Is it time for Bloodlust to go?
I know it might be a little early to discuss this as we don't know what all the map and tile changes look like yet, but I feel it's about time to discuss Bloodlust's place in the game.
Bloodlust was introduced in patch 1.5 as a way to help killers with the unfair loops and infinites they have to deal with, in short a bandaid fix. It worked though, as killers were more able to catch up with survivors and not be led for 5 gen chases.
However, the map design philosophy of the game has changed over time. You could see that ever since the Badham rework, the devs have favored making numerous unsafe pallets rather than several safe pallets. You can see this with Hawkins especially, as the majority of pallets are unsafe, requiring you to stun the killer and run away rather than loop. Now the Sanctum of Wrath and Dead Dawg Saloon have gone back to more safer pallets, but they're nothing like the loops in earlier maps.
Now with this new update, the older maps are getting an overhaul that fits with their new design philosophy. I for one am greatful for this, as now the maps for each side shouldn't vary too much in terms of design and balance while keeping their unique feel. However, with these changes comes the fact that Bloodlust has lost its purpose. I fear that something that was once a bandaid may become a crutch.
Before, if you wanted to make a killer lose his Bloodlust, you would either make them break the pallet or stun them with it. However, since most pallets are now unsafe advanced killers will prefer to mindgame the pallet rather than break it. Now you have to successfully mindgame the killer while also dealing with the fact that the killer is getting faster. Even if you trick the killer and run away, you make less distance before the killer catches up, which might make the difference between making the next window or getting hit.
Okay, so if it's difficult to make the killer break the pallet, you should stun them, right? However that's not as easy as it seems. Along with the unsafer pallets, many pallets have introduced LOS (line of sight) blockers so you can't easily tell where the killer is. I do enjoy this feature as it promotes thinking ahead and leads to more interesting gameplay, but when you have a killer with Bloodlust mindgaming you at a loop, you have to react faster to not get hit. To bring us back to Hawkins again, there are some pallets that if you don't stun the killer, they can easily walk around and hit you. So if you are at one of these loops with a bloodlusted killer, you have to predict when they swing so you don't get hit dropping the pallet and you also have to make sure not to drop the pallet too early, so the killer can't just get a free hit. Bloodlust makes a tight margin of error even tighter.
So with these reasons in mind, I think Bloodlust should be removed in either this patch or the next. Of course I know some of you will say that there are some places which are unfair for killers, and I totally get it (though we have to see the next PTB to see which strong loops are unchanged) but I feel this is best for the future of the game. Just like how Ruin was changed so the devs could study gen times without drastic variables, I feel like we need to rip off this bandaid so that the devs can get more accurate data about chases that aren't affected by a catch-up mechanic. It would also make future map design smoother so they wouldn't have to consider Bloodlust when making new maps. However, I would love to hear your thoughts about this mechanic and whether it should be change.
Comments
Potentially, although we really need to see how much impact the map changes have in the chases in general.
I would say before removing it to give it a nerf, imo it will still be very helpful in some areas.
As someone who has made it to rank 1 with killer (and survivor) I recognize OP makes a valid point. That being said I agree it might be a little "early" to make such a change, and I would first like to see how the new map design affects both survivors as a whole and different killers.
I agree with these two that before anybody gets any bright ideas about removing Bloodlust altogether, if it comes to the point where killers no longer need it, it can be toned down / nerfed so that it is not as powerful. The devs already did this once in a way, and I could see them doing it again and again slowly over time until potentially it is gotten rid of completely.
That being said I also want people to recognize the possibility that this change might never be needed. And that survivors at the highest levels of play would even still be able to outlast some of the best killers (all except Nurse) with the loops that do exist, and fast generator speeds. I wouldn't want this kind of thread to get certain survivor mains hopes up if it turns out this is an unnecessary change.
tl;dr, I won't say no but I am very hesitant to say yes. I would be far more in favor of bloodlust being toned down than anything else.
It should stay as is unless the map changes really are extensively damaging. Mind you it took three months for this mid patch to happen post-Ruin.
Bloodlust cancels so often anyways. Lose chase behind a long fence? Canceled. Break a pallet? Canceled. Finally hit a blocking survivor? Canceled.
I do understand. I know I'm jumping the gun a bit but I think it's good to have a discussion on this before people get too swept up in the new map changes and forget about bloodlust.
Bloodlust was a bandaid fix to the original pallet problem when it was introduced rather than adjusting the pallets themselves and was never effective at fixing the problem.
If a killer gains bloodlust, they're either playing poorly or the loop is strong. If a loop is too strong, a survivor can drop the chase by walking for a moment at the right time resetting the killer's BL and creating a pseudo infinite.
If the devs adjusted pallets with more caution (as they might be with the upcoming map changes) Bloodlust wouldn't even be necessary.
It's always been time for bloodlust to go. It was just a matter of waiting for the devs change the maps and pallets themselves instead of creating a built-in perk to fix it for them.