Strategy enthusiasts and zombie survival fans have a compelling new title to add to their radar as ebbtide steam pages light up the digital storefront. Developed and published by ProjectAlive, Ebbtide plunges players straight into a high-stakes, real-time tactical nightmare where humanity's final carrier task force must hold the line against an overwhelming undead horde. If you have been searching for a strategy game that ditches hidden auto-resolves and separate loading screens for seamless, boots-on-the-ground operational control, this upcoming release demands your attention.
What is Ebbtide?
Ebbtide is a real-time zombie survival strategy game where you assume command of TF-1 "Ark," humanity's last carrier task force. The apocalypse kicks off in the heart of Los Angeles, stretching from the glamorous Hollywood Hills all the way down to the industrial Port of LA.
Rather than managing disconnected combat missions, your objective is to direct live operations across the sprawling metropolis before taking the campaign onto a global stage. The developers at ProjectAlive are building an experience where every tactical choice matters, and the consequences of your defense ripple directly through the simulation.
Seamless Tactical Operations and Map Design
One of the standout design pillars of Ebbtide is its completely unified map interface. When playing, you can scroll directly into any street on the operations map, and it instantly transitions into a live battlefield without a single loading screen.
If things get too chaotic on the ground, simply scroll back out—the fight continues running in real time. There are no invisible dice rolls or hidden auto-resolve mechanics here. Every single soldier lost, zombie eradicated, and building reduced to rubble directly impacts the broader campaign map.
Managing a City Under Siege
Los Angeles is divided into 15 distinct districts, each steadily sliding along a dangerous threshold from "Hold" to "Crisis" and finally to "Lost." Because you cannot save everyone, prioritization is the core of your survival strategy.
- Local and State Forces: Issue precise orders to National Guard units, the LAPD, and the LA County Sheriff's Department to hold positions, delay the horde's advance, or safely withdraw. You can also call in elite Marines stationed out of Camp Pendleton.
- Logistics and Convoys: Dispatch truck and helicopter convoys packed with vital supplies, fresh troops, or desperate refugees.
- Extraction Operations: Pull out isolated units and surviving civilians cut off behind enemy lines before the advancing horde swallows them whole.
Keep in mind that fog of war plays a critical role: only zombie hordes within the direct line of sight of your active forces will show up on your operations map.
A Relentless, Adaptive Horde
Fighting the undead in Ebbtide goes beyond standard tower-defense chokepoints. The horde is dynamic and physically reactive to the environment. Zombies will pile on top of one another to scale high walls and rooftops, or stubbornly cling to low-hovering helicopters. Worse yet, any human soldier slain by the infected rises right back up to join the swarm.
To counter this terrifying enemy, you will need to unleash devastating heavy firepower. Options at your disposal include:
- M777 howitzers and HIMARS rocket systems
- Naval destroyer deck guns and Tomahawk cruise missiles
- Carrier-launched F/A-18s alongside F-15E, F-35B, and A-10 airstrikes
- Continuous orbit support from AC-130J gunships and MQ-9 drones
Ship munitions are entirely finite, and deploying heavy artillery will inevitably bring down surrounding urban infrastructure, changing the layout of the battlefield permanently.
Base Building and Supply Lines
Survival requires more than just raw firepower; you need sustained logistics. You can establish forward operating bases by raising concrete and HESCO walls, complete with defensive gates, scaffolding, and strategic illumination. Populate these bases with gun nests, CIWS systems, mortar pits, ammunition depots, and fuel points.
Everything in Ebbtide runs on supply. Vehicles, aircraft, and infantry constantly burn through fuel and ammunition, and they can only rearm at secure friendly locations. Furthermore, building materials for your defenses must physically travel via hooklift trucks or helicopter sling loads. Because the horde actively hunts your supply convoys and cuts off roadways, keeping your supply lines open is often harder than winning the firefight itself.
From Los Angeles to the Global Campaign
Successfully surviving the initial urban collapse is only the beginning. The personnel, equipment, and resources you manage to rescue and secure at the Port of LA form your initial strike force aboard the flagship Ark.
From there, the campaign expands globally. You must choose which international regions to support, navigate friendly ports for vital resupply, rescue rare specialists and pilots who cannot be trained normally, and recruit allied warships to grow your fleet. Ultimately, your goal is to track down and neutralize the Nexus's hidden command nodes to reclaim what is left of human civilization.
Release Information and System Requirements
While ProjectAlive has marked the official launch date on the Ebbtide Steam Store Page as "Coming soon," community excitement is already building, with the game recently surpassing 15,000 wishlists.
Minimum PC Requirements (Windows)
- OS: Windows 10 64-bit
- DirectX: Version 11
- Storage: 10 GB available space
- Processor & Graphics: To be announced prior to launch
Mac users will also be supported, with the developers confirming requirements for Apple Silicon processors ahead of release. If you want to track updates, review developer announcements regarding AI-assisted localization and audio assets, or secure the game the moment it drops, head over to Steam and add Ebbtide to your wishlist today.