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The Recurring Rise And Fall Of 2v8

Dark_Vorahk1
Dark_Vorahk1 Member Posts: 121
in General Discussions

With 2v8 making its comeback yet again it comes with plenty of new improvements but also retaining the same pain points.

Where it succeeds:

2v8 attracts an entirely new crowd! Players who lack the time and resource management skills to play 1v4 have their trial influence cut in half, leading to a shortened requirement for skill by leveraging a higher margin for error. This is doubly true for killer players who no longer are forced to take the sole burden for in game mistakes. This alleviates a significant portion of the "on stage" feeling that leads to infamous killer anxiety. Progression is also not offered or required in 2v8, as all classes are pre-unlocked and there is no earnable currency for use in the mode. This counters the biggest argument that many players have voiced in their displeasure for 1v4... the grind.

Where it fails:

Almost every postive is paradoxically a negative! How can this be true? Well, in a vacuum 2v8 is as good as its ever been and only getting better. But where it falls flat is in the lineup of competition for the core game. Time and resource management isn't taught or encouraged and therefore skills learned in 1v4 tend to not translate into 2v8 and vice versa, at least not 1:1. Because it has no progression, players who enjoy bringing certain builds are simply out of luck. With limited loadout options this mode completely skips over any and all progression or consumables offered in the core game. Not being able to bring any items, add ons, or even offerings makes the mode feel very tame and underwhelming compared to the unpredictability of the core game.

As an aside, why is the satisfaction survey for the mode posted on socials but asks you to launch the game for an anonymous survey? It seems counterintuitive and takes extra steps, with the added downside of being extra clunky for console players. The average player is going to discover the survey through mobile notifications so it would make sense to be able to access and complete the survey through mobile platforms.

But I digress, love it or hate it 2v8 is always going to be popular. Just maybe not consistently with the core fanbase of the base game. The queue times are almost entirely due to the novelty of the limited time mode. So if balancing and future support is something the community desires, it brings a new question. If the future does not have Dead by Daylight 2, does it instead have Dead by Daylight 2v8 as a standalone release?