Dead by Daylight

Survivors

Players assume the role of one of the 14 survivors, Dwight Fairfield, Meg Thomas, Claudette Morel, Jake Park, Nea Karlsson, Laurie Strode, William 'Bill' Overbeck, Ace Visconti, Feng Min, David King,^[9][10] Quentin Smith, David Tapp, Kate Denson, or Adam Francis. The goal of the survivors is to escape the enclosed area, which can be done in one of two ways: either by repairing a certain number of disabled generators (five generators if there is four survivors, four generators with three survivors, three generators with two survivors and two generators with one survivor.) to provide power to switches which open large, metal doors leading out of the area; or by escaping through the black lock, more commonly known as the hatch. The hatch appears when the number of repaired generators is one greater than the number of survivors that are still alive and opens only when there is one survivor remaining in the match. The survivors will need a key to open the hatch if there is more than one person alive. The hatch will appear at one of several predetermined locations.^[11] The survivor's movement options consist of sprinting, walking, crouch-walking, or crawling. They must elude the killer by using the darkness; crouching behind objects; and hiding in buildings, foliage, or inside lockers.

The survivors have the option to utilize up to four perks per match that affect how they play each game. Each of the survivors has a set of three perks that are unique to them that are only available to that survivor until the ability to teach them to other survivors is unlocked. There are also perks that that can be acquired at anytime by any character, such as Kindred, Small Game etc. These perks can be unlocked and upgraded in the Bloodweb using Bloodpoints and each Bloodweb can only hold up to two perks. These perks can range from giving a burst of speed when running from the killer, to being able to self-heal without a first aid kit, to unlocking the ability to sabotage meat hooks without a toolbox. There are also a multitude of 'universal' perks that are available to unlock by any survivor.

In dealing with the killer, survivors can also make use of a handful of items and traps in the area – searching chests inside buildings will sometimes yield first-aid kits (which allow the survivors to heal themselves rather than wait for a teammate), flashlights (which can be used to temporarily blind the killer and save a survivor that the killer is carrying), toolboxes (which can be used both to repair generators faster and to disable the sacrificial meat hooks), broken key (does a variety of things depending on its add-ons), maps (which locate all the generators or more depending on its rarity and add-ons), dull key (which can be used to open the hatch whenever it's found), and skeleton key (which does a variety of things depending on its add-ons and can be used to open the hatch). One trap that survivors can use is a massive wooden pallet, which are placed upright, and can be pulled down when a survivor runs past them – if the killer is right behind them, the pallet will stun the killer if it successfully hits him/here for a brief period of time (unless the killer uses Enduring, which decreases the time the killer is stunned).^[11] The survivors can also vault over fallen pallets, while the killer has to destroy them or go around. They can also vault through windows. The killer can go through windows too, but does it significantly slower.

Other technical advantages that survivors have include the ability to see the aura of downed and hooked teammates – thus easily drawing them to their location for a rescue – and can similarly see the locations of newly repaired generators and the exit doors for a short period of time once all necessary generators are repaired. When the killer is near, the survivors will hear a heartbeat, and eventually tense music, both of which increase in intensity with proximity to the killer. They can also see a red light (called the "red stain") emanating from the killer's eyes, which shows his/her approximate field of view.

Killers

As the killer, players assume the role of either the Trapper, the Wraith, the Hillbilly, the Nurse, the Shape, the Hag, the Doctor, the Huntress, the Cannibal, the Nightmare, the Pig, the Clown, or the Spirit. The killer cannot crouch (unless playing as the Pig) or run, but simply walks at a very fast pace which is slightly faster than the pace of a sprinting survivor (unless playing as the Nurse, which will mostly teleport instead of running). When hunting the survivors, the killer must capture them by either striking them twice with his/her weapon (the first hit reduces the survivor to the injured state and pushes them a short distance ahead of the killer, while the second hit drops them to crawling on the ground), or can grab them in one move by either catching them inside lockers, while attempting to vault over pallets or through windows, while repairing a generator, trying to save a fellow survivor on a hook or attempting to escape through a trap door. Some killers like the Hillbilly, the Shape and the Cannibal have a secondary attack that directly puts a survivor into the crawling state.

The killer can initially mainly only kill the survivors by throwing them on one of the many meat hooks in the area and waiting for the claws of the 'Entity' to eventually finish off the survivor, carrying their soul into the sky. After a player has earned enough experience points as the killer, however, certain single-use items called 'Memento Moris' can be unlocked that include the ability to finish off survivors instantly with their weapon, rather than the lengthy process of taking them to the meat hooks. The killer can also kill survivors by leaving them on the ground and waiting for them to bleed to death but this takes a longer time and it decreases the danger of dying, or, in the case of the Pig, the survivors can also be killed by the Reverse Bear Traps she places on their heads when the timer runs out or when the survivors try to escape through the exit gates.

The first time a survivor is hooked, they enter the first phase. In this phase only, the player can try for a low (4%) chance of escaping the hook at the cost of accelerating their death upon failure to escape based on their 'hook health' (at full, granting up to four chances). Players can also be rescued by fellow survivors. If the player escapes or is saved and is hooked a second time, they will enter the struggle state, in which the player has to resist the entity trying to stab him/her by pressing the spacebar, X, or A, depending on platform, continuously until saved by an ally or killed by the 'Entity'. If the player is saved during the struggle state and is hooked a third time, they will die instantly with no opportunity of survival.

The killer, despite walking at a fast pace, is slower in most other movements: After striking a player, the killer will slow their movement to wipe the blood off their weapon. The killer is also slower in climbing through windows, and cannot leap over the pallets survivors can lay into their path, but can spend a lengthy amount of time destroying the barricades. The killer also has an aura reading ability similar to the survivors, only for the killer it can be used to see the locations of every single generator, hex totem and meat hook on the map. A new mechanic was also added in update 1.5.0 which introduced bloodlust. Twelve seconds into a chase, the killer gets a 0.2 m/s boost; 24 seconds into a chase gives the killer a 0.6 m/s boost; and finally, if a chase lasts for 32 seconds, the killer gets a 1.2 m/s boost. These effects only last until a chase ends in which the effects go down 10% every second spent not chasing a survivor, a pallet is broken (this lowers bloodlust down 1 level), and when a survivor is hit (this removes bloodlust completely). This was added to prevent a time wasting mechanic known as "pallet looping", which is when a survivor runs around pallets for an extended period of time so the rest of the team can complete generators, and instead encourages the survivor to break line of sight and completely escape from the killer.

Objectives

Interacting with most objects and actions in the game causes random Skill Checks to trigger. Right before a skill check triggers, the player will receive a noise notification, and a needle within a circle will then appear on-screen. The player must hit the action button, when the needle is within a certain randomly chosen section of the circle before the needle passes it. The player can hit either a Good Skill Check or A Great Skill Check. Hitting a Good Skill Check grants 50 bloodpoints, and a Great Skill Checks grants 150 bloodpoints and an instant 2% bonus to progression on the generator. Failing a skill check has multiple consequences based on the action being taken.

Repairing each generator takes a lengthy period of time (unless using a brand new part) and makes a rather small mechanical noise during the process. Failing a repair skill check will cause an explosion that will set the progress of the generator repair back and make a loud noise alerting the killer where the player is and what they are up to.^[12] The killer has also been granted the ability to damage generators at a very slow rate for 90 seconds. This process can be stopped simply by survivors fixing the generator for a second. If nothing is done for 90 seconds, all of the generator's progress is lost, putting survivors in a disadvantage for waiting too long.

Sabotaging a hook takes a significantly shorter amount of time than repairing a generator but is considerably louder. To sabotage a hook, survivors must be equipped with a 'tool box’ or have the Saboteur perk active. Skill checks are more common during this action than when repairing a generator. Failing a sabotage skill check makes a loud banging sound, also setting back progress and alerting the killer.

Healing yourself or your allied survivors can take drastically different lengths of time depending on multiple factors such as if they have a first aid kit, certain perks active, killer debuffs and whether the player is healing themselves or an ally. Skill checks are as common as when repairing but have a slightly less severe consequence when failed. Failing a healing skill check still reduces the progress of the action but the wail made by the survivor being healed is quieter than the other explosions and bangs, but still alerts the killer of your location within a certain range.

If a survivor is caught by the killer, they are picked up and usually carried to the nearest meat hook. During this time they can attempt to wiggle out of the killer’s grasp before they reach the hook, and attempt to run away. If the killer succeeds in impaling a survivor on one of the many meat hooks in the area, a teammate can rescue the impaled survivor or, more rarely, the impaled survivor (with a 4% chance) can pull themselves off the hook (although attempting this is likely to backfire and injure the survivor further, drawing them closer to death).

Once all generators are repaired, a survivor must find a switch next to one of two the possible exit doors and hold it for 10 seconds in order to open the door. The game only ends when all survivors have either escaped or have been killed – thus, while some survivors may escape and finish early, those still inside must keep playing. Players who have escaped or died have the ability to observe the remaining players through the game's conclusion, or return to the menu and join a new game.

If only one survivor remains then repairing generators can become nearly impossible. An alternative escape method would be to use the "Black Lock" which is a hatch on the ground that spawns in a random area after the number of generators repaired equals one more than there are survivors left alive in the game (i.e. 3 generators repaired with only 2 survivors still living). The hatch spawns closed but when only one survivor remains then it will open automatically. While closed it can be opened if one survivor has a "Dull Key" or a "Skeleton Key" and will remain open for 30 seconds, allowing any remaining survivors to hop in and escape.^[13]

Bloodweb

The Bloodweb that is used in the game to level up characters and acquire items, add-ons, offerings and perks.

Both survivors and killers are able to unlock items, perks, and offerings through the Bloodweb. Every action performed in a match gives the player a number of Bloodpoints, and the sum are added to the player's total at the end of the match. Each level of the Bloodweb is procedurally generated, and gets larger as the character gains levels. The rewards are connected to each other in a radial tree, and players must purchase rewards along the progression path to gain access to others. Once every reward on the tree has been purchased, the Bloodweb will generate a new level for the player to progress to, increasing that character's level. Once the character reaches level 50 they will be given the option to prestige. While given the option, they will still be able to buy things from the blood web but will not increase their level. Once prestiged, characters will reset their level, items, offerings, and addons in exchange for a better chance for rarer items in the bloodweb and a bloody coat (prestige one), bloody trousers or weapon for killer (prestige two), and a bloody face (prestige three). These effects are irreversible and cannot be undone.

The Bloodweb may contain items, add-ons for items that increase their efficiency, offerings that can be spent at the start of the round to influence the match's conditions, and perks that make the character more powerful. Offerings and add-ons may only be used in one match, whereas items can be re-used until the player dies,used all the charges or gives it to another player, and perks are permanent. Items can also be acquired from chests on the map, but this does not affect the character's Bloodweb. Since a killer's special ability is tied to their item and killers are invulnerable, their items are permanent and cannot be changed.

Locales

The game takes place across eleven locales^[14] which are based on the places the killers became murderers: The MacMillan Estate (Trapper), Autohaven Wreckers (Wraith), Coldwind Farm (Hillbilly), Crotus Prenn Asylum (Nurse, Clown), Haddonfield (Shape),^[15] Backwater Swamp (Hag),^[16] Léry's Memorial Institute (Doctor), the Red Forest (Huntress), Springwood/Badham Preschool (Nightmare), Gideon Meat Plant (Pig) and Yamaoka Estate (Spirit). Over time, the evilness of their actions accumulated there until it attracted the attention of the Entity, an unknown force of darkness from a place with no name. Most locales are split into multiple maps with similar features but small variations.

Buildings

Every locale and map features a map-specific building or landmark that remains in the same place in the map every game. Every map also features a building known as "The Shack" which is the same throughout all maps and appears a different one of a few predetermined locations in the map, with the exception of the two indoor maps, Léry's Memorial Institute and Gideon Meat Plant. Every new game, a room known as the "Basement" is placed under either the map-specific building or the shack.

The Basement is a special room consisting of 1 item chest for the survivors to scavenge in, and 4 cabinets for them to hide in. It's also home to a special 4-pointed hook that cannot be destroyed or tampered with in any way by survivors. The basement only has one way in and one way out, making it a very secure place for killers to bring their victims without fear of other survivors saving them. Because of this danger, survivors are awarded a small number of points for even venturing into the basement.