The Biggest Failure Of DBD
I've felt this way for a long time but I strongly feel like the biggest mistake of DBD is their failure to experiment with alternate game modes. For those who've been gaming for a while you might remember playing a game called Warcraft 3. Warcraft 3 was a fun game in it's own right but what made it spectacular was that they gave the players the ability to create their own custom games. The variety and ingenuity of those custom games was incredible. More fun than the base game actually.
One of those custom game modes spawned an entire other genre of games. Namely Defense of the Ancients or DOTA which brought about a bunch of other MOBA style games like League of Legends. Warcraft 3 has largely been forgotten. But the legacy it left behind remains. I feel like DBD could do much the same for the video game industry.
The base game is fun and they absolutely should continue to support it. Create new characters, perks, costumes, etc. But if they really want to be on the forefront of the next big thing in video games then they should also start experimenting. They have the perfect platform. You already have the characters, maps, mechanics, etc. Spend the resources to experiment with them!
You might just find the perfect version of this game that is far more popular and enjoyable than the original that will be the backbone of DBD2. I've created this thread a long time ago but there are a few examples of ideas I've come up with:
@Dreamnomad said:
Every other weekend, there should be an alternate game mode made available. Once the game mode has been released, it should be permanently available in custom games. There are virtually an infinite number of options available (and I'd love to hear everyone's ideas) but here are a few I've come up with:
Specific Killer VS Specific Survivor using only their perks at rank 3. For example, The Shape vs Laurie, The Clown vs Kate, or The Pig vs Detective Tapp.
Super Speed: Both killer and survivor have 30% increased runspeed.
Darkest Night:The map is pitch black. Survivors all have flashlights that are permanently in the "on" position. The killer has night vision up to 15 feet.
2 killers vs 6 suvivors
Random 12: Both killer and survivors all have 12 random rank 3 perks.
Back to Basics: No perks, items, or add ons.
Casual Mode: All perks are reduced to rank 1. Items and add ons are restricted to common or uncommon. Offerings are restricted to ones that can increase bloodpoint gain.
Fog of War: Massively reduced information available to both killers and survivors. Killers do not have a terror radius. Survivors do not make scratch marks. All auras are disabled. Killer can't see unfinished generator auras or active hex totem auras or hooked survivors. Survivors can't see slugged or hooked survivors. All perks for both killer and survivor that enable auras have the aura reading components disabled.
Entity's Eyes: Strange wards appear throughout the map. Anyone (killer or survivor) that passes within 10 meters of a ward will have their aura revealed to everyone on the map. The wards periodically change location.
Treasure Hunt: No generators on the map. Lots of locked chests are around the map which the killer can see as auras. Survivors must pick the lock requiring skill checks before opening. Most of the chests give survivors a bloodpoint bonus for opening. One chest per map will have a 25,000 bloodpoint bonus. Exit gates are powered after 10 minute timer and chests can't be unlocked after that timer.
Shopping Spree: Survivors are restricted from bringing items into the match and there are no chests to loot. However, there are 2 zombie vendors that spawn in the match. As survivors and killers perform actions that earn bloodpoints, they also earn another form of currency. They can go to the zombie vendors to purchase items and add ons of their choice. Killers can purchase temporary bonus buffs such as 60 seconds 5% movement increase, 40 seconds survivors have exposed status, etc.
Totally Random: All Perks, Items, Add Ons, and Offerings are randomly chosen. Perks are chosen from all possible perks and are at rank 3 (regardless whether the player has unlocked the perk or what rank the player's perks are currently at). Items, Add Ons, and Offerings are chosen from all possible options minus event specific offerings. These Items, Add Ons, and Offerings do not consume the player's resources. They are provided by the entity.
Infection:8 players join a lobby. When the match starts, one is randomly selected to be a random killer with no perks or add ons. The remaining 7 are survivors with no perks or items. There are no hooks on the map, but the killer can Mori survivors in the dying state. Once a survivor is killed they will respawn as a random killer with no perks or add ons. Killers that successfully Mori a survivor earn 1,000 BP. The longer a survivor lives, the larger the bloodpoint bonus at the end.
First Survivor Killed earns 2500 BP
Second Survivor Killed earns 3000 BP
Third Survivor Killed earns 5000 BP
Fourth Survivor Killed earns 7000 BP
Fifth Survivor Killed earns 10,000 BP
Sixth Survivor Killed earns 15,000 BP
Last Survivor Killed earns 20,000 BP
Randomly Selected Killer earns 10,000 BP
Survivors can work on generators, but it takes completion of all 7 generators to power the exit gate. Any survivors that actually escape via the exit gate earn the standard 5,000 BP. Survivors aren't realistically going to escape, nor is it really the goal. The real goal is to be the last survivor alive.3 Life Survivors: Survivors have 3 "lives". When the killer catches and puts them on a hook the survivor loses 1 life and is put in a ghost world for 45 seconds after losing the first life and 30 seconds after losing the second life. While the survivor is in the ghost world they can not interact with any objects other than ones that can be vaulted. The world appears black and white and the survivor can not see or touch the other players. They can, however, move at 85% normal move speed to explore the map to find the locations of generators, chests, and totems (though ghost players can not tell the difference between active and inactive totems). The survivor will also earn some bloodpoints for distance traveled in the ghost world.
After the timer is up the survivor will appear on a random hook at least 32 meters away from the killers current location. The survivor on the hook will see the shroud indication from Insidious around them. This indicates that the killer can not see them on the hook. In fact, the hook that the survivor is on will appear broken to the killer. Other survivors can see the aura of the hooked survivor and unhook them normally at which point they are back in the game. While a survivor is hooked there is no progress meter and there is no struggle phase. Survivors can attempt to free themselves from the hook, but the baseline success chance is 0% for the first attempt and increases by 1% for each attempt after. Attempts for the survivor to free themselves will take 4 seconds. If all the survivors are either dead, in ghost world time out, or hooked then the killer wins. Survivors hooked in the basement are sent to the ghost world for an additional 30 seconds. Perk Slippery Meat is locked in this game mode (since it wouldn't really do anything).
Comments
The killers themselves are supposed to act as different game modes. Switching up tactics and such.
As much as I'd love to see some new game modes, I doubt it would happen. I'd be happy with a silly modifier effect even. Something that would add a challenge to both survivor and killer like, something like modifiers for the match: 'Survivors randomly scream every 30 seconds' or 'The killer will hear a false noise notification every 30 seconds'. Throw on a bonus BP reward or something and it'd most likely be a hit. Just something to change up the daily do gens and leave, or kill and hook.
Totem Easter egg hunt:
35-45 totems per map instead of any gens. Only one contains the key to either door, no hatch or chests, and just one surv can escape. Killer knows which totem has the key, but it moves every 20sec or so until only 5 remain. Killer kills as normal, but no moris.
Massive bp for escapee and killer, maybe shards too. Other victims get decent bp based on length in trial, # of totems, etc.
All numbers negotiable, maybe even on sliders in lobby.
No?
No game is like that. If you want a different game mode in Overwatch, you switch from Quick Play to Deathmatch. You don't switch from Tracer to Mercy. If you want a different game mode in League of Legends, you switch from Summoner's Rift to ARAM. You don't switch from Teemo to Ahri. If you want a different game mode in CS:GO, you switch from Gun Game to Competitive. You don't switch from using an AWP to using an M4.
Playing different Killers is not the equivalent to playing a different game mode entirely. It's still the exact same game mode, with the exact same maps, with the exact same objectives, with the exact same rules, with the exact same fundamentals. Changing up your abilities and the way you play does very little to make it feel like a "new game mode".
I would do a Christmas event in which instead of Gens survivors have to find 15 presents scattered around the map. The Killer has to hook a survivor to make them drop their presents.
I was thinking about a switch up how about for every two gens done a circuit breaker flips on a wall somewhere in the map maybe 2 or three and in order to continue the Survivors need to fix the breakers to continue gens. I figure once the circuit breaker is active its only visible to survivors. So the Killer can't camp it.
I mean, based on how poorly they do with the main game, our best bet would definitely be tools to make our own custom games. Then maybe we could actually talk to the developers of said custom games without them hiding and throwing up stat sheets as a defense for their constant inaction.
Not really. Almost all killers operate under the same principal. Go to this pallet and loop while the team completes gens. Very few killers have powers that actually mix that up. Prime example being Nurse. Who actually forces you to do something different.
We dont need more Game modes, Idd say we need more mechanics in the game.
It's a mild diversion to the same thing you see every single game. Considering how non-threatening it is most of the time, I wouldn't consider it a new game mode.
the only game mode i want is a legion game mode
4 killers no powers
idk how many survivors
new objective for individual escape as well as group escapes.
make it happen devs you guys are creative enough
As much as I'd like multiple game modes they have a hard enough time putting resources towards game health like bugs and performance issues for one mode.
Even certain perks require a completely different tactical approach
We’ve got to remember that asymmetrical multiplayer is still a small space, and what BHVR is doing is still unique (all things considered).
DBD is still an ongoing experiment and refinement process for them because there is no “how to make the best asymmetrical multiplayer horror game” manual.
It’s why we see BIG mistakes sometimes in this game, but also why we need to be more forgiving sometimes. They’re still working hard to perfect DBD, and figuring out how to do so. This is probably also why we don’t have an alternative game mode yet.
It wouldn't be so bad if their singular game mode wasn't so stale. Look at Friday the 13th, the way that game was designed has tons of emergent gameplay that made every match unique. There were multiple objectives to escape, you could repair the boat, it took less materials than the car and usually had an easier exit gate, but however Jason could knock it over and guarantee the 2 survivors in it die. You could repair the car which requires finding an extra item in addition to the 2 repairs, but can seat 2 or 4 people depending on if the boat spawned in, allowing multiple people to escape and while the way out was usually a lot longer than the boat, it was more safer overall. Then there's the final objective, fix the phone and call the cops, which enables EVERYONE to escape, but you have to survive the entire duration until the cops get there in which case the game functions like DBD does with Jason needing to get near the cops to prevent survivors from escaping but they can get around him.
Dead By Daylight has 1 objective. Fix generators. No difference. Sure killers may play different, but every match consists of, Fix 5 generators and escape, or maybe exit through the hatch if you're the last one left. This causes the gameplay to get stale as its always the same things again and again, while Friday certainly didn't have too much more to offer, the multiple objectives combined with lobbies potentially alternating which player is killer meant that it was usually feeling fresh, and the randomness of object spawns meant Survivor's objectives could vastly change in an instance depending on what they found, while not removing their other objectives.
Another problem with DBD is that the devs seemingly have ZERO interest in actually changing up the gameplay. They have their generators. They have the escape gate. That's it, that's all they seem to want. While I do think the game actually NEEDS some innovation, the devs don't want to innovate. Atleast not yet.
Honestly that'd be pretty cool just keep the ratio the same 4-1 to 16-4? Now question would be if as killer would they just be limited to legion or any killer be acceptable?
Identity V. Very similar gameplay model with a bunch of unique killers. It recognizes that the killers themselves do not equal different game modes, because it actually has a few different game modes.
This is one of the reasons people are so disappointed that DbD isn't doing events for holidays. Without any alternative modes, events were the only thing that shook up the gameplay at all.
You really changed my perspective by naming several games that aren't even the same genre. Bravo.
Are you next going to tell me how Trapper needs to run a Dwight over the field goal to score a touchdown?
Oh how about Nea reaching the other side of the level and you need to king her.
Claudette passed go, she'll be gettin that $200 now.
Edit: Sorry to be so snide but they really didn't support your argument.
I recognize there should be different win conditions and variables in the game other than do gen and live Agni, but killer variety is supposed to do just that when not even survivors are specialized.
They could at least give killers more unique passives if what I stated actually is the direction they want to go.
Good job missing my point entirely. Adopting a different method of approach to the same objectives, the same fundamentals, the same literally everything, is not a different game mode. At all.
You can put major spins on the core gameplay to have different game modes. That's why team deathmatch is different from free-for-all is different from capture the flag is different from king of the hill. If you go into Team Fortress 2 and play a game of Capture the Flag, and then play a game of Payload Race, would you say they're the same game mode because they both have the core FPS aspect of shooting people?
Until a few months ago, they didn't have a playerbase big enough to successfully launch a new game mode.
Someone already pointed out that CoD is just different variations of shoot #########. You're the one being obtuse.
What would be the objective in this different game mode? 2v8? That would be a shitshow.
Protect the president? The game can barely keep you from tunneling one person to death if you really wanted to.
Imposter? One survivor is secretly working with the killer? That's just pub games.
1v8 like F13th? That game certainly isn't dead now. And suffered the same gameplay loop of one person chaining together hidey holes while everyone else escapes.
As much as I would like more, a lot more, I feel that they have a tough enough time as it is with the one mode.
Have to learn to walk before you can run!
The game is over 4 years old
Their excuse is it would "fracture the community"... That's just laughable.
The truth is that they simply can't make a game mode without there being A MILLION different bugs in there. That and it's hard to quantify the profit gained from the mode and it's worth.