PopCap's 4th and Battery studio is a place where offbeat games are made, a place where PopCap's designers can let their creativity run wild. The latest release, Allied Star Police, follows this mindset. It's a hybrid of a tower defense game and real-time strategy that takes place in futuristic world torn apart by galactic conflicts. The difference is that it was conceived and designed by a 9-year-old.

As part of the Make-A-Wish Foundation, 9-year-old Owain Weinert—who has been diagnosed with pre-B Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia—participated in an event called PopCamp; essentially, an internal game jam where PopCap developers work on whatever games they like. Owain teamed up with the 4th and Battery crew to fulfill a wish to make a video game. And the result was Allied Star Police.

The game almost feels like a faster-paced version of Plants vs Zombies. Enemy ships fly along lanes, coming in from the right, while you place ships to fend them off on the left. Your defenses aren't static like most tower defense games, but instead speed along to the end of the level, hopefully taking out enemy forces along the way. Destroying bad guys earns you money, which you can then put into purchasing increasingly powerful ships. It's quite addictive.

While you might think that the quality of the game is solely a result of PopCap's skill at creating quality bite-sized experiences, it appears as though the game really is true to Owain's vision. During PopCamp he came armed with a PowerPoint presentation, outlining everything from the storyline and unit types to specific details like firepower, shields, and respawn times.

"The minute he walked in the door he handed us a fully realized game design, figured out to the last detail," said 4th and Battery producer Matthew Lee Johnston in a statement. "He stuck with that vision, and directed the team through the development process like a pro. When he first sat down to play it, he naturally knew what to do and won his first round easily, which felt to us like we did a good job executing on his plan."

Allied Star Police is available as a free download for the iPhone and iPad.