Does anyone at BHVR even care about about the survivor aspect of the game anymore?

Don't the survivors gameplay change with each killer?

With The Cenobite they have to mess around with the Puzzle Box and hope that fool don't teleport to them or forget the box and deal with those chains grabbing you.

With Nemesis they have to deal with zombies and the Infection.

With Sadako they have to worry about the curse and find tapes to put in the VCR. And you can't see her and all that weirdness.

All that stuff keeps you from sitting around popping off generators too.

Not to mention that each person plays killer differently and have different perks that change the game.

I think they have quite a bit of gameplay changes

The argument about beginners not having access to licensed perks is a very unfortunate truth. Many perks that are amazing for beginners are like that. But their concepts still aren't bad. It's just that they drown in a sea of mediocre and unused perks because the only people that need them can't use them.

I do think that Ilumination could use some buffs but I like the concept. Locking it behind a license however isn't something I like either. As a base perk, this would be much better.

I don't disagree with you on the part that it could be buffed. Not at all. As it is, it is too niche and unreliable to be a real addition especially for the players that would actually need it, since they don't even know totem spawns. But I'm not sure revealing the auras of your team mates is the best way to do that, simply because it makes other perks with the same effect more and more obsolete. Also it would be weird to have 2 perks with the same activation requirement and side effect. But that's just my opinion.

I get that you don't ask for meta changing perks here but let's be honest, a perk that isn't meta won't find much use. There might be a few people that test it out at first but then everything goes back to normal and you never see these perks again. This is a normal side effect of the meta.

BHVR have been pretty cautious with their perk design for a while now and this goes for both sides. UW is the one exception that comes to mind. Most other perks have either been useless or just too gimmicky to be good. For survivor perks this is a problem specifically because gimmicky perks find no use in solo queue. Sometimes you just need a bit of set up to make these perks work but when you can't communicate, there is no real way to do that.

I believe they aren't trying to make weak or niche perks but they are affraid that whatever perks they do come up with end up as a huge controversy. With Quick Gambit I have no idea why they did that. It just defies all logic. I understand that they are cautious with gen speed boosts but on a perk that would require you to run anywhere near your team mates with the killer on your heel, that would also force you to get closer and closer to them (you can't just suddenly change directions and run through the killer after all) that doesn't make sense. Then again, we have indoor maps like The Game. So the only way to balance this perk is by reworking it from the ground up. The entire concept just can't really be balanced.

The problem is less solo queue itself being in a bad spot but one player ruining the entire match for everyone else on their team in most cases. Solo queue is perfectly fine when everyone carries their weight. So I understand that further solo queue buffs aren't high on the list of priorities.

A chat wheel for communication purposes would be nice but let's be honest, the Meg that's opening a basement chest for her archives, the Claudette self-caring in a corner and the Nea killing herself on first hook won't give a damn about that. But you can't exactly balance around these players either.

If the 3 gen thing doesn't do anything, isn't that a positive? It means that the killer is not holding the game hostage, which is exactly what this mechanic is supposed to do. I think the 4.5 seconds to stop a gen from regressing is a bit much (maybe try 1 second first and see how that goes) but it will not be a buff to 3 gens.

We know that Blight's hug tech is considered an exploit by the devs and they did say, that they were going to remove it. However, looking at how Blight works, it's fair to assume that this is no easy task without completely breaking Blight in the process. When you bump against a tree and then want to rush past it, there often needs to be a little room for you to slide around the object. Otherwise you get stuck in place and your power becomes worthless. That isn't any more desirable than what we have.

Also, let's not forget what survivors got in recent years as well. A new HUD to specifically help solo queue (pretty good, if you actually use that information), base kit BT, hook grabs removed and the AFC are just some examples. So it's not like the devs don't care. They're just incredibly slow when it comes to fixing issues. There was also MFT, which became a meta perk. Killers didn't get much better perks either. UW is pretty good and Friends Til The End is nice perk that is a bit more niche. It breaks the mold, which is a good thing for both sides.

It don't even have to be anything groundbreaking. Just some new items! they don't wanna clutter the survival blood web i guess. At least think about reworking maps and keys to something useful.

Let's be real, what would be useful enough that the hardcore survivors would choose them over medkits and toolboxes?

Nothing makes people deviate from the meta unless it's borderline broken, or actually broken. It doesn't matter how good it is, if it can't outperform Adrenaline/Windows/Resilience/ExhaustionPerk, it may as well not exist. Like how nothing makes killers stop running PainRes/PGTW.

Don't get me wrong, I'd love to make maps and keys do more things, or at least do what they do now much better, but there's very little BHVR can change that would please the hardcore demographic while also maintaining good game health.

If hag or trapper were played more I bet people would run rainbow maps they are the only thing in the game that reveal trap auras still same for the killer belongings add on

There's another way to get people to deviate from the meta. Something BHVR didn't think of or is too scared to do.

The goal of the 6.0 update was to change the meta. Only reason why that update failed is because all BHVR did was give other perks a chance to shine with the same benefits. The best way to get rid of a meta is to gut the existing meta while encouraging a new one. Grim Embrace's buff is a prime example of encouraging a new meta.

Unfortunately, survivor meta will always boil down to "fix gens fast" and "chase forever". And killer meta will always boil down to undoing those two things. We're at an impasse and I'm not sure how to fix it without barbecuing the game as a whole. It certainly isn't easy.

For both sides, I'd like weak perks buffed to usefulness, and strongest perks nerfed to no longer be auto-picks. I especially wish BHVR would go to all those useless survivor perks like Small Game, Premonition, Poised, Corrective Action, etc. and give them boosts, give them effects that are actually appealing and helpful and do things.

I'm disappointed in the planned Quick Gambit rework though. That thing doesn't needs its repair boost nerfed, it just needs a significant range increase of 32m ~ 40m. Then it could actually do something meaningful.

I think this game is more fun the larger the variety of perks is. Dead Hard every match was painfully boring. Pain Resonance every match is painfully annoying.

I change my build every month or two, and I purposely try avoid meta perks unless I need them for a challenge. I still think this game is getting worse for solo players.

Yes I know :) I meant that if DS was buffed in the future it shouldn't be active during end game.

The way you play has nothing to do with what we were discussing. But I'm glad you're having fun! Most can't look past their own selves and thats why certain playstyles become toxic. Not anyones fault but BHVR's tbh. Assuming people will have DBD etiquette and such for other players is silly on their part and now they are struggling in finding a balance for it all.

It simply won't happen. But glad you're enjoying the game :)

Can you share any you've found that were surprisingly awesome? Or.. just good lol. I've been trying to make meme builds work, so like you, I've been diversifying! Best unlikely combo I found was Sole Survivor and Object of Obsession.

I used to be a undying Meta-Slave but i was lucky enough to escape the cycle and i just mess around with BlastMine/headon builds now but your right Survivor are just looking for the next best broken perk.

Survivor need more fun perks like Blast Mine, Nicolas Cage was a nice DLC with those quirky perks but as you can tell it didnt last long when you look at Alan Wokeness perks.