Minecart and rail

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Minecarts (misspelled in the game as mine carts) placed on rails/tracks are environment modifiers that mainly appear in Wild West in Plants vs. Zombies 2. Other than Wild West itself, they also appear in the Western Vasebreaker levels in Plants vs. Zombies 2 and in some levels of Modern Day. Plants on minecarts can be moved to other lanes within the track, but they cannot move horizontally.

They are also used in Kongfu World - Days 21, 24, and Ultimate Challenge. In this world, the minecarts of multiple rails are joined, adding to the level of difficulty. This also makes their mobility decrease dramatically.

Minecarts and rails also appear in All by Oneself in the Chinese version of Plants vs. Zombies 2 and in last row of the lawn for plants in Plants vs. Zombies: All Stars.

Related achievements

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Pod Squad
Max out a Pea Pod on a mine cart
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Shell On Wheels
Plant a Wall-nut on a mine cart

Strategies

Minecarts favor expensive, heavy-hitting plants such as Winter Melon, Pea Pod, and Ultomato. A rail that covers all 5 lanes can allow a single powerful plant to provide excellent crowd control. The downside is that it occupies more lawn space, and the player must pay close attention to get the full benefit, moving the cart as needed to reinforce vulnerable lanes or avoid threats.

It is also possible to place a defensive plant on the minecart, allowing it to stall multiple lanes; however, this is only an effective strategy if the blocked zombie(s) can be killed before it is necessary to move the minecart again. Aloe can have better success, since it doesn't need to stay in the lane after the knockback.

Minecarts are also useful for permanently stalling Gargantuars, since when the Gargantuar tries to destroy the plant on the minecart, you can move it out of the way so it doesn't get destroyed. Then you can bring the plant back into the Gargantuar's lane to make it try to smash the plant again and again. However, you may not have time to do other things while doing so. This strategy also works with other zombies that stop to do something when they meet a plant, such as Jurassic Rockpuncher, Mecha-Football Zombie and even flying zombies like Jetpack Zombie and Balloon Zombie.

Gallery

Plants vs. Zombies 2

Chinese version (China only)

Trivia

  • Banana Launcher, Bamboo Shoot (China only), Lava Guava, Escape Root, Missile ToeOlive Pit and Electric Peel cannot be planted on minecarts.
    • In Banana Launcher and Electric Peel's case, it says "Bananas are too slippery for mine carts.".
    • In Lava Guava's case, it says "Lava would melt the railcart.".
    • In Missile Toe's case, it says "Missile Toes are too icy for mine carts.".
    • In Olive Pit's case, it says "Olive Pits make holes. No railcarts!".
    • Holly Barrier and Boom Balloon Flower can be placed on minecarts, despite being tap to launch plants like Banana Launcher. Due to this, the minecart cannot be moved if the plant is ready to fire.
  • Minecarts and rails started to be available in Player's House in Piñata Parties, which was on November 28, 2014.
    • The Player's House rail is slightly different than the Wild West one, being less dusty.
  • There is a glitch in Kongfu World - Ultimate Challenge where the Blade-Wielding Hero can push plants onto rails.
  • Despite never having minecart and rails, Pirate Seas, Wild West, and Far Future have unused minecart and rail assets. Judging by when they were added, they were likely meant for the unused world Time Twister.
    • The Far Future minecart and rail was later re-used for the All By Oneself Brain Buster in the Chinese version, though partially redesigned.