DS featured over 20 unique plant types and 25 zombie varieties across five environmental stages
- The touchscreen interface allowed for faster, more tactile plant placement compared to console ports
- Included Puzzle and Zen Garden modes, offering relaxed gameplay beyond the main campaign
- Voice work and audio cues were downsampled for DS but remained surprisingly recognisable
Kinda Similar
Fieldrunners, South Park: Let’s Go Tower Defense Play!, PixelJunk Monsters
Where To Play It Today
Search eBay Australia for Plants vs. Zombies (DS)
Persona 5 (PS3/PS4) 2017
At A Glance
Persona 5 didn’t just steal hearts. It held the JRPG genre at gunpoint, demanded style, and got away clean. A true masterpiece, Persona 5 was a landmark moment for Japanese role-playing games outside their home turf. With its bold visual identity, unforgettable acid jazz soundtrack, and an attitude soaked in anti-establishment energy, Persona 5 became more than a cult hit. It was a cultural artefact. Whether you were coming in fresh or had endured the years-long localisation wait with clenched teeth, this game delivered a sprawling, 100-hour epic that made teenage rebellion feel like a moral obligation.
Gameplay Gist
Persona 5 balances two very different but tightly interwoven systems. By day, you’re a Tokyo high school student navigating exams, friendships, part-time jobs, and awkward train rides. By night, you become a Phantom Thief, exploring surreal mindscapes known as Palaces, stealing corrupted desires from the hearts of morally bankrupt adults.
Combat is turn-based but swift, centred on exploiting elemental weaknesses and pulling off team-based follow-up attacks. Every action, from hanging out with friends to studying in a diner, affects your stats or unlocks new abilities. The calendar-based structure forces you to make meaningful decisions with limited time. It’s a meticulous blend of social simulation and dungeon crawling, where both halves are equally vital to your success.
Behind The Scenes Trivia
Persona 5 was developed by Atlus’ P-Studio, with direction from Katsura Hashino and art by Shigenori Soejima. Development began shortly after Persona 4 Golden, though production faced numerous delays as the team shifted to HD for the first time. The game was originally announced in 2013 with a 2014 release window, but the final game didn’t hit Japanese shelves until late 2016.
Its signature red-black-white aesthetic was inspired by punk protest art and the concept of societal masks. Composer Shoji Meguro returned to create the now-iconic soundtrack, blending jazz, funk, and lounge influences. Persona 5 was the last title in the series to release on a PlayStation platform exclusively, before later spin-offs expanded to other consoles.
Connoisseur Cheat Sheet
- Persona 5 introduced fully 3D dungeon design in Palaces, replacing the procedural maps of earlier entries
- Time management and social links were expanded into a deep Confidant system, rewarding personal investment with battle perks
- The game’s menus became a benchmark for user interface design, inspiring countless future games
- First mainline Persona to feature a fully orchestrated soundtrack performed by live jazz ensembles
Kinda Similar
Tokyo Xanadu eX+, Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Danganronpa V3
Where To Play It Today
Search eBay Australia for Persona 5 (PS3/PS4)
