So why would I ever play Nemesis over Demogorgon?
I genuinely want to know. Why would I not pick Demo over this Killer?
I know it's a bit of a cheap shot to just dismiss a new Killer as a weaker/stronger/whatever version of an already existing Killer. Most Killers usually have enough of an identity to be slightly different from similar Killers to the point where they would suit a different playstyle or appeal to different players.
Nemesis, though? I can think of no feasible way that he isn't just Demogorgon, but worse in every possible way.
First off, the whip. The whip is definitely more similar to Shred than any other ranged attack in the game. It is short-range and not really meant to be a ranged attack, more to get hits during tight loop scenarios where an M1 attack just won't cut it. There are certain advantages Shred has over the whip, and advantages the whip has over Shred.
First, let's look at the advantages Shred has over whip:
-More than twice the base range—11 meters as opposed to 5
-Destroys pallets and walls more quickly—2 seconds/1.6 seconds with Barb's Glasses as opposed to 2.5 seconds
-Does not have to earn the ability to break pallets and walls
-Has a shorter miss cooldown—2.25 seconds/2 seconds with Mew's Guts as opposed to 2.5 seconds
-Has cheap addons that shorten miss, hit, and pallet cooldowns substantially
-Has a vastly larger hitbox
-No restrictions on looking up or down
-Has much less slowdown, thus being much better at zoning
-Isn't a 3-hit down
Now, let's look at the advantages whip has over Shred:
-Will hit over pallets and windows assuming you don't hit the pallet instead
-Will hit over small walls once every 30 years
These might sound okay on paper, but the fact of the matter is: The first advantage is meaningless when Demogorgon can just pre-charge and Shred the Survivor before they vault or pallet drop with his comparatively massive range, and the second works on like 2 loops per map at most.
You trade distance, easier hits, zoning, faster cooldowns, addons, and need to hit a non-contaminated Survivor an extra time in exchange for an over-wall ability that is outshone by Shred's speed and range.
Shred has many, many huge advantages over the whip that its very mild over-wall capabilities just cannot compete with. Shred is pretty much just objectively much better.
Let's look at the other part of the power: Portals, and zombies.
Well, one of them lets you move across the map at high levels of mobility wherever you choose should you take the time to set them up, grants short bursts of stealth, has reliable, consistent tracking once used, and can even generate stall should Survivors get off gens to dismantle the ability
The other one is two slow walking Clown bottles that you have virtually no influence over, can actually be used against you should the Survivors decide to eat the contamination and not vaccinate to deny you mutation progress, and have mediocre tracking that is further hampered by their slow and unresponsive AI.
I'm not even going to bother comparing the two. Portals blow zombies out of the water. And portals aren't even the best to begin with.
Nemesis is giving me huge, HUGE Trickster vibes because of his sheer lack of identity. Trickster is just a training-wheels version of Huntress, designed to be easier to play and less punishing to mess up with, but in exchange has much less stuff he can do, has a much less interestingpower, and is overall vastly weaker viability-wise. Nemesis, on the other hand, is a more risky, more difficult version of Demogorgon who has to earn his power over time, but instead of being better, he's worse. His power is just a gimped version of Demogorgon's in every conceivable way.
I'm not saying Nemesis is bad or low-tier. When he has to compete with the likes of Killers like Pig, Legion, Trickster, and Myers, he's much, much better than what's normally fished out of the trash bin. But with the way this Killer's power is right now, you might as well paint the words "JUST PLAY DEMO" in bright neon colors on his chest.
Nemesis's power has no identity. It is greatly outshined viability-wise by other, similar Killers, and ultimately is just far less interesting and nuanced than it should be.
So again, I ask: Why would I ever play Nemesis over Demogorgon?
Comments
I would like to see 2 demo puppies randomly wandering on the map xD
Nemesis wins KEKW
They'd probably be more threatening than the zombies.
You're right, i've already pointed this out in other Nemesis related posts where i extensively went over his complete design and scenarios where his power can or can't be used. Bottom of the line is Nemesis is an M1 killer with a gimmick, his whip will only work sometimes and only on Contaminated Survivors, he is a Mediocre killer compared to his Fame, it's a shame honestly and this was exactly my fear regarding making a Tyrant playable in DbD.
Personally i consider Nemesis better than Trapper and that's it. Trickster needed minor buffs, he is much better now than he was in PTB, Nemesis needs a whole rework already since he is an M1 killer with a gimmick.