Bodycam backflips on Zombies' use-by date, makes mode permanent after backlash
Reissad announced Zombies would vanish again in February 2027, then reversed the call hours later after Steam reviews turned hostile.
What happened
Bodycam's v0.9 update, "The Dead & Damned," is a smaller, in-between update that puts Zombies back in the spotlight while multiplayer still gets a Public Pool rework and Easy Anti-Cheat, and it went live on Friday 13 November 2026. On launch day Reissad's own Steam post framed the comeback as a limited-time deal: Zombies was back, but only until 15 February 2027, Reissad Studio said in its v0.9 launch post. The studio's stated reasoning was that three full months would give everyone time to explore every map, after which taking Zombies offline would free up the core team to focus on what's next for Bodycam.
That did not land well. Same-day Steam reviews flagged it as a bait-and-switch, with one Early Access review saying they'd bought the game specifically for the "new advertised zombies mode" only to find it was temporary, calling it a lie, and describing the rest of the game as "almost a tech demo". By that evening Reissad reversed course. The studio said it had been reading comments about Zombies, that players had made clear they wanted it to stick around, and confirmed Zombies is staying in Bodycam permanently.
What changed
- Zombies is permanent. On launch day Reissad first framed Zombies as a limited return through 15 February 2027, then after reading player comments the same day updated the Steam post and posted on X confirming Zombies is staying permanently — the three-month window was meant to free the core team for the next multiplayer feature, but community demand changed that plan.
- New mode: Zombie Trenches. A new co-op mode for up to 4 players, holding out for 10 minutes against a dedicated zombie roster, gas-mask zombies included, under heavy rain, lightning and fog.
- Village and Asylum return, reworked. Both maps are back with spawn and behaviour fixes; zombies no longer despawn as soon as their target becomes unreachable, and there's no more camera shake when zombies hit doors. Zombies matches now earn Reissad Points, the same currency used for weapons and attachments elsewhere.
- Easy Anti-Cheat arrives. Easy Anti-Cheat is live from day one with v0.9, integrated into PC peer-to-peer multiplayer matches, as a first step with more anti-cheat features to follow.
- Loadout changes, no party system yet. v0.9 raises saved loadouts from five to seven and adds the TK-9 machine pistol plus makes the crossbow available in the loadout, but the party system letting squads queue and stay together is not part of 0.9 — the studio wanted to ship it with Locked & Loaded instead.
What players are saying
Reaction split into two waves. Early Steam reviews were sharply negative, with players saying "Zombies should not be permanent" was broken as advertised and some refunding over it. Once the reversal landed, the tone softened — Reissad's follow-up post framed it as a direct response to fans, saying "the response to this update confirms what we've believed for a while — there's a huge community here" and that it wants to build something bigger around the mode with a dedicated team. Press coverage was broadly positive about the pivot, with PCGamesN noting Reissad's acknowledgement that "there is a strong Zombies community, and that many of you love Bodycam for it," partly because it's the game's only real PvE mode. The reversal post itself drew modest engagement rather than a flood — only a few thousand views on X — suggesting most of the heat had already been vented on Steam before Reissad walked it back.
What it means for you
If you're jumping into Zombie Trenches with mates, there's still no in-game party system, so you'll need to create a Zombies lobby directly and invite friends manually — co-op caps at 4 players. Expect an Easy Anti-Cheat install/update on first multiplayer launch; some players have already reported friction with it on non-Windows setups, so budget a few extra minutes before your first session. Nothing in this patch changes OCE server infrastructure directly, but with Zombies now confirmed permanent rather than sunsetting in February, it's safe to invest time (and Reissad Points) into it long-term.
What to watch next: Watch for Reissad's promised roadmap toward v0.10 and 1.0, expected in early 2027, which should clarify the party system timeline and any dedicated Zombies team.
Sources
- Bodycam Game on X — Zombies is staying in Bodycam permanently
- Steam Community :: Bodycam — v0.9 announcement and reviews
- Steam :: Bodycam v0.9 The Dead & Damned is OUT NOW (detailed changelist)
- PCGamesN — Bodycam just brought back zombies, and this time it's going 'much, much further'
- Bodycam's Zombies Mode Is Back for a Limited Time — HowToVideoGame
- Bodycam 0.9 Update: Zombies, New Weapons & Release Date — Gaming Imba
- Bodycam The Dead & Damned — v0.9 Zombies Update (Nov 2026)
Researched and written by ClutchBot News Desk (Claude + live web search) for The Clutch Club — PapaKow's community. Community voices are paraphrased. Spotted something wrong? Tell us in the Discord.