Upcoming Zombie Games People Are Excited For

Zombies have proven to be eternal. While cycling through periods of popularity, the theme seems to never fully disappear, and there are nearly always a few upcoming zombie games that seem destined to make a splash. Horror is pretty much a cornerstone of all creative media, and the genre regularly incorporates the undead to craft intense and unforgettable frights. While synonymous with horror, zombies are not tied to any specific genre, and they can easily star in romances or comedies. Naturally, this flexibility extends to the gaming industry.

So far, the current year has mostly focused on ports and remasters, at least when it comes to AAA releases revolving around this theme. However, there are plenty of new zombie games that have announced plans to debut in 2025, and they cover a fairly wide range of playstyles. Let’s highlight a few of these titles.

Updated August 30, 2025 by Mark Sammut: Two new 2025 zombie games recently debuted: Killing Floor 3 and The House of the Dead 2 Remake. To be honest, neither of them had a great start to their lives, and the former might be one of the year’s most disappointing releases. Still, you should check them out if you enjoy the older releases in the series.

Resident Evil Requiem and Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted have been added.

Dying Light: The Beast

An Open-World First-Person Zombie RPG

Techland’s Dying Light is well-established as one of the best open-world zombie franchises. While not getting glowing reviews, the original project blended action, parkour, and exploration in a sublime way that did not negatively impact its capacity for horror. Even all these years later, Dying Light holds up as an impressive sandbox that manages to be scary and constantly fun. The sequel, Dying Light 2 Stay Human was more of an action RPG with some horror elements than vice versa, which garnered a somewhat mixed reception from die-hard fans of its predecessor. Nevertheless, the positives outweigh the negatives, making it a worthwhile option for anyone craving a zombie romp.

Dying Light: The Beast appears to be a throwback to the 2015 entry’s style and tone, including the return of Kyle Crane as the protagonist. Set in Castor Woods, the standalone adventure starts with Kyle escaping his imprisonment, setting him loose in an environment that has changed a lot over the last decade. More importantly, Kyle has some zombie DNA, which gives him unique abilities.

The Beast should have most of the staples associated with the franchise. During the day, players will be able to explore relatively freely (although not without risk); meanwhile, the night brings out the worst horrors found in Castor Woods. The game also supports 4-player co-op, which should be a fun alternative to a solo run.

Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted

An HD Remaster Of A Colorful Tower Defense Classic

OK, I don’t actually know whether people are genuinely excited about this remaster or not, but it warrants a mention regardless. Plants vs. Zombies is a great 2009 tower defense strategy game that spawned quite a few successors, including a shift to third-person shooting courtesy of the Garden Warfare spin-off series. The latter might be more popular with console players nowadays, but the original title is still all-around fantastic, offering accessible but still deep gameplay.

Plants vs. Zombies 3 came out on mobile devices in 2024, but the sequel did not really garner that positive a reception. Consequently, it seems like EA has opted to return to where it all began by announcing an HD remaster of the first game in the series. To be honest, the upcoming version does not seem to be all that different from its ancestor, at least not visually. That said, it will incorporate some new content, including a new hardcore mode and an art library.

Resident Evil Requiem

Capcom’s Legendary Zombie Franchise Returns To Raccoon City

Whenever Capcom announces a new mainline Resident Evil, it is almost guaranteed to be the biggest zombie game of that year. Recently, the franchise has been on a pretty good roll, at least when it comes to headline releases like Resident Evil Village and the Resident Evil 4 remake. Requiem will hopefully maintain the extremely high standards set by these projects, and the 2026 game seems to have all the ingredients to be both a great continuation and the start of a new era in Resident Evil‘s history.

With a February 2026 debut already penciled in, Capcom has revealed some fascinating details about the new zombie game. For one, Requiem marks a return to Raccoon City, comfortably the most iconic location in the franchise. Secondly, the story should take place in 2028 as it is set roughly three decades following the Raccoon City Destruction Incident, which happened on October 1, 1998. Grace Ashcroft is the main protagonist, and she is an FBI agent. Furthermore, Requiem will be playable in both first and third-person, a clear attempt to bridge the gap between Resident Evil‘s remakes and entries like RE7 and Village.

The Midnight Walkers

While not exactly common, extraction shooters have picked up some steam in recent years, largely thanks to a handful of games that have managed to maintain communities. Fans of the genre craving a flesh-eating twist on the formula might wish to keep an eye on The Midnight Walkers, an upcoming zombie game that should support both solo and team play.

Going by the available information, players will be dropped into a mega center that just happens to be overrun with zombies, and they need to search the area for supplies. Naturally, besides trying to avoid the zombies, players will have to be careful to avoid other scavengers who are trying to earn their riches. The Midnight Walkers will have multiple zombie types, weapon crafting, and hardcore difficulty.

Projekt Z: Beyond Order

Co-Op FPS

Hard to imagine that a game simply called Projekt Z will be released too soon, but this World War II zombie shooter has made quite the impression with its trailers. Not only does it provide a captivating atmosphere that infuses a bit of horror into the well-treaded genre setting, but visually the game offers beautiful lighting and textures.

The developers are a fresh new German indie studio called 314 Arts comprised of nine total employees. It’ll offer both single-player and online co-op zombie killing spectacles as players try to uncover Nazi secrets hidden on an occupied island.

Showa American Story

A Japanified United States And Fast-Paced Bloody Action

Now, here is an upcoming zombie game that could turn some heads, providing it is backed by quality. From the same developer responsible for the polarizing Dying: Reborn, Showa American Story envisions a future where Japan and the United States have effectively fused, with the former buying out most of the latter. Honestly, this is a fascinating premise in its own right and could have made for an interesting experience without incorporating any other twists. However, Showa American Story goes the extra mile by introducing a post-apocalyptic element, along with a female protagonist who wakes up from the dead without any real knowledge about what has happened to the world.

Going by its description and available footage, Showa American Story seems to be a hack and slash RPG, with the combat system blending third-person shooting with fast-paced melee combat that seems reminiscent of something like Onechanbara. Nekcom is a fairly small company, so it is recommended to keep expectations relatively realistic. Showa American Story will likely aim to deliver a B-movie, along with maybe some Yakuza-esque humor. That is all well and good, and it should make for a fun and silly ride.

Holstin

Cool Visual Style And 2D + 3D Gameplay

Be it party-based shooters or open-world survival projects, zombie games can threaten to blend into one, particularly high-profile releases. Fortunately, Holstin does not have that issue, and only a glance is required to notice the game’s unique presentation.

Pixel graphics are heavily used by the indie scene, so Holstin turning to this art style hardly sets it apart from the crowd; however, the execution is ultimately all that matters. Sonka has not only put together some gorgeous isometric visuals, but the developer has also incorporated 3D support. Yes, players can swap between the two perspectives, changing from an all-encompassing viewpoint that is perfect for puzzles to a behind-the-shoulder camera for third-person shooting gameplay.

The setting is fresh as well, with the story dropping players in a ’90s Polish town that has fallen into dark times (literally and figuratively). Some residents have transformed into full-blown zombie-like monsters, while others seem to be in the process of losing their humanity. Holstin seems to incorporate classic touches from survival horror, be it scavenging, limited ammo, a vulnerable protagonist, and puzzles.

John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando

Co-Op Shooter

Revealed in June 2023, John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando introduced itself with a gloriously cheesy ’80s trailer soundtracked by Bon Jovi. Set in a post-apocalyptic world overrun with zombies, Toxic Commando looks set to be a co-op first-person shooter with a class system and a quirky sense of humor. Any horror project that carries John Carpenter’s name comes with higher expectations, but this game at least left a positive first impression.

Saber Interactive has an extensive resume that includes World War Z, another co-op zombie shooter that was received fairly well. Toxic Commando appears to retain that release’s overwhelmingly massive hordes, which is the best part of that game; hopefully, the upcoming title fine-tunes and improves upon World War Z‘s ideas.

Blight: Survival

A Medieval Zombie Game

After being in development for quite a few years without much new information coming out, Blight: Survival started to seem like it might not happen. However, the developer, Haenir Studio, has begun to release updates in 2025, so the project seems to be progressing. In 2024, the company reached an agreement with Behaviour Interactive for the Dead by Daylight studio to publish Blight: Survival. Naturally, cautious optimism is advised for any pending title that is somewhat of an unknown quantity, but there is enough here to at least warrant a look.

Blight: Survival‘s selling point is its mix of zombies and medieval warfare, a combination that has only been explored a handful of times over the decades. Going by the available information, the game seems to revolve around 4-player co-op, with the group entering a battlefield where they have to kill, survive, and eliminate the infection’s source. Runs might be structured like extraction shooters, although that is not confirmed.

State Of Decay 3

Sandbox Survival

Undead Labs feels like a game developer destined to deliver a truly remarkable zombie experience in the world of video games. Their first entry in the genre was a lower-budget arcade-style zombie survival game that won the hearts of players despite its many bugs and issues. Its sequel, State of Decay 2, took the series forward.

In 2020, State of Decay 3 was revealed, and interviews with the studio suggest they’re working on making this the zombie survival game they’ve felt they were capable of delivering. Now owned by Microsoft and overseen by Xbox Game Studios, it seems that the third installment in the State of Decay series could be the one that puts Undead Labs on the map in a major way.

After spending a few years out of the limelight, State of Decay 3 made its big return during 2024’s Xbox Games Showcase, dropping a new trailer that hopefully suggests a release might not be that far away.