Dead by Daylight reveals huge Mid-Chapter perk & progression overhaul
Dead by Daylight’s upcoming Mid-Chapter update is set to introduce a slew of progression, gameplay, matchmaking incentives, and perk tweaks that will likely change the landscape of DbD for all of its players — so here’s everything we can expect to familiarize yourself ahead of launch.
Since its original release in 2016,Dead by Daylighthas grown at lightning speed, introducing everything from licensed characters like Resident Evil’s Leon S. Kennedy, Silent Hill’s Cheryl Mason, andRingu’s Sadakointo The Entity’s realm, alongside gameplay changes like hooking and wiggle progression mechanics.
While a recent update, as mentioned inDbD’s 6th Anniversary stream, introduced the option to save different loadouts and a facelift tothe game’sUI, the upcoming Mid-Chapter update forRoots of Dreadwill overhaul even more mechanics. With changes to some of themost popular perkson the way and more, here’s everything that will bearriving for testing on the PTB next week.
DbD progression system overhauls: Perks, prestige, Shrine of Secrets
Behaviour Interactive’s blog post details that their “objective is to shake up the current meta, provide alternatives, and make perks easier to earn.” Many builds in DbD will typically utilize a smaller pool of perks that are known to be the most effective on both sides of the playing field, likeDead Hard,Decisive Strike,Pop Goes the Weasel, andBarbecue & Chilli, with the post adding that “we were also careful to consider the reasons why this meta exists and address any base game issues it may have been concealing.”
Starting off with the progression system overhaul, the way that perks are earned is going to be changed, with Behaviour noting that, as the game continues to grow, “the grind expands at an exponential rate with every new Chapter.”
The post continues: “In the current system, you must reach level 40 on a given character to unlock all their teachable perks, then find those perks in the Bloodwebs of every other character.”
According to the studio’s data, to unlock all of the perks on each character ahead of the new Chapter, players would need to play a whopping estimated time of 4.1 hours daily — which will instead decrease to an average of 1.01 hours with the new system.
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When the new system launches,players will keep any perks and bloody cosmetics that they have unlocked. Prestige levels will also be awarded pertaining to how many perk tiers have been unlocked. Those that have already reached P3 before the update will “receive a special prestige icon to recognize their achievements.”
Here are all of the progression system changes, condensed for legibility:
DbD matchmaking changes: Incentives
Matchmaking incentives are being introduced to the game to work towards improving the likes of wait times for matches. Behaviour states that “though many changes are planned to improve wait times and match quality, there are variables that we can’t control through code. Chief among them is the distribution of people playing each role.”
Adding that this is affected by everything from time of day, to your region and rating, matchmaking incentives looks to provide players with bonuses for opting into a particular role that needs to filled. These are alsounique to each player, depending onregion and matchmaking rankings. If a player has cross-play turned off, these incentives will be disabled.
DbD perk changes: Generator, Killer, camping & tunneling updates
Speaking about the current perk meta within the game, Behaviour mentioned that some perks have a “dominant usage rate”, and while individual perks have been addressed in the past, this hasn’t been enough to reduce it, and so39 perks in total are set to be updated— with a goal of reducing the current meta’s reliance.
Gameplay elements such as camping, tunneling, and generator speeds are also receiving changes, which we’ve detailed below:
For the perks themselves, Behaviour has looked into tweaking both ends of the spectrum — from those that are used often to ones opted for less so. While they note that they “understand that many of you have grown attached to your favorite perks and loadouts. Unfortunately, shaking up the meta inevitably leads to a few changes,” their goal is to provide alternatives for particular playstyles, all while increasing which perks are viable for that approach.
The ‘meta’ perks that will be receiving updates in Dead by Daylight’s Mid-Chapter are as follows:
Dead by Daylight’s non-meta perks which will be receiving an update in the Mid-Chapter are as follows:
For a full breakdown of each Perk’s changes, we’d recommend checking outthe full blog postfor more detailed insight.
OnJune 27, 2022, at8 AM PT / 11 AM ET / 4 PM BST,Behaviour Interactive will be hosting a live stream, detailing gameplay for DbD’s upcoming Mid-Chapter update.
Be sure to tune intotheir official Twitch channelto check out a hands-on look at everything you’re able to expect once the update goes live. We’ll be sure to embed the video below once it goes live for your convenience.
So, there you have it — that’s everything you need to know about Dead by Daylight’s upcoming Mid-Chapter gameplay updates.
For tips and tricks to help you emerge victorious from your next Trial, make sure to check out our guides:
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