Does Surveillance feel too easy to miss in actual matches?
I've been testing Surveillance recently and I'm curious how other Killer players feel about it.
On paper, I really like what the perk is supposed to do. A regressing generator is shown in white, and when Survivors stop the regression it turns yellow for 16 seconds.
The problem I'm running into is that 16 seconds can be very easy to miss during normal Killer gameplay.
If I'm outside of chase and have time to look around, Surveillance can definitely give useful information. I've already had situations where I noticed a generator turn yellow and knew Survivors had returned to it.
But during a chase, I'm obviously focused on the Survivor, their pathing, pallets, windows, attacks, and using my power. I'm not constantly checking distant generator auras.
The bigger problem is that the yellow aura can appear and disappear entirely while you're busy.
For example, a Survivor can stop a generator from regressing near the start of a chase. Surveillance turns it yellow, but if the chase lasts longer than 16 seconds, the information may be gone before you naturally have a chance to look again.
So even though the perk technically gave you information, you may never realistically get to use it.
I'm not saying Surveillance is useless. I think the concept is actually very good, and it can be useful when you catch the aura at the right time.
But I'm starting to think it could use a small buff to make the information more practical.
Some possible ideas:
• Increase the yellow aura duration to around 24-30 seconds.
• Give a subtle audio or HUD cue when a generator changes from white to yellow.
• Give a Loud Noise Notification, but limit it to once per generator or put it on a cooldown.
I definitely wouldn't want all of these changes together. They're just different ways the perk could become a little more reliable without turning it into automatic tracking.
Surveillance also seems to have a very low usage rate compared to many other Killer perks. That doesn't automatically mean it's weak, but I do think it's worth discussing.
For people who actually use Surveillance regularly: do you find the 16-second yellow aura enough, or do you also miss a lot of its information while you're in chase or otherwise occupied?
Comments
I've only really found success with surveillance on Knight, since you can send out guard out quickly mid chase to get a survivor off the gen and refresh the regression with ruin. I can't say I've had a massive problem with tracking the auras, as I note the gens that are regressing and can do a quick sweep occasionally to see if they have lost the aura.
It's a perk that has an effect you have to keep an eye out for actively. During chase you will often be focusing on the survivor more so then gens(unless you have them in a spot where it's hard to move so you do a quick peek)
Yeah, that's pretty much how I'm trying to use it too.
Outside of chase, doing quick sweeps and keeping track of which gens are regressing feels pretty reasonable, and I can definitely get value from Surveillance that way.
Where I still struggle is when I'm occupied with a committed chase or another important action. In those situations I may only get one quick look at the gens, if that, because I'm focused on actually securing the down.
My concern is less about wanting Surveillance to give me mid-chase information, and more that the 16-second yellow aura can sometimes appear and disappear entirely while I'm busy. By the time I naturally get another chance to check, the information may already be gone.
Its one of best perks for the Knight, but people sleep a lot on it. Its also very good on Jason, with Deputy Badge.
There is a fun "snipe knight" build that relies on Surveillance and Mindbreak LOL
@OP
I love Surveillance, but yeah, they could add at least a notification whenever the generator turns yellow. I also miss the yellow aura but i see Surveillance as a macro info perk, to use as indicative to where you should pressure and where you should not.
I like it on Pig. My playstyle is hook spreading, so I'm very particular on how much time I commit to chase. If the chase is going well, then Surveillance isn't really needed. If I need to break off, then it helps me know where to go. I do have an awareness of gens my entire game, but it's probably something you need to teach yourself. Smart survivors will lead you towards dead areas of the map, so I'm keenly aware of my patrol zones and do generally notice Surveillance kicking off. It's a handy tool in my arsenal that helps me not waste time. i wouldn't complain if they upped the timer, but I find it useful as is.
I've been using Surveillance on Judgement, with Ruin, and it is arguably too strong in its current state.
3-gens centered on my hex are next to impossible for Survivors to break, even if I miss 20 shots in a row, simply because I know which generator is being attended at any given moment.
That said, I can relate to OP's concerns BEFORE the Judgement's release. Previously thought this perk needed TLC.
If I were to change the perk, I'd reduce the yellow aura to 3s and have it appear only when the generator's aura is within the killer's FOV. Maybe not a necessary change, but a QOL upgrade for those considering the perk.
I can see how Surveillance can feel more useful in certain builds or on certain Killers, especially when your setup naturally creates a lot of generator regression.
I think that is part of why experiences with the perk can vary so much, though. Not every Killer, build, or playstyle gets the same amount of value from it.
My concern is more about the perk in general use. The yellow aura can trigger while you're occupied with a chase, a pickup, a hook, or another important action, and the 16-second window may be gone before you naturally get a chance to check the generators again.
So I'm not really asking for a major power increase or automatic tracking. I just think a modest usability buff could make the perk more reliable across a wider range of situations.
Something like a slightly longer yellow aura, or a subtle cue when the generator changes state, would still require the Killer to notice the information, understand what it means, and decide whether it is worth responding to.
I think Surveillance has a good concept and can definitely have useful moments as it is. I just don't think that means the current 16-second window couldn't be improved a little.
I personally really like surveillance when paired with oppression or ruin.
Maybe try Call of Brine from Sadako.
After a kick the gen regresses a bit faster but if anyone completes normal skill checks you get loud noise notifications for 90 secs. Which happens pretty frequently.
Using this perk well you have to customize the aura colors so its easy to see the change.
Just curious what you think would be the best it going from dark to bright or from bright to dark color?
That's a good suggestion. Call of Brine's loud notifications would definitely be harder to miss.
The main reason I'm testing Surveillance right now is that it can also work off regression created by things like Pain Resonance and Surge, whereas Call of Brine needs me to kick the gen myself & has a cooldown.
I may test Call of Brine later though, especially if I find that Surveillance's visual information is still too easy for me to miss.
I love the idea of a sound queue notifying you that some generator stopped regressing. However, I feel like balancing that kind of information would require an entirely new perk. We could create a token-based system to limit how often we are rewarded with a notification.
In order to make the perk "fair for all", it will only activate when 4/3/2 or more generators are currently being worked on.
You start the match with 0/1/2 tokens; basic attacks gain 2 stacks; special attacks gain 1 stack, up to .
Any time a generator starts regressing, loose 1 stack and hear a sound queue.
Not only would this perk reward pressure spread into multiple different generators, but it would also reward the killer's base-kit skill and special attack skill. This kind of perk would pair perfectly with Surveillance, Pain Res, Surge, Oppression, Ruin.
I like the general idea of making regression information easier to notice, and I agree that a full sound-notification system could probably become its own perk.
For Surveillance specifically though, I was thinking of something much smaller and simpler — just a modest usability improvement, like a longer yellow aura duration or a subtle cue when the aura changes state.
Your token idea is interesting, but I think it starts becoming a completely different perk with its own balance questions, especially around basic vs special attacks and how many generators need to be actively worked on.
My main concern with Surveillance is still just that useful information can appear and disappear while the Killer is occupied, before they realistically get a chance to use it.
I ended up testing a few colors, and for me the biggest thing is contrast rather than simply dark-to-bright or bright-to-dark.
Right now I have the regressing generator as white and the Surveillance state as green, which is pretty easy for me to distinguish at a glance.
So I think whatever makes the state change stand out clearly from both white regression and the normal generator aura is probably best.
I myself use white to purple. Just feel like I can see that best.
it's not hard to do a 360 every now and then.
What if I want to do two 180's?