Zombies Aren't Real Review Summary

A uniquely promising and universally fun zombie game with satisfying destruction and strategic depth, though its broken co-op and steep early learning curve hold it back.

Universally fun and engaging: Players consistently praise the game as fun, engaging, and a blast to play. This sentiment appears across numerous clusters and is the most frequently cited positive.

Satisfying strategic depth and challenge: The game offers surprising complexity and requires planning and strategic thinking, especially as maps grow. Players find it challenging but fair, with satisfying rewards for preparation and adaptation.

Unique and promising concept: Reviewers frequently describe the game as a unique take on the tower defense and zombie strategy genres. Its originality and promising foundation are praised, especially for an early access title.

Satisfying zombie destruction and abilities: Players find joy in wiping out massive zombie hordes and using various battle-time abilities. Specific highlights include mortars, helicopters, and environmental destruction like blowing bridges or starting fires.

Addictive just-one-more-go gameplay: Many reviewers highlight the game's addictive quality, often losing track of time and feeling compelled to play just one more round. The quick pick-up-and-play nature combined with deep strategy keeps players returning.

Co-op multiplayer is broken: Players report that multiplayer does not work, with one friend encountering a 'map not on this PC' error. There is also a co-op bug where both players simultaneously possess each other's units.

Steep learning curve early on: The game has a steep learning curve at the start, and players expect to struggle while figuring out the mechanics. The introduction is overwhelming and needs work.

Controls janky and unintuitive: The controls are janky and unintuitive, with awkward view rotation using ALT plus scroll wheel and inaccurate input recognition.

Lacks bosses and content: The game lacks bosses and needs more stuff overall, and not many maps are provided right away.

AI-generated content disliked: Some reviewers are disappointed that generative AI was used in the game's creation, including coding assistance, and do not condone its use.

Real-world map creation feature: Players can generate maps from any real-world location using postal codes, city names, or addresses, allowing gameplay in familiar places like their hometown. This feature is highlighted across many clusters.

Tower defense strategy gameplay: The core gameplay combines tower defense and strategy elements, requiring players to think about preparation and action.

Roguelike restart and progression: Players lose and restart repeatedly, making improvements each time. Progression systems enhance arsenal and understanding through repeated actions.

Safe zone management: Players must garrison safe zones to protect them, manage resupply for troops, and contain temporary breaches.

Bridge destruction mechanics: Bridges have health and can be destroyed using mines, airstrikes, or other means, adding a tactical layer.

Severe stuttering issues reported: Players report huge stutters that drop FPS from 120 to below 30, and the stutters are very noticeable. These performance spikes significantly impact the gameplay experience.

Poor performance on low-end PCs: The game runs badly on low-end computers, making it inaccessible for players with weaker hardware. This suggests optimization issues for lower-spec systems.

Lag in large cities: Performance may become laggy on higher levels of large cities, indicating scaling issues as the game world grows more complex. Players notice degradation as city size increases.

Performance praised by some: Some players report that performance is amazing, contrasting with the stuttering complaints. This suggests performance varies significantly across different hardware configurations.

Worth the price: Many players say the game is worth buying, including in early access. They feel it is definitely worth picking up.

Strong recommendation: Players strongly recommend the game, saying you won't regret it. It is also recommended to pass time or kill time.

Suits strategy and tower defense fans: It is recommended for fans of strategy games, base defense, and tweaking setups. Tower defense lovers and tower survival fans also enjoy it.

Appeals to Atom Zombie Smasher fans: It is recommended for players who enjoyed Atom Zombie Smasher. Fans of that game are likely to enjoy this one.

Try Broadcast and Militia combo: Players suggest using Broadcast and Militia together for an effective combo. This combination is worth trying.

Community fair range: $9.99 - $12.99.

Session length: 1.5h.

Players often face a steep early learning curve, but the game becomes seriously addictive once the mechanics click and repeated runs improve their arsenal and understanding. A minority report immediate fun, while co-op technical issues can block enjoyment for some.

Friction: steep learning curve at the start; struggling to figure out the mechanics; no tutorial or example defense; co-op connection and possession bugs.

Unlock drivers: restarting and improving arsenal; growing understanding of mechanics; mechanics clicking into place.

Casual Time-Killer: Plays in short bursts, likely on easier or smaller-scale levels, and treats the game as light entertainment. Motivation: Easy, entertaining fun that can fill short sessions without demanding a large time investment. Stance: buy.

Tower Defense Base Optimizer: Constructs large defensive bases, tweaks tower and guard placements, and seeks difficulty presets or modifiers for replayability. Motivation: Building and refining layered defenses until the base layout and strategy work perfectly. Stance: buy.

Co-op Workshop Player: Plays co-op sessions with friends, uses Workshop mods, and expects multiplayer to work smoothly out of the box. Motivation: Sharing the game with friends and extending it through Workshop content. Stance: sale.

Performance is mixed in the Windows 12-15GB VRAM cohort, with reports of performance issues and FPS drops, while the Windows 8-11GB VRAM cohort reports smooth operation.

Windows 12-15GB VRAM: mixed. One reviewer finds the game usable despite some performance issues, while another reports that it severely reduces FPS.

Windows 8-11GB VRAM: positive. A reviewer reports that the game runs great on this hardware.

Early access state: Multiple reviewers note the game is in early access, with some describing it as alpha and rough around the edges. This indicates the game is still under development.

Spiritual successor to Atom Zombie Smasher: The game is described as a spiritual successor to Atom Zombie Smasher, with comparisons noting it is similar but more. This appeals to fans of that game.

Developer active and helpful: The developer actively rebalances the game, personally helps with problems, and creates videos about the game. This shows strong developer engagement.

AI used in development: AI was used in the making of the game, and developers were honest about it, not building the entire game with it. Russian language support is AI-generated.

Favorable comparisons to similar games: The game is compared favorably to 'Sir, we have an orc problem' for better price, content, and quality, and to Infection Free Zone. It shares tower defence strategy with the former.