Dead by Daylight Taught Me To Enjoy Multiplayer Gaming Again

Over the years, I’ve tended to drift away from multiplayer gaming. My fingers aren’t fast enough to keep up with the recent Call of Duty releases, and my trash-talk game isn’t anywhere close to what it once was. In my old age (I’m 31, by the way), I’ve found it increasingly difficult to get involved in the world of competitive multiplayer. Sure, I may have been a spitfire back in the day when I was playing Street Fighter 2 at a local arcade before they went the way of the dodo, but I sure as heck can’t find the time to get into the competitive spirit for Street Fighter 6.

Sure, there are still some games that I love jumping back into, like Halo 3 on the Master Chief Collection, but I find myself less and less interested in these types of games. I noticed recently, however, that a friend of mine was spending a lot of time in the world of Dead by Daylight, and after hearing his initial thoughts, I figured I should give it a try. And now, I can’t pry myself away from the screen.

Send In The Clowns

I spent some time watching people play Dead by Daylight a while back, and I thought it looked… beyond boring. What was the fun of running back and forth between a generator while getting hunted down by a Dollar General version of Jason Vorhees from Friday The 13th? And having to play with other players? No, thank you, not for me. Or, so I thought.

After purchasing a copy of Dead by Daylight on Steam, my friend Rhonan purchased me the most incredible piece of downloadable content I could have ever wished for; The Clown. As you can see from the photo above, The Clown is an absolute mountain of a man, with a wiggling stomach that bounces with every step he takes. He wheezes while standing still, and lets out the most disgusting laugh after downing a survivor. But holy shit, I instantly fell in love with this character, and I can’t my main man go anywhere else than to the top.

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I was scared to death, pun fully intended, to try playing as a Killer. After trying out a few other characters, like The Legion and The Trickster, I wasn’t sure if playing Killer was for me. But, after discovering The Clown and it becoming a meme within the inner circle that we’ve formed, I’m hooked on this particular playstyle. After honing my craft, I’ve become confident in my abilities to huck a bottle full of purple poison or an unknown yellow mystery liquid at the right moment in a desperate ploy to change the outcome of the game. And I can only keep loving what I’m doing from this point forward.

A Set Of Bunny Ears Changed My Gaming Life

Alongside a plethora of killers to experiment with, there are even more Survivors to learn about. My particular favorite happens to be Fen Ming, and it’s for the exact reason you see above. While Dead by Daylight isn’t afraid to take itself seriously, it’s also got one hell of a goofy side to it. This was once again brought to my attention by Rhonan, who pointed out that Fen Ming not only had some of the best Perks, or skills, in the game but also some of the best cosmetics. One of them happens to be a set of floppy bunny ears, sewn to the ends of a hoodie.

You see, normally this wouldn’t be worth spending $10 on. But, it instantly became the first cosmetic I purchased once I realized the ears flopped around. Yes, no matter if you’re running, crouching, or vaulting, these ears will go flying in the wind and it’s one of the most hilarious things I’ve seen in quite some time. It’s also saved my life on more than one occasion.

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You see, every game has Sweats that take the game far too seriously. They’re trying so hard to show off that they’re literally sweating behind their monitor, and it’s sad to see a community fall apart due to that. But here, the community makes it so much better. And I’m slowly learning what makes it tick, and it’s a hoot and a half.

Come On In, The Water’s Fine

One of the best memories I’ve had so far while playing DBD is the time I was facing off against a ruthless Ghostface. He was Stalking players like a pro, and I figured my time was coming soon. I see a flash of black out of the corner of my eye, and see that familiar white face, staring me dead in the eyes, but his knife was not ready to strike. Rather, he stood there, looking at me, and suddenly started crouching at a rapid speed, so I decided to join in. My ears were flapping in the wind, and I must have done something to appease him because he turned around and left me alone to repair the generator I was working on in peace.

The ears must work well as a distraction, as well. During one of my first games, I finally figured out what it means to Loop players, meaning that you keep them in the chase while you deftly escape their every attempt at bringing you down. This time, I was facing off against The Legion on the Halloween map. A set of hedges were all that stood between the two of us, but damn if I didn’t juice him like a pro, escaping his gaze and making haste across the map to avoid running into him again. I think he was too focused on my funny floppy ears to realize that I was outplaying him at that point, however.

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That doesn’t mean I’m not a nice Killer, either. I decided to give Ghostface a try since he’s one of the few Killers that can crouch. I wanted to see if I pay someone back for the nice deeds that OG Ghostface did for me. And I came across a Survivor playing as Jeff. I was in hot pursuit, and he quickly turned around and started ducking quickly. I knew what I had to do. I stopped dead in my place, gave him a few friendly crouches back, and lead him to a generator. Maybe he was a new player, getting used to the ropes, or maybe he was someone that outplayed me and my sympathy. Either way, I stuck with him to the end.

And that’s what’s made the game great for me. There’s no pressure to keep your K/D ratio above a certain percentage. There are tons of fun characters to play as and learn about, and it’s something that’s got me hooked in its grasp. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got some fingers to eat and friends to make before my next round of Dead by Daylight.