 Propelled by the single "Brainwashed", "Survive" was the album that broke Nuclear Assault into the thrash metal mainstream, and was their first album to enter the "Billboard" 200, reaching number 145 on that chart.Reviews for "Survive" have been mostly positive.AllMusic's John Franck awards the album three stars out of five and claims that Nuclear Assault had become "East Coast thrash metal contenders (to a throne pretty much owned by Anthrax) thanks to their politically charged metal fodder."