Quality of Life Suggestions to maybe Improve the Game: Part II
Hi, I'm Ventamy. I'm someone who actively talks about this game with friends and would like to share some of my ideas with others to get their opinions. I have talked about some suggestions in the past, being Killer Tags, Killer Power / Attribute Info Revamp, and Killer / Survivor Journals, which can be read in the link below if interested.
@VortexVentamy said:
I don't know a better way to start this than Dead by Daylight needs genuine quality of life features added for the whole game; these features shouldn't necessarily affect gameplay. There are three suggestions I would like to propose, ranging from easy to implement to difficult to implement.
Background
I have played Dead by Daylight for around 6 years now (since Deathslinger) with around 2.8k hours according to Steam. My killer to survivor game ratio is roughly 2:1. With that in mind, I will be mainly talking about killer however these changes are intended to help both sides as survivors could also use this info to help themselves get better at the game. Additionally, changes are intended to help players new and old, even though they might help newer players more.
QoL Suggestion One: Killer Tags
I believe there should be a set of "Tags" in the game to better introduce new killers to the player, whether that killer released in the past or for a PTB. These tags would be a better replacement for the old "Difficulty" rating each killer had, taking the same spot as well.
Things like Stealth, Range Attack, Dash, Information, Status, Mobility, and Swap are some obvious tags I could come up with.
Just to clarify some tags;
- Swap would refer to killers that are able to swap their power like Clown, Nightmare, or Dracula.
- Status is in regards to killers such as Plague, Nemesis, Krasue, etc, but could possibly also apply to killers such as Legion. There could possibly be two tags to include killers that add traditional status conditions (such as Hinderance with Clown) so maybe there should be a Status and Effects tag to separate them.
- The difference between "Dash" and "Mobility" is Chucky would be Dash only while Clown and Xenomorph would be Mobility only.
Each tag could have a line of text explaining what they mean when you hover over it, simple stuff like;
Stealth — This killer's power allows them to hide their terror radius
Change — This killer is able to change their power
Information — This killer's power gives them information on survivors and or their objectives
I could continue but I'm sure you get the picture.Overall, tags would be a great way to introduce killers to players by giving them a simple idea of what their power would be like.
QoL Suggestion Two: More In-Depth Killer Power / Attributes Info
Have you ever wondered what the cool down is to a specific killer power, only to find out it is not in their description and you have to look it up on wiki.gg? But you are worried you can't even trust it because sometimes the numbers may be wrong! (I have had this happen to me in the past with Ghost Face's power recovery).
There is a lot I want to get into here so please bear with me for a moment; in Dead by Daylight there in the Killer Bio screen which gives you lore on the killer as well as some info regarding their Attributes (speed / terror radius / height) though I believe this screen is other wise underutilized.
I have talked about these topics in the past and I highly suggest checking them out as they have proper examples while going more in depth on the topic (as well as having nice edited images) but I will summarize them here.
Killer Power Revisit:
In the Loadout screen, the power description is fine I guess. However over the years there is a ton of info disregarded for space, important info at that, which is left for both sides of the player base to hunt down in the wiki. I believe the Bio screen needs to be revisited to essentially import the in-depth wiki stats to better teach newer players or remind older players about a killer's power in depth to range or numbers.
If we have a screen dedicated to complex teaching of a power (could even have an "Advance" button to hide the precise numbers as a state between just learning and learning in-depth) then we can decrease the size of killer powers in the loadout so the text can actually fit nicely.
Killer Attributes Revisit:
Currently, attributes describe a killer's Movement Speed, Terror Radius, and Height; however it completely disregards changes to these attributes with a killer's power during a trial. An easy example I can think of is Shape, with essentially three modes with different TR and Speed I feel like that should be shown in his Attributes screen. Additionally, we can further show the movement speed change a killer might have during their power such as Spirit, Lich, and Animatronic.
I have visual examples of how this can be done in the post I linked above.
Overall, both these changes would teach new players about killer powers in depth as well as act as a quick reminder / confirmation on the numbers regarding a killer power (cool down, timers, %, etc).
QoL Suggestion 3: Survivor / Killer Journals
Probably the most bold and time consuming addition to the game which I feel would vastly improve everyone's time playing the game. It is no surprise that this game can be unfriendly towards newer players, with a vast array of killers and perks in the game it can be hard to learn them all. Essentially, Killer Journals (or Survivor Journals) acts as a constant tutorial for players, giving them more tips and tricks the more they play / face a specific killer.
I hope this idea serves as a fun and informative in-lore way to teach players about the killers in Dead by Daylight. Flavor text could be included to give more personality to the killers / survivors that might be writing. I will be referring to this QoL Feature as Killer Journals but it might make more sense to call them Survival Journals as I imagine a survivor is writing this information.
How this system would actually work;
Each time you play or face against a killer, one out of how ever many pages (I imagine a minimum of three across all killers) will unlock and give you a bit of beginner info regarding that killer.
The info will mainly be text but could include a drawing / photo of the power for a better example (say a survivor standing still to avoid Skull Merchant's beam, or a survivor dropping a pallet on Singularity showing that it breaks on his head when he teleports to Slipstreamed survivors).
Let's use Wraith as an example; Wraith is a fairly simple killer so I imagine he might have 2-3 pages worth of information to unlock.
After playing as or against him once, a page would unlock. This page might say "While he may be Cloaked after using Wailing Bell (italics due to being his power name), you can still listen out for his breathing! Additionally, watch out for his shimmer. Note: the farther he is the harder it is to notice him." Then there can be a photo of Wraith walking towards the camera invisible to showcase the shimmer effect with a sticky note saying "The bell is a warning!"
A second page unlock might be something along the lines of "The Wraith gets stunned longer while in cloaked! He may try to avoid pallets because of this, so don't try to waste them!"
A third page could talk about how he is much faster in cloak and right after uncloaking gains a burst of speed.
Some things in here might be obvious, but that is okay! Third page I came up with quick so if you have a better idea feel free to say, but I feel like this is a great example of what Killer Journals have to offer in regards to both survivors and killers. It will help survivors by telling them what to look out for while helping killers know what to think about; in this case getting stunned while in cloaked!
Out of all the suggestions, I believe this one is the best long term as it can include lore, flavor text, and acts as a continuous guide for players. However, it is also the most difficult and would take a long time to implement. But better start something like this sooner than later! Maybe reach out to creators to help form these Journals as they are essentially mini-guides.
Overall this feature would be a perfect addition to Dead by Daylight, adding charm to learning how to play as / against killers while also feeling rewarded for going against / trying out a new killer regardless of the outcome of the match.
Conclusion
I feel like many players can agree there has been some rough moments this year, however there were also a lot of good moments I feel like we sometimes forget about. One thing I would like to note is how recently there has been some confusion between Quality of Life and Gameplay Changes. Pallet Density is a major gameplay change, not a quality of life feature. Scratch marks, while affecting visuals of gameplay, is a Quality of Life feature as it pertains to accessibility.
Dead By Daylight should focus on proper quality of life features for the game as a whole, such as what I have talked about above. I hope to see some of these possibly show up in a future midchapter, as that is where I feel like they would be best introduced.
In the end, I will enjoy this game as I have been, I just hope more players might enjoy / care for it as much as I have. I wish I had a larger voice to share these opinions and really get feedback on these features but for now I may potentially scream into void with only a chance to be heard. If you are reading this, enjoy your day, and good luck in the fog.
TL:DR
Killer tags to give an expectation to trying a new killer, rework Attributes and add onto Power Descriptions, and look into a mechanic that acts as a continuous tutorial. My words may be ignored and passed by like a leaf in the wind.
To summarize Part 1;
Killer tags would teach players new and old what each killer power does; such as range, stealth, etc. For killer powers there should be a new page for wiki-level information and the attributes info should involve changes from killers power as well to better share changes in terror radius / speed / height. Last but not least, Killer Journals would give tips and tricks against killers, unlocking more over time as you play against killers multiple times as a sort of evolving tutorial.
Background
I have played Dead by Daylight for around 6 years now (since Deathslinger) with thousands of hours in the game. My killer to survivor game ratio is roughly 2:1. I like to write and go in-depth, so I suggest reading the titles of each suggestion before reading anything else. Last time a talked about things mainly regarding killer, however this time I would like to talk about some more general stuff which might not have as large of an impact as Part 1 had. These suggestions are regarding Tomes, Cosmetic Organization, and Cosmetic Store Missing Themes.
QoL Suggestion One: Tomes
As many of you may know, the importance of tomes has significantly died down since quests were introduced. With that, the lore has been pushed back to a little button at the bottom of the screen. Now what I will be suggesting may be big and unlikely to happen, but I want everything I say to be taken with a whole lot of salt because I do not know the workflow nor how long it would take for these suggestions to be implemented.
Tomes like a Book
For starters, the way lore is organized is fine, though I kind of wish it was visually themed like a book much like how the Grimoire was, flipping through pages and seeing the artwork fully. I feel like that would add a lot of character to reading the lore. In addition to this, you can still leave the plain text with black background for easier reading as many other games do.
Tome Cover Art
Second, finding the character you want to read about can be difficult. There is no easy way to figure out which tome is about who without opening and closing tome after tome. With that, tomes should have cover art much like how cosmetic themes do in the shop. This would give tomes personality and tell you the themes and who the lore is about just from visually looking at it. The tome number itself can move to the corner of each tome to still signify the number it is, like comic books.
One Glyph Challenge per Page
Finally; I really liked the idea of completing challenges to unlock lore as I felt that added a sort of connection to the story. But I think the best way to reimplement this is to simply have one challenge associated per lore page. These challenges should exclusively be the glyph challenges as that feels like a fitting way to unlock lore. Personally, I would also like the option to repeatedly try the glyph challenges for possible self-imposed challenges instead of limiting it to one time use. This would also be a fun way to bring back visceral canker-like challenges.
Summary
To summarize, making Tome lore flip like books would be more thematic and adding cover art would help players find the lore, or challenges regarding certain killers or survivors, that they want to look at. Also reintroduce needing to complete a challenge to unlock a lore page; but its just one glyph challenge per page.
QoL Suggestion Two: Cosmetic Organization (Grouping)
There has been a topic on how to give legendary outfits more customization, and I think the simplest and most intuitive option is Grouping. Simply put, double clicking a cosmetic should open a side panel to select different versions of that base cosmetic. Think about all the recolors in the game and how condensed the cosmetic menu could be.
This system would also allow variance between legendary outfits without necessarily needing to make a whole new linked set; think Soma's deeprift recolor replacing Trevor. Maybe not the best example but it could allow linked sets to be able to mix and match with limitation, as it is a different character with different cosmetics.
Cosmetic-Set Toggles (Changes to head or body parts, backpack or mask).
One suggestion I think about often is the ability to add toggles to certain linked outfits, such as giving the Yellow Rabbit cosmetic the ability to wear the mask which would add a robotic voice filter to Matthew Lillard. Not necessarily a full set but just a head piece change.
Killer Power Cosmetics linked to Killer Weapon
One final thing I would like to quickly mention is I think Power Customization should be linked to Killer Weapons; I feel like that is the simplest and easiest way for all killers and their powers to change without needing to lock cosmetics into a set, like with Houndmaster being our only example.
Summary
To summarize; Group recolors and use this system to have legendary outfit variance, allowing for mix and matching legendary cosmetics limited to that character. Also tie power cosmetics to the weapon of each killer thank you.
QoL Suggestion Three: Cosmetic Shop Collections
It is no surprise that Dead by Daylight has a lot of cosmetics, which is cool! However, it is disheartening to notice that many cosmetics are actually quite hidden and hard to come by.
Where is Mech Collection
Take the Mech Collection for example, try looking it up in the shop and you will not find it. That is because it is a Killer Weapon collection. Due to it not being in a set, it doesn't get the privilege of being in the Collections tab. That makes me sad. Update: Ugly sweaters gets to appear in the shop… why can't other single-piece cosmetic collections?
The store being reworked was absolutely necessary though, and I absolutely love how it is right now. But I do believe there still could be some improvements. First off, I would like every collection to be featured in the store, even if they aren't full cosmetics. I feel like the collections tab SHOULD have every collection, no?
Show Every Collection
I really do mean every collection though, even the time limited ones such as Tricks and Treats and Anniversary (Twisted Masquerade) collections. Even if they are not available to purchase, it would still give people the information like oh I would like to get that during this time of year. I bring those ones up specifically because we are in Bone Chill right now and I cannot see their collection.
Expired / Retired / Unavailable Collections Tab for collections out-of-season
These could be organized under different tabs in the Collections tab itself, being the usual Featured page with the rest of the collections below as well as a separate tab called Expired Collections or Time-Limited Collections.
If there are any other missing collections, please mention them.
Also as a quick suggestion here; I really wish there were iridescent shard sales on outfits, especially older ones. But I understand why there isn't because.. yeah.
Conclusion
Dead by Daylight is a game I enjoy very much, but I wish there was more time spent working on stuff outside the trials. Though credit where credit is due, the team does a fantastic job and I couldn't fault them. Some amazing Quality of Life changes I can think of involve the prestige changes, shop rework, scratch mark colors, and gamma settings being in the game itself. While these changes are great I still wish to express my own opinion on further changes I would like to see come in a possible midchapter, with the hope they are at least considered.
Overall, I did feel more passionate in Part 1 regarding changes to how information is given as I feel like those would have a greater impact to the game as well so I implore you reader to also check that out. But I also feel like talking about the suggestions above is also important, especially in a game with lots of cosmetics and a recent fall in lore.
Please reply below about any further suggestions, issues, or arguments you have with my suggestions. I will happily read them all.
TL:DR
Tomes should have cover art to tell players who is involved, Cosmetics should group (recolors) and would allow legendries to have other outfits, and the cosmetic shop should have all collections; I'm thinking about you Mech Collection.
Please read part 1 for killer tags, killer power descriptions, and killer journals (tips and tricks).
Comments
Right, but that doesn't mean it should not be talked about. Quality of Life outside of the trials is just as important to the game itself, adding character and charm to it. Sure, it might not be as important but that's like saying they should not have modernized the menu recently because the game is bad right now. They could do other stuff regarding the trials themselves but there are other parts to Dead by Daylight that are important, such as UI.
Additionally, I suggest you read the first post where I feel like those are much more important to add than these. The suggestions listed above are something I just think would be nice. Again, voicing something not many players may voice but still would benefit almost every player. That could be subjective but still.