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May 2024 Dev Update
By PeanitsLast Updated: 3:55 pm
We’re heading into our 9th Year! Alongside a brand-new Chapter coming in the 8.0.0 Update, we’ve prepared a large number of balance changes and quality of life improvements for existing content. As always, these adjustments will head to the Public Test Build (PTB) shortly where we’ll collect feedback and make some tweaks where necessary before the update releases on all platforms.
- [CHANGE] Decreased Hidey-Ho cooldown to 12 seconds (was 18 seconds).
- [CHANGE] Chucky can only Scamper while performing a Slice & Dice attack.
- [CHANGE] Decreased the time it takes to Scamper to 1.3 seconds (was 1.4 seconds)
Dev note: Scamper could sometimes lead to unavoidable hits since Survivors could not possibly get someplace safe in the time it took for Chucky to crawl under the pallet. We want to shift his gameplay away from these easy hits (Scamper then basic attack) and instead encourage using his unique Slice & Dice attack.
Since this change would affect his strength, we have reduced the cooldown of Slice & Dice to allow Chucky to use his Power much more frequently.
- [CHANGE] Increased Chainsaw Sweep duration to 2.5 seconds per token (was 2 seconds).
- [CHANGE] Increased Chainsaw Sweep movement speed to 5.35m/s (was 5.29m/s).
- [CHANGE] Decreased collision detection size to help navigate tight spaces.
- [CHANGE] Decreased base tantrum time to 3 seconds (was 5 seconds).
- [CHANGE] Several Add-Ons have been adjusted accordingly.
Dev note: To reduce The Cannibal’s dependence on certain Add-Ons, we’ve taken part of the effects of the most popular Add-Ons and incorporated them into his base kit and toned down the Add-Ons to compensate. This way they’ll feel less essential and allow you to experiment with other options.
We’ve also reduced the size of the chainsaw’s collision detection against the environment to make it less likely to bump into things that aren’t directly in front of you to make it easier to use his Power in tight spaces (and reduced the tantrum duration in case you still bump into something).
- [CHANGE] Decreased stun time when a Survivors breaks free to 2.7 seconds (was 3 seconds).
- [CHANGE] Increased reel speed to 2.76m/s (was 2.6m/s).
- [CHANGE] Increased movement speed while reloading to 3.08m/s (was 2.64m/s).
Dev note: Every second counts, so we’ve made some tweaks to save The Deathslinger some time when reeling and when a Survivor breaks free. We have also increased his movement speed while reloading so he doesn’t lose as much distance in the process.
- [CHANGE] Decreased Hindered penalty from infection to 4% (was 8%).
- [CHANGE] Infection is now reduced to 1% when hooked (was 50%).
Dev note: On top of Virulent Bound being a strong chase Power to begin with, infected Survivors also suffered from a severe movement speed penalty. We have reduced this effect to 4% - still significant, but not a death sentence.
We have also further reduced Survivors’ infection when hooked to make tunneling (chasing them as soon as they are unhooked) less of an obvious choice.
- [CHANGE] Compound 33 now increased Rush turn rate and duration by 11% (was 33%).
- [CHANGE] Iridescent Blight Tag now increased Rush speed by 10% (was 20%).
Dev note: The Blight’s ultra-rare Add-Ons have proven to be too strong, so we have toned both of them down to a more reasonable level.
- [CHANGE] Increased Toolbox sabotage speed across most variants.
- [CHANGE] Increased effects of sabotage related Add-Ons (Grip Wrench, Cutting Wire, Hacksaw).
Dev notes: Toolboxes are often considered “the repair item” – while this is fine for those who want to use them to repair, we’d like to make sure that sabotage feels like a viable alternative for those who want it.
This update features balance changes to a selection of the strongest and most frustrating Perks to face. The majority of these adjustments are slight; the intention is to keep the Perks feeling effective and to bring them a bit more in line with other options.
- [CHANGE] Decreased block duration to 15/20/25 seconds (was 20/25/30 seconds).
Dev note: Deadlock is quite effective while being rather easy to activate. We have slightly reduced the duration of the generator blocker to bring it in line with other options.
- [CHANGE] Decreased movement speed bonus to 150% (was 200%).
- [CHANGE] Decreased Exhausted duration to 30/25/20 seconds (was 60/50/40 seconds).
Dev note: Background Player’s high movement speed allowed Survivors to cross extreme distances to make a save. There was no way for the Killer to reasonably check that area, let alone defend against it. We have reduced the movement speed and instead reduced the Exhausted duration to compensate. This will make it harder to get a save but allow you to make attempts more often.
- [CHANGE] Decreased block duration to 6/8/10 seconds (was 8/10/12 seconds).
Dev note: Grim Embrace has quickly risen in both strength in popularity since it was last changed. We have similarly toned it down slightly to move it into a more balanced range while keeping it rewarding for Killers who choose to switch targets.
- [CHANGE] Reduced stun duration to 4 seconds (was 5 seconds).
Dev note: Our last update increased the stun duration to 5 seconds. This was a little too effective, so we have fine tuned the stun duration to 4 seconds instead.
- [CHANGE] Decreased regression effect to 20% (was 30%).
Dev note: Pop Goes the Weasel has proven to be very strong, and the conditions to activate it aren’t very difficult. To better reflect how often it comes into play, we have reduced the strength of its regression effect.
- [REMOVED] Buckle Up no longer provides Endurance.
- [NEW] Survivors healed from the dying state break into a sprint at 150% movement speed for 3/4/5 seconds. This does not cause Exhaustion.
Dev note: Buckle Up could be problematic when paired with For the People, allowing Survivors to save each other before the Killer can pick them up risk-free. Since there’s a lot of competition between Perks which grants Survivors Endurance from the dying state, we’ve decided to replace the effect entirely to help it stand out.
Now, Buckle Up will instead grant the healed Survivor a speed boost, but not protect the rescuer from harm.
- [CHANGE] Decreased regression effect to 10/15/20% (was 15/20/25%).
Dev note: Pain Resonance finds itself in almost 40% of all loadouts, and it is one of the most effective Perks in the game. We want to make this Perk less of a clear choice for all builds, but keep it rewarding for Killers who choose to chase multiple Survivors.
- [CHANGE] Decreased Invocation time to 60 seconds (was 120 seconds).
- [CHANGE] Invocation progress now regressed at a rate of 1 charge per second (was 20 charges per second).
Dev note: Now that we’ve had some time to see the Invocation mechanic play out, we’re ready to make some adjustments to both the Invocation process (in preparations for future Invocation Perks) and Weaving Spiders itself.
Invocations are meant to be a time commitment, but they took a little longer than we’d like. We have reduced them to 60 seconds to better fit the flow of a match. This can be further sped up by cooperating with other Survivors. We have also slowed the regression effect to give Survivors a chance to return and save some of their progress after they are chased away. These changes will be consistent among future Invocation Perks.
- [NEW] Reworked the lighting of the Shattered Square map.
Dev note: The red-tinted lighting in the Shattered Square could make it difficult to see scratch marks, auras, and pools of blood, especially for colorblind players. We have completely changed the lighting on this map to address these concerns.
- [NEW] Reworked pop-up for Items found within a Trial.
Dev note: The existing pop-ups for Items were minimal, showing only the Item’s icon and remaining charges. This relied on players knowing all the details of each Item – and with a growing number of Killer-specific Items, that’s getting harder to do!
When you approach an Item, you’ll now see a brief description of what that Item does.
We have plenty more surprises in store for the upcoming year. Be sure to tune in to our Anniversary Broadcast on May 14th at 11AM ET for exciting reveals, including new features, the next Chapter, and more!
Be sure to follow us on Twitch or subscribe on YouTube so you don’t miss out!
Until next time…
The Dead by Daylight team
Comments
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I have to say, the Killer changes all read really good. Lots of good Buffs and Nerfs without being too strong in one direction.
For the Perks, I dont think DS needs to be touched again, I dont think it was too impactful to actually be nerfed again, but given that the initial plan was to give it an animation which would be longer than currently and therefore reducing the amount of distance overall, they seem to adapted to this by reducing the stun by 1 second. Not needed for a Perk which is an Anti-Tunnel Perk.
Also I think that the Deadlock-Nerf is too mild. For a Perk which requires 0 input from the Killer 25 seconds of blocked Gens is still too much.
I dont know about the Toolbox-changes. Sabotage is difficult to balance, it should be on the weak side because hooking is one of the most important things in the game. However, I cannot say that I really got bothered by Sabotage at all in the past years, even full Sabo-Squads might be somewhat annoying, but they usually dont escape anyway. And attempts to sabotage end up with simply going to a different hook. Will need to see those in action.
I absolutely love the Borgo-change. It was one of the most ugly maps. I still think it is really bad gameplay-wise, but at least I might not need to claw out my eyes when I get on this map.
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This is overall a healthy update.
If you don't think so, you really don't want this game to be in a good and balanced state.
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There are some conflicting ideas about the direction you're going in with killers. You nerfed scamper and buffed his rush because you wanted to encourage more skilled gameplay with chucky. Then in the same patch you make the collision for bubba more forgiving. Like how easy are we trying to make some of these killers? Being able to use the saw in tight loops was really the only skill based aspect of playing Bubba. I understand the other buffs but is this one really necessary? I would rather you have made his sweep even stronger instead of rewarding players who can't use the chainsaw well.
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I'm glad Pain Res + Pop is getting a touch up.
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I feel insta Sabo is basically coming back if you have both speed addons it'll be very infuriating to face since you can already be forced to only go for one hook. So if they Sabo it in a instant your basically doomed.
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I think it is more how it feels for the other side. IMO getting hit by a Chainsaw from Bubba felt less cheap than getting hit by Chucky because he scampered under a Pallet and gets a free hit because the Survivor was in a lose/lose-situation (throwing the Pallet and getting hit after scamper or not throwing the pallet and getting hit normally).
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Nerfing gen regression AND DS in one update…. What tunnelling problem?
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All depends on the numbers in the end. But yeah, I am not really a fan of them buffing sabo, because it can go wrong pretty quickly. But as I said, I did not feel that sabotage had any impact at all lately. Even full Sabo-Squads were annoying, but not really effective.
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Wow, this patch is actually very neat for both sides! I'm a Killer Main, but I actually agree with all the gen regression nerfs!
All the problematic Survivor perks finally got changed too! Finally I don't have to deal with BGP & FTP/Buckle Up Combo, which is so freaaaking NICE!
Only one problem still remains.. Flashbang save against walls, but it's more towards a bug fix. But overall I'm very content of this update!
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this. The tunnel accelerates as reducing the number of survivors becomes the most effective Gen Regression method.
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I will gladly trade FTP BU and a second of DS for gen oppression nerfs.
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My genuine reaction so far is you can tell this is the anniversary update because most of these changes are genuinely good. I haven't felt this happy with a dev update for the entirety of Year 7.
Where was this energy for the rest of the year because I'm actually excited for some balance again.
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Surely you removed downsides from both Iri Blight's addons? Don't tell me that C33 now weaker than green Salt and still has downside lmao
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While Pop and Pain Res may have deserved the nerfs they got, they will still continue to be the highly used perks because there's not much competition since other gen regression perks got hit hard with the 3-gen update. I'm worried that the devs will never address the reason why other gen regression perks fail to see use and will just conitnue to nerf pop and pain res.
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I saw this one content creator (won’t mention his name but you probably know who it is) happy that they removed endurance from buckle up but mad that they gave it 150 speed. Called the devs survivor mains because they nerfed an aspect of the perk but buffed it in another way. Without the 150 the perk would legit do nothing useful.
as for the update im glad wesker got nerfed, i wish background player kept the 40 second cooldown. The rest seems fine2 -
As I'm playing killer more, I am wary but also optimistic. I 4k a majority of my games with the regression perks, which is not an even game. If the game is balanced, and matchmaking is working as intended, I should be getting a 2k most games. The gen regression is scary, but I am a fan of the toolbox and survivor perk changes.
I'm absolutely stoked about the Bubba changes. Disappointed they killed Chucky. Keen on Deathslinger buffs. Also, the Wesker and Blight changes seem healthy.
Overall, I'm excited for this new update. It seems they are taking a bit of a risk and shaking up the meta.
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Are the toolboxes themselves getting looked into, like medkits were looked into?
For example, the value difference of a regular toolbox, and a commodious toolbox is way too high, especially when survivors are stacking additional things on top of it like Built To Last. There is also an issue where toolboxes giving increased skill check chances, gives too much value to perks like Hyperfocus, especially when it’s used on a toolbox with lots of charges, like the commodious toolbox.
In order words, if toolboxes are going to be buffed to be more sabo oriented, then it’s ok for them to get nerfs at repair speed stacking, right?
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as a blight main since release if he gets nerfed again I’m gonna quit. He’s becoming a joke of a killer I’m actually tired atp.
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I feel the chucky changes might end up helping him over all now being able to use his power more for mobility since its got a shorter CD. I just think his ability to vault and m1 was such a silly design choice, way too strong and easy to do.
I think this is a really good patch, the game has suffered from gen regression not being accounted for after the gen kick buffs. Snowballing was a huge issue. Very excited for what the anniversary brings now!
And the sabo changes gives survivors an option to fight back against tunneling too2 -
Yeah, I have just seen said content creators reaction. Apparently to this person showing the Killers Aura when healing someone from the Dying state would be enough as a Perk.
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That puts the decision on the player whether they want to use the toolbox for sabo'ing or repairing since they can't do both unless they devote time into Built to Last. Currently only Alex's Toolbox was the choice for sabo and Commodius was for repair. Now it looks like the reliance for Alex's won't be so strong since it's a purple toolbox. Also since add-ons are getting buffed they also have to decide which addons to gear for.
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I hope so. I was super excited for Chucky, and loved him on release. Then they lowered his skill ceiling, and he became way less fun for me. I hope these changes are positive for him.
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Slinger buffs!!!! Finally!!!
Happy with perk changes overall. Regression needed a nerf, although I think Pop may have been nerfed a bit too hard. 60 second Weaving Spiders is interesting but hopefully not too short now. Overall though, good changes!
Those sabo changes though are kind of concerning. Sabo being powerful is always a bad thing and buffing it has the potential to just make killer miserable.
Also what happened to the Distressing and This Is Not Happening changes that were on the road map?
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Exactly. IMO the Chucky Changes will positive for players who like his ability. If someone played Chucky to only use his ability to scamper under a Pallet to get a Hit, they wont like the changes.
Overall, the changes will promote more skill expression for Chucky. So bad Chucky players will most likely be weaker while good Chucky players will be stronger.
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Toolboxes have needed a complete pass for a while. Addon/perk stacking, especially on commodious, is way too much.
It’s completely reasonable to ask for BHVR to look at toolbox repair value, if they were already in the process of evaluating them all for sabo value.
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I feel like one thing some people seem to miss is if they make decent survivor perks useless, then survivors will just fall back on gen perks because they, once again, will become the most efficient option. Then the genrush complaints (which I've noticed have died down quite alot over the last several months) will start again. The fact that they've nerfed a few survivor perks but still left them in an appealing and usable state tells me the devs know this. Completely killing a perk isn't the way. And I'm sure the content creator you are talking about knows this, because I'm positive I know who it is and he knows his audience very well. He just says what they want to hear.
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yep a completely biased player. Luckily no one takes his community seriously
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And this is how they balanced it. Instead of downright nerfing it they gave it another function.
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nah the content creator doesn’t care about survivor. I agree with what you are saying but the content creator only cares about killer. They thought the twin changes were fine lmao
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Chucky- Good, 12 seconds sounds like a good medium between having your power often enough and missing still being punishing
Bubba-This is good to bring him up to modern DBD power level
Slinger-Seems fine
Mastermind-Fantastic change, the virus only going to 50% on hook made it very oppressive if they wanted to tunnel.
Blight-Sure
Toolbox-I personally hate getting Sabo'd almost more than anything else in this game but this is probably fine. If it's too strong expect an increase in slugging however.
Deadlock-I'd go further and make it 20 seconds but at least it's getting nerfed.
Background Player-I never got the hysteria over this perk and thought it was overrated but alright.
Grim-Sure
DS-I actually haven't played since DS got buffed but I'm skeptical about this being deserved
Pop/Pain Res-I mean sure they were probably a bit overturned atp but with no other perks getting buffed I don't think this will do anything to their playrate, they'll still be the best option.
Buckle Up-Finally, I think this explains the toolbox changes somewhat and in context this is better for solos I think as that takes a little less coordination.
Invocations- Absolutely needed changes for invocations to ever be viable. As far as WS goes I think this puts it in a situation similar to shadowstep where for the most part it's kinda average and you still most likely don't take it by itself but if we ever get a meta invocation you might as well run WS with it as a nice bonus in addition to whatever other invocation you're running.
Borgo-You are now leaving Caelid. You are now entering Stormhill.
Overall decent changes I think we're heading either for a meta shift depending on the perks for the next chapter or they're trying to bring the overall power level down it's unclear but either is reasonable.
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Is it just me, or if you take the changes overall... this all seems very healthy?
This update kinda cooks tbh…
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Great killer changes maybe except the Hindred on Weskers power should be bit higher (5-6%).
Perk changes are kinda wild. Gen slowdown across the boad nerfed but that just puts weaker killers into worse situation. DS nerf is lazy and they should just add "If killer hooks someone else, its disabled." and keep the 5 sec stun. Wawing spiders might legit be overpowered, 60 sec (can be faster) to get every gen -10sec perma is busted. Background player didn't need buff to compensete insane speed boost. Grim doesnt need nerf. Pop was before 20% and was buffed back to 30% because it was weak, then why not try 25%?
No changes to bad perks except for overbuffed Spiders.
Toolboxes don't need sabo buffs. This just puts killers into slugging which is never fun for anybody.
Borgo change is great.
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What they need to do is nerf all the gen defense perks and buff the basekit like they do with killer addons, like they literally are going to do with leatherface. Stop balancing the game around gen defense perks being required, nerf them all, buff the basekit.
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Love the killer changes overall. I like that they shifted the skill floor for Wesker and Chucky. Especially in Chicky's case, it's a buff for good players and a nerf for less skilled players who relied on Scamper.
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Pop/Pain res nerfs have been needed. Thank god this is finally coming to light.
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Naw, Wesker hinder is a no skill mechanic. 4% is a massive slow amount. Remember how much mft broke the killer communities brains with 3%?
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These kinds of games need meta shifts. It is very healthy to have a flow of what killer is strongest and which is weakest. Blight sat at the top of the food chain for years and years, the entire community got so bored of it so moving him to a play into it once or twice a night instead of every 2 games is important to keep the greater player base playing. He has other add ons that are still more than sufficient to 4k every game.
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This actually sounds extremely hype. Perkwise Background Player and DS are less annoying, the PopRes meta is weaker if not dead, and Weaving Spiders might actually be useful! It still needs to be able to work while gens are blocked, but I digress. Deadlock and Grim Embrace are hopefully a bit healthier now.
As for killer updates, Bubba and DS being less addon dependent is great, Wesker is thankfully much worse at tunneling, Blight had his add-ons changed for the billionth time.
Chucky is now much worse as a killer and idk how to feel about it. On one hand, hopefully now people will enjoy facing him more than before, on the other, I'm a 110 Killer with just Slice and Dice for map traversal. The cooldown buff will hopefully keep him A Tier, but he's well away from the top 3 some people argued he was now. His scamper addon's should hopefully be tweaked so they don't become useless, but we'll see. I'd rather they just increase the time it takes to scamper tbh.
Sabo being buffed is good since other potential offensive options were nerfed for survivor. Hopefully the scale evens out a bit.
New Borgo lighting could completely change how the map is viewed for some players, so I'm weirdly hyped to check it out.
Overall, W changes, and this does a lot to lessen the pain the last patch caused the game!
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Win update.
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I think the changes are very interesting, especially with Invocation Weaving Spiders. As this means that you can complete the invocation now with 3 survivors, 1 with the perk, and 2 without, in 30 seconds. Or alternatively 2 survivors each with WS perk. Which was the old time it took if you had all four survivors doing it together who each had the perk.
Also means that killers now needs to check basement routinely in case there are survivors trying to perform the invocation and that Territorial Imperative actually has a point now as a killer perk if invocations gain popularity. As Territorial Imperative will still go on cooldown even if no auras are revealed, such as by aura-blocking perks like Distortion, if a survivor enters the basement. And that since the charge regression rate is reduced, its not just a simple one and done deal for the killer like the old version that the killer could take away 119 charges in just 6 seconds. That the basement is essentially another generator they have to check on.
WS also still has the drawback of the initiator of the invocation being permanently broken on completion. Essentially no mither without the benefits of no mither.0 -
Solid update. Even the changes I disagree with are pretty minor, looks good for the game overall.
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Nerfing pop back into irrelevancy….. ffs. Doing anything to address gen rushing?
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also overnerfed the blight
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Survivor Victory Update. In Asian servers, where the skill of survivors is higher than in North America, killer players are screaming due to this update. Survivors will feel better just by shouting nerf!
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You are confused. Chucky got buffed.
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Chucky is a nerf disguised as a buff. I was limited in the timing when I could pass under the board. This is a fatal weakening.
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Chucky went from the most well received killer on release to THIS lol I rarely play him anymore, with these changes I even wish for a refund.
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Nerf all gen regression perks only encourage tunnel and camp, great idea bhvr and devs. Play more they own game and nerf genrush if you think POP and Pain Resonance are problematic right now 2 survis repair a gen in 40s its just a joke for all the killers
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I can assure you Chucky was not universally liked on releass.
For that matter, hardly any killer is.
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From what I am reading, I do not like the Chucky Changes with the scamper. Aside from game mechanics, this ability is true to what he does in the films. Scampering around. I did not find it easier to get a hit at most loops with the scampering and M1 hit after. I find it really hard to handle the slice&dice with keyboard and mouse. Additionally, Chucky is not really quiet while stealthing and super loud while slicing and dicing.
Or what I wanna say: I think he is in a good spot as the is right now. No need to change him in my opinion.
I hope he does not end up feeling like Xeno after you changed the special attack (which did not even down survivors immediatly). Playing as Xeno feels awful and weak. Not like the movies at all. If Chucky ends up the same, it would be awful. Just another kitty or doggy or dolly for the surivovrs to not fear, but wanna play with.
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