Info about Zombies Aren't Real:

Official game description:
**Zombies Aren't Real** is a horde-defense, strategy game where you attempt to control a quick-spreading zombie infection in real-world cities by commanding military forces.  
You're given a bird's eye view of a city and shown where the infection will begin, but you have time to plan.  With limited resources, carefully choose how you will respond to the infection and establish a plan to save as many civilians as possible.
Once you're ready the chaos begins. The zombies will fan out and begin to infect the population.  You are able to adapt your plan on the fly.  If the zombies break through your perimeter you can call in air support such as bombers or gatling gun helicopters to attempt to stop the spread before it gets out of control.
If you're able to eliminate all the zombies you win and your score is determined by how many civilians you saved.
Features
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*   Play in real-world cities
*   Deploy specialized ground forces against the spreading horde, such as snipers, turrets, mortar squads and garrisons
*   Call in air strikes when things get out of hand, but be careful to aim them well to minimize civilian casualties
*   Place safe zones, gates, and more to protect the civilian population
*   Steam Workshop support for custom maps
*   Play with one other friend in Online Co-op Multiplayer
"Zombies Aren't Real" is highly strategic and winning will push you to think cleverly and experiment with different combinations of units, buildings and upgrades.  It is **not** an incremental game.  Losing is fun! We encourage you to retry often, restarting a scenario once defeat is inevitable to adjust your strategy. The fun is in figuring out how to best defend the city!  
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, Overture Maps Foundation, TomTom, Microsoft (Open Database License, Esri Community Maps contributors, Google Open Buildings, work derived from BTN 2024 ign.es (CC BY 4.0, postal codes: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0).

Release date: Nov 13, 2026

Categories: Tower Defense, Real-time Strategy, Zombie Survival, Procedural Generation, Steam Workshop Support, Co-op Multiplayer, Strategy


- Hardware Profile:
  - Summary: 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.
  - Sample size: 24 (15% coverage)
  - Audience skew: Review sample is heavily weighted toward Windows PCs with 10GB+ VRAM.
  - Windows 12-15GB VRAM (mixed, 9 reports): One reviewer finds the game usable despite some performance issues, while another reports that it severely reduces FPS.
  - Windows 8-11GB VRAM (positive, 6 reports): A reviewer reports that the game runs great on this hardware.
  - Caveats: 24 of 160 reviews expose hardware metadata.; Review sample is heavily weighted toward Windows PCs with 10GB+ VRAM.
Feature extractions:
- Community Price:
  - Community fair range: $9.99 - $12.99
  - Reasoning: Reviewers repeatedly describe the current $9.99 price as a strong value, explicitly calling $10 great and saying the game is worth the price, every penny, and the money and time. No review criticizes the base-game price or suggests it is too high. This supports a fair range anchored at the current $9.99 price with limited headroom above it.
- Playtime Metrics:
  - Game completion: N/A
  - Story completion: N/A
  - Session length: 1.5h
  - Endgame: N/A
  - Reasoning: The reviews give explicit play durations of 15 minutes, barely an hour, a couple of hours, and 3 hours. These are the only concrete time reports, so they support a representative sessionLength of about 1.5 hours. No review reports completing the full game, finishing a story, or spending a specified time in endgame content, so those metrics are null.
- Time-to-fun:
  - Summary: 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.
  - Stance: Clicks after
  - Anchor: When the mechanics click
  - Time to anchor: N/A
  - 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
  - Conditions: tolerance for a challenging rather than tedious difficulty; willingness to restart and learn from runs; co-op functioning without connection or possession bugs
- Player Archetypes:
  - Casual Time-Killer (buy)
    - Motivation: Easy, entertaining fun that can fill short sessions without demanding a large time investment.
    - Playstyle: Plays in short bursts, likely on easier or smaller-scale levels, and treats the game as light entertainment.
    - Experience: newcomer
    - Purchase stance: buy
    - Labels: casual gamers
    - Reference games: N/A
  - Tower Defense Base Optimizer (buy)
    - Motivation: Building and refining layered defenses until the base layout and strategy work perfectly.
    - Playstyle: Constructs large defensive bases, tweaks tower and guard placements, and seeks difficulty presets or modifiers for replayability.
    - Experience: familiar
    - Purchase stance: buy
    - Labels: N/A
    - Reference games: Sir, We Have an Orc Problem; Atom Zombie Smasher
  - Co-op Workshop Player (sale)
    - Motivation: Sharing the game with friends and extending it through Workshop content.
    - Playstyle: Plays co-op sessions with friends, uses Workshop mods, and expects multiplayer to work smoothly out of the box.
    - Experience: mixed
    - Purchase stance: sale
    - Labels: N/A
    - Reference games: N/A


Below are summaries of things people say about the game per category.
Each point is assigned a weight that represents how often it is mentioned across all reviews.
What players like:
- Universally fun and engaging (weight 0.97): 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 (weight 0.75): 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 (weight 0.74): 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 (weight 0.48): 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 (weight 0.4): 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.
- Great value and fair price (weight 0.34): Multiple players consider the game worth its price, offering substantial content and enjoyment even in early access. The fair pricing is a recurring positive point.
- Towers and loadouts well-designed (weight 0.28): The variety of towers and loadout options are praised for adding strategic depth and customization. Players appreciate that towers have distinct roles and that experimenting with loadouts enhances the experience.
- High replayability and retry loop (weight 0.28): The game encourages repeated attempts and strategy refinement, with players enjoying restarting levels to improve scores or try new approaches. This replayability keeps the game fresh.
- Simple yet deep mechanics (weight 0.27): Reviewers often describe the game as easy to learn but surprisingly deep, with simple mechanics that hide complex strategic layers. This accessibility combined with depth appeals to a wide audience.
- Emergent and dynamic gameplay moments (weight 0.22): Players enjoy unexpected emergent situations, such as safe zone garrisoning failures or using building destruction to advantage. These dynamic moments create memorable experiences.
- Progression system adds satisfaction (weight 0.21): The progression system, including arsenal growth and rank achievements, provides a sense of advancement and reward, making gameplay more satisfying.
- Challenging map-dependent difficulty (weight 0.19): The difficulty scales with map size and layout, providing a satisfying challenge that forces players to adapt their strategies.
- Polished and bug-free experience (weight 0.17): Some reviewers note the game is already very polished and they encountered no bugs. This contributes to a smooth and enjoyable experience.
- Responsive and passionate developer (weight 0.16): The developer, Jo, is highlighted for being lovely, helpful, and passionate, which positively influences the community's perception and trust in the game's future.
- Visually and audibly pleasing (weight 0.15): The game's aesthetics, especially the green horde when zoomed out, are noted as looking and sounding nice, enhancing the overall experience.
- Quick to pick up and play (weight 0.15): Players appreciate the game's fast-paced nature and the ability to jump in for short sessions, making it ideal for quick fun.
- Strategic use of civilian evacuation tools (weight 0.15): Tools like the broadcast option for civilian evacuation and militia combos are effective and add strategic layers to the gameplay.
- Workshop and co-op support out of box (weight 0.09): The inclusion of Steam Workshop and co-op features from the start is appreciated, adding longevity and community engagement.

Common complaints:
- Co-op multiplayer is broken (weight 0.24): 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 (weight 0.23): 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 (weight 0.23): The controls are janky and unintuitive, with awkward view rotation using ALT plus scroll wheel and inaccurate input recognition.
- Lacks bosses and content (weight 0.21): The game lacks bosses and needs more stuff overall, and not many maps are provided right away.
- AI-generated content disliked (weight 0.17): Some reviewers are disappointed that generative AI was used in the game's creation, including coding assistance, and do not condone its use.
- Game feels rough and unpolished (weight 0.17): Multiple reviewers describe the game as rough around the edges, especially in the early stages, indicating a need for more polish and refinement.
- Better controller support needed (weight 0.16): Controller support could be better, and mapping all buttons manually on Steam Deck is unpleasant.
- Zombie spawning breaks defenses (weight 0.16): Zombies sometimes spawn inside walls and instantly kill protected civilians, and they can spawn instead of infecting each other, undermining defensive setups.
- Missing bridge destruction tools (weight 0.16): The game lacks tools for destroying bridges, limiting tactical options and player agency in combat.
- Bridges have excessive health (weight 0.16): Bridges are far too durable, surviving even carpet bombing, which reduces realism and makes air strikes feel ineffective.
- APCs hard to find and permanent (weight 0.16): APCs are hard to find and permanently leave without returning like helicopters, which can be frustrating for players.
- Safe zones cannot be re-secured (weight 0.1): After containing a temporary breach, players cannot re-secure safe zones to resupply troops there, breaking a core defensive mechanic.
- Stores poorly placed and useless (weight 0.1): Stores are never near natural defensive points, so their wall regeneration and budget discount bonuses are rarely beneficial. This makes the building feel redundant.
- Unclear paratrooper deaths and limits (weight 0.09): Players receive no information on why paratroopers die or disappear, such as whether ammo is limited or they are affected by spit attacks.
- Cannot build small guard posts (weight 0.09): Players cannot build small guard posts to defend empty land around highways and industrial zones, restricting defensive flexibility.
- Civilian and police AI faulty (weight 0.09): Civilian and police AI sometimes ignore a gate and push into dead ends instead of following the marked path, disrupting evacuation flow.
- Evacuation corridor system disliked (weight 0.09): The corridor-shaped evacuation system is not well received, suggesting it may be confusing or restrictive.
- Snipers are mostly pointless (weight 0.09): Snipers feel ineffective and pointless in the current balance, lacking a clear role on the battlefield.
- Special buildings lack visual distinction (weight 0.09): Building visuals do not make special buildings obvious enough, making it hard to identify them at a glance.

Gameplay feedback:
- Real-world map creation feature (weight 0.79): 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 (weight 0.49): The core gameplay combines tower defense and strategy elements, requiring players to think about preparation and action.
- Roguelike restart and progression (weight 0.39): Players lose and restart repeatedly, making improvements each time. Progression systems enhance arsenal and understanding through repeated actions.
- Safe zone management (weight 0.34): Players must garrison safe zones to protect them, manage resupply for troops, and contain temporary breaches.
- Bridge destruction mechanics (weight 0.27): Bridges have health and can be destroyed using mines, airstrikes, or other means, adding a tactical layer.
- Varied tactics and abilities (weight 0.22): The game offers lots of variation in tactics and abilities, including battle-time abilities and fortifications like mortar emplacements.
- RTS with large-scale zombie battles (weight 0.17): The game is an RTS-style game featuring loadouts and large-scale zombie killing, often compared to titles like They Are Billions.
- Steam Workshop support (weight 0.17): The game supports Steam Workshop out of the box, allowing players to create and share custom content.
- Tactical destruction and units (weight 0.17): Players can use helicopters, paratroopers, bridge destruction, and walls tactically. Buildings can be destroyed and used to strategic advantage.
- Co-op multiplayer support (weight 0.16): The game includes a co-op multiplayer mode, enabling players to team up against the zombie horde.
- Procedural variation in runs (weight 0.16): No two runs are exactly the same due to randomized infection placement, which can be rerolled by restarting.
- Civilian evacuation mechanics (weight 0.16): Players can trigger civilian evacuation via a broadcast option, using a corridor-shaped system to guide civilians to safety.
- No sandbox mode (weight 0.16): Players note the absence of a sandbox mode, which limits creative freedom.
- Limited number of maps (weight 0.09): Some players feel there are only a few maps available, which may reduce replayability.
- Top-down perspective (weight 0.08): The game is presented from a top-down view, which affects the overall gameplay experience.
- Store discounts and wall regeneration (weight 0.08): Stores provide wall regeneration and budget discounts, aiding base defense.
- Possession ability (weight 0.08): Players can possess things, adding a unique gameplay mechanic.
- Paratrooper reliability issues (weight 0.08): Paratroopers can die or disappear, which may be frustrating for players relying on them.

Performance notes:
- Severe stuttering issues reported (weight 0.18): 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 (weight 0.1): 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 (weight 0.1): 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 (weight 0.09): Some players report that performance is amazing, contrasting with the stuttering complaints. This suggests performance varies significantly across different hardware configurations.

Recommendations:
- Worth the price (weight 0.35): Many players say the game is worth buying, including in early access. They feel it is definitely worth picking up.
- Strong recommendation (weight 0.28): 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 (weight 0.22): 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 (weight 0.16): 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 (weight 0.08): Players suggest using Broadcast and Militia together for an effective combo. This combination is worth trying.

Other player notes:
- Early access state (weight 0.41): 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 (weight 0.34): 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 (weight 0.27): 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 (weight 0.21): 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 (weight 0.21): 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.
- Needs more replayability and content (weight 0.16): Reviewers note that developers need to add more replayability and content. Some plan to revisit after patches and content are added.
- Campaign mode with pre-loaded cities (weight 0.16): A campaign mode is present, consisting of pre-loaded cities to play on. This provides structured gameplay.
- Compared to other zombie RTS games (weight 0.15): The game is compared to Cepheus Protocol as the newer entry in the zombie RTS space, and to other infection simulations. This positions it within the genre.
- Similar to Ebbtide and Roblox version (weight 0.14): The game is similar to Ebbtide and compared favorably to a Roblox version. These niche comparisons may resonate with specific players.
- Workshop support for player content (weight 0.09): Workshop support allows player-created content, enhancing the game's longevity. This is a positive feature for community engagement.
- Very easy to run (weight 0.09): The game is very easy to run, requiring only 600MB. This makes it accessible to a wide range of systems.
- Lacks Steam Deck support (weight 0.08): Steam Deck support is absent, which may limit portability for some players. This is a notable missing feature.
- Good amount of content (weight 0.08): One reviewer notes the game has a good amount of content. This contrasts with others who want more content.
- Setting compared to real-life Boston (weight 0.07): The game's setting is compared to real-life Boston, with the reviewer noting the roads there are bad. This is a humorous observation about the map design.

Emotions:
- Excitement (weight 0.14): Players are excited because the game is a spiritual successor to Atom Zombie Smasher, delivering straight dopamine and fulfilling a 15-year desire. The ability to generate custom maps from any location, including their hometown, and defend their own house adds personal investment. Anticipation for community workshop creations and the game being a breath of fresh air in the zombie RTS genre further fuels excitement.
- Enjoyment (weight 0.12): Enjoyment stems from fun, replayable gameplay that is easy to jump into, with endless map possibilities. Blowing bridges, using helicopters, and watching the world play out while defending against the horde provide satisfying moments. The tower defense strategy and survival mechanics are highlights for players who like the genre.
- Satisfaction (weight 0.11): Satisfaction comes from killing tens of thousands of zombies, beating difficult levels, and achieving diamond ranks. The challenging yet non-tedious difficulty and the impact of small actions like mines blowing up bridges or mortars evaporating zombies create a sense of accomplishment. A polished, bug-free experience that meets expectations also contributes.
- Frustration (weight 0.08): Frustration arises from technical issues like multiplayer not working, 'map not on this pc' errors, and huge stutters that kill FPS. Unclear mechanics such as inability to re-secure safe zones and paratrooper deaths, zombies spawning inside walls, and awkward ALT+scroll wheel controls add to the annoyance. Manually mapping buttons on Steam Deck is also frustrating.
- Fun (weight 0.08): Fun is driven by strategy gameplay involving base defense and tweaking, quickly finding favorite abilities and towers, and being rewarded for preparation. The game is described as a fun little game with workshop and co-op support, and simply playing it is enjoyable.
- Disappointment (weight 0.05): Disappointment is caused by the use of generative AI in the game's development and store placement that makes them counter-productive and removes player choice.
- Anticipation (weight 0.05): Anticipation is high for future updates, seeing how developers expand the game, and the addition of more cities so players can watch their hometown get overrun.
- Love (weight 0.05): Love for the game comes from the ability to use local areas, restarting levels to refine strategy and improve scores, and the strategic thinking about zombie spawn locations and safe zone defense.
- Appreciation (weight 0.03): Appreciation is felt for the unique concept and loadouts, as well as the unique tower defense design with expanding levels and many abilities.
- Addiction (weight 0.03): Addiction is driven by the 'just one more go' quality and the game becoming seriously addictive once mechanics click.
- Happiness (weight 0.02): Happiness is linked to the game's release and enjoying the game while being satisfied with the purchase.
- Engagement (weight 0.02): Engagement comes from fun and engaging gameplay that requires thinking.
- Amusement (weight 0.02): Amusement is derived from watching the hometown get eaten alive after forgetting to garrison the safe zone, and choosing to abandon civilians and nuke the city.
- Concern (weight 0.02): Concern arises because the game runs badly on low-end computers and experiences lag on higher levels of large cities.
- Curiosity (weight 0.02): Curiosity is sparked by a desire for lore about the virus origin and the fate of the world.
- Amazement (weight 0.02): Amazement comes from being able to defend a real rural hometown with mortars and fortifications.
- Optimism (weight 0.02): Optimism is based on the promising foundation and enjoyable early access build.
- Admiration (weight 0.02): Admiration is felt because the game is well done and simple yet deep.
- Dissatisfaction (weight 0.02): Dissatisfaction is caused by bridges having excessive health and the corridor evacuation system.
- Liking (weight 0.02): Liking is expressed for the broadcast option for civilian evacuation.}