Prisoners Escape While Police Plays Plants Versus Zombies

Videogames are one of life's better distractions. Just think how much more your daily bus commute would suck if you didn't have blackjack (or your own personal poison) to keep you occupied. Most people put the games away once they come to work. This is the story of a guy who didn't.

Five inmates escaped from a Phillippine police precinct last week when the guard in charge of keeping watch left the keys within easy grabbing distance. Global Nation reports that one of the bustees says the jailbreak wasn't hard, because the cop was too busy playing Plants Vs. Zombies to notice the prisoners sneaking away.

Four of the five inmates were recaptured shortly thereafter. But one remains on the loose thanks to the mesmerizing power of Seattle-based PopCap's game, wherein players try to fight off a horde of zombies with an array of plants. (Sure it sounds like a weird premise. But so does Super Mario Bros. when you think about it.)

Daily Weekly called PopCap to see if they were going to take the ball and run with this free marketing. So far we haven't heard back from their legal department. But the person answering the phones pretty much summed up our thoughts. "That's an awesome story," he said. "Just awesome."