Score one more for jealous intellectual property hoarders. PopCap Games yesterday told MTV Multiplayer that they would be modifying the successful tower defense game, Plants vs. Zombies. Said PopCap, “The Estate of Michael Jackson objected to our use of the ‘dancing zombie’ in Plants vs. Zombies based on its view that the zombie too closely [...]

Given all the layoffs reported lately, it’s time for some good news. PopCap Games, makers of such universal hits as Bejeweled and Peggle has announced (via Gamasutra) an 85% retail sales jump in 2008. This spike came at a time when PC games took an overall 14% hit in retail revenues, and has catapulted the publisher into the top 20 retail publishers by dollar volume.

They attribute their success to the recent release of Bejeweled Twist, and while that’s certainly a substantial contributor, the economy also likely plays a role. In economic circumstances where gamers are working longer to keep their jobs and money is short for everyone, publishers like PopCap who sell cheap games that don’t take long to play but have substantial replayability should flourish.

What’s surprising about this news is that PopCap is best known for their web portal, where they do digital distribution of demos and Flash versions of their retail games. It’s certainly true that nothing sells a game like a good demo, but if digital distribution is really driving consumer interest, you’d expect the sales to be via digital distribution as well. Perhaps it really is true: you can’t predict where the consumer will buy.

From the “it’s about time” files, PopCap Games has announced that it will be porting Peggle to the DS. They’ll be doing this with Q Entertainment (Lumines, Meteos), a development house already experienced with the unique demands of handheld gaming devices. Touch interactivity seems well suited to PopCap’s precision aiming game, and Peggle’s short play sessions seem like a good fit for portable gaming. That in addition to Peggle’s uncommon appeal to both casual and hardcore gamers makes this a game to keep an eye on.