Dead by Daylight
Generator Fixing Stalk 'Em Up
5 Players
System: PS4
Developer: Behaviour Interactive
Year of Release: 2017
I saw a lot of negativity thrown at Dead by Daylight, specifically the PS4 version. Even still, the game appealed to me in a major way, even after learning all you do is run around restarting fucking generators. I just kind of forgot about it until the spooky season fell upon us. A friend wound up picking it up, and that was all it took. Immediately I was immersed in a world of stalking serial killers, hide and seek, and some clunkiness.
At this point and time, I have to assume the massive negativity was coming from the PC elitist crowd mostly. There is some definite clunk throughout, well, pretty much the entirety of the game on PS4. Despite that though, everything works. Maybe the theme and aesthetic just holds the attention of my friends and myself for longer than most others? I can't say anything definitively having only played the console version. Clearly this game is made with PC in mind, even without looking up the lengthy process that has led the game to it's current state. Even still, I have to assume at least some of this clunkiness would still be found in the PC release. Perhaps even most of it? Sure, the console version makes the stick mirror a mouse on menus, which is kind of odd, but still, some of the clunk must be inherent to the game itself.
Dead by Daylight is basically a game of hide and seek with a serial killer blanket tossed over it. One player is hunting the other four, and he must subdue them, capture them, and place them on hooks to sacrifice to some eldritch thing. The four must restart five generators around the, mostly, randomly generated levels, then find a big gate to escape through. This whole game is merely a source of entertainment, and maybe nourishment, for the previously mentioned eldritch thing.
At first I was a little put off by the set up, surely the killers are guaranteed to conquer most of the time? I mean the survivors literally can only hide. And yet throughout my short experience with the game it has become abundantly clear that experience is the truly vital source of victory. The more familiar with gameplay mechanics a player is, the better off they will be, regardless of which side they're on.
The killer is set up with a character specific power, one has a slight teleport, a couple lay traps that do different things, one has a chainsaw dash sort of thing, whatever fits their theme. They also have a basic attack, two of which will usually down another player, who can then be picked up and put on a sacrificial hook. After enough time on the hook, the player will die and lose the game. I'm not sure how many sacrifices it takes to count as a win specifically for the killer, as any amount of survivors can still win even if all of their friends have already died.
The other four players have a much more limited move set. Basically, they can walk, run or crouch/sneak around, and interact with the environment. That includes both fixing generators, and throwing debris in the way when they're being chased down. They can also heal one another, and items that are strewn about the level can be utilized to various effects. Weird little QTEs happen during most of these actions, and they really vary in difficulty as sometimes you'll need to react faster than, potentially, humanly possible to hit the mark. But sometimes it gives plenty of room to prepare.
There are some key differences which is what I think really keeps me coming back for more. For instance, the killer moves slightly faster than the survivors, so he can catch up. When the killer lands a hit, though, the victim gets a temporary speed boost so they won't immediately die. Most importantly, the killer is played in first person, while the others have a third person camera. This means that the survivors have much greater awareness of their surroundings, and the killer has a tighter field of view. This leads to several scenarios where players will manage to hide in ridiculous spots, just barely out of a eye shot. Of course luck plays a factor there as well. But both successfully hiding from the killer, and discovering a well hidden character as the killer are thrilling.
Another aspect I absolutely adore about the game is that most of the DLC incorporates horror movie icons, such as Michael Myers, Leatherface, and, most recently, Freddy Krueger. They did a great job of recreating these characters and representing their key elements in their play style. Freddy literally exists in the dream world and has to manually pull his victims into it where they can finally see him. Michael Myers gets bonuses from silently stalking his prey before descending upon them. And Leatherface, well, swings a chainsaw around while wearing a skin mask. One downside is, due to Friday the 13th, being both a game, and a very similar one at that, Jason Voorhees will probably not join the cast. This could have been a perfect horror movie game. Maybe a crossover will happen down the road though?
There is one original DLC character so far as well, and she too is splendid. Humming a creepy tune as she stalks her prey and readies a throwing hatchet for their backs. The other original killers are mostly well designed and have unique powers as well, some of which I briefly mentioned. One major disappointment for me is that most of their lore is pretty lame, and/or really short. The DLC character might have my favorite bit of plot behind her in the game, but the other original characters... Some of them I don't even get the link. One guy worked for the mob unbeknownst to him while he crushed cars, that had people the mob wanted to be rid of in them. He snaps and... gets invisibility powers? What the fuck is the theme there? Really though, one of my biggest gripes with this game is that the lore isn't great, in what amounts to an extravagant game of hide and seek.
Another of the weird hang ups about the game, and a major source of clunk is the leveling system. So every character levels up separately, which is fine. Hell, they even make it kind of nice, you earn generic experience. Even as a survivor you can spend that earned experience on your killers. I like that. But each level is a randomly generated web of, mostly items, and sometimes perks. Items, and their addons, will get destroyed, lost or used up very quickly. While perks are permanent, some of them aren't very useful and you have no control over when you get them. Aside from the character specific perks which appear at specific levels. It's just a weird system. Oh, and after you hit level ten, the eldritch thing starts eating up some of your options so you have to beeline it for the perks that show up, at least those stick around. It should really be less clunky.
So, that sounded pretty final there, but, uh. Well. The generator thing, it is kind of... samey. Ya know? It's just, go find five generators. Good, now go find more. Oh no you died, well, time to find some generators! Where are the other modes? Maybe some kind of area control mode? Or a mode with two killers trying to outdo, and even interupt one another? Or one of the heroes either secretly is the killer at first, or is a betrayer who has to try and blend in while actually damaging generators, or attracting the killer to other survivors? Or go all out, add a mode with "heroes" who help defend the other survivors and try to defeat the killer. Buffy, Ash, Van Helsing, there are many other potential heroes who would fit the game, though this would take the most amount of effort to make it work.
Ultimately a lack of modes is my biggest problem with the game. Bad lore, clunky mechanics, and an awkward leveling system, I can forgive all of that in lieu of the amazing theme. But having just one single objective every single time really wears you down and I'm worried that eventually that luster will wear away and nothing will draw me back to the game. Here's hoping they plan on expanding the game beyond just simply characters.
Speaking of, I do want more characters in general. Jack Torrance, Pennywise the Dancing Clown, the universal monsters, the grudge/ring girl, Chucky, Leslie Vernon, Pinhead, a deadite or Evil Ash, the demogorgon, and find a way to include Jason Voorhees. So many cool options!
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