Dead By Daylight

Dead By Daylight is more than just a thrilling survival horror title; it’s a game of strategy. Being popular with hundreds upon thousands of players, eager newcomers have flocked to this game and delved into a world of hurt due to a lack of preparedness.

It’s nothing surprising, as Dead By Daylight is a complex title with a lot of number-crunching and all sorts of game-altering effects going on in the background, so there’s no better time for any tempted players out there to brush up on some of the most common mistakes made by Survivors, and what can be done to circumvent them.

1 Running And Crouching At Inopportune Times

When the game starts, the best thing to do is to run. Whether hunting for a generator or looking out for the Killer, it’s far wiser to get those feet moving and be on the move. Of course, running isn’t always opportune when trying to be sneaky. This is where crouching comes in handy.

The problem is that some new players tend to run around when a bit too gingerly, while being overly cautious with crouching. It’s always preferable to bolt toward a hooked ally, as it potentially means less time for them to bleed out into the second and/or final stages of being sacrificed.

2 Tampering With Hooks Carelessly

David King sabotaging a hook surrounded by The Entity

With a toolbox or Jake Park’s Saboteur perk, a hook can be temporarily sabotaged and rendered useless. This comes with a downside, however. The damaged hook will be revealed to the Killer.

As fun as it sounds to go around destroying as many hooks as possible, they do respawn fairly quickly, so it would be a waste of time and resources to tamper with whatever a player finds. Plus, it’s going to attract the Killer’s attention! Is a nearby Killer going to sacrifice a player? There may be a chance to cause some collateral damage, giving the captured Survivor a bit more time to wriggle free.

3 Healing Too Frequently

Using a first aid kit on oneself comes with a healing penalty, meaning it could deplete entirely before a full heal is accomplished. While it’s nice to use them to heal other players, newcomers tend to do that when the Killer is too close for comfort.

Healing an ally forces a player to stay still, making for an easy target, unless they wriggle away. If that happens, it probably means they don’t want to be healed. Sometimes, they’ll crouch and stand repeatedly in response, likely to say they’re up for it. Then there are the quick-time events during healing. Botching those may bring the Killer over, so moving away to a new location when too many mistakes happen is always wise. If the enemy is approaching, it’s not worth endangering anyone.

4 Running Alongside Other Players In A Chase

While there are advantages when it comes to sticking together, one of the worst mistakes a novice can make is to run beside another person in a chase. That could mean two easy kills or sacrifices.

If a chase is underway, the solution is a simple one that newbies must always keep in mind: split up and run in an opposite direction. Some daredevils rush towards the killer and bolt around them to dodge their attack, though this is best left for long-time players with sharp reflexes, and is rather tricky to perform. Not that it’s stopped some fresh-faced hotshots from trying, and failing…

5 Overusing The Flashlight

David King shining a flashlight on a Killer in a police station

Flashlights are situational tools, and the closest thing that constitutes a weapon for the Survivors. If one’s aim is good, it may blind a killer for a few moments. It hardly works when waving it around aimlessly, and nothing good will come out of shining it on anywhere but in the face of a Killer, thus depleting the battery.

A popular tactic is to shine it on a Killer who is stunned by, or attempting to destroy, a palette. A quick shine from a torch after that is a great strategy. Alternatively, shining it at a Killer’s face when they are carrying a Survivor may save them from a potential sacrifice.

6 Badly Timing Dropping Palettes

Palettes are scattered across each map in various potential locations. Tossing one down over a doorway or passage for added defense when working on a generator may be tempting, but this is a really unwise tactic that, sadly, too many people seem to do.

Since dropping palettes will cause a loud noise, this action is best left for chases. When a bad guy is trying to head through, dropping that nearby palette can stun them for a few precious seconds before they either run around it or smash their way through.

7 Hyper-focusing On A Single Generator, Or None At All

The objective for the Survivors is to repair the required number of generators to power-up the doors to exit through. As tempting as it may be to keep working away on one, newcomers may end up putting themselves in serious danger if they do. Made too many mistakes? That’s going to notify the Killer. Is a generator blocked by the Shroud? Find another one, rather than wasting time by waiting around.

On the other side of the coin, some inexperienced players either don’t look for generators, or simply can’t find them. It’s good to keep an eye out for its tall lights that can be spotted from afar. If the lights are flashing or slowly blinking, then that means they can be worked on.

8 Choosing Perks With No Synergy

David King surrounded by perks in a shadowy menu

Perks can give Survivors either slight, stackable boosts to their stats, or unlock vastly helpful abilities. Some perks, however, just don’t work with others whatsoever, or are rendered useless with specific items.

For instance, certain perks that give a slight speed boost will temporarily inflict the ‘Exhausted’ de-buff, meaning no other speed-boosting perks can be triggered as a result. Bringing the ‘Saboteur’ perk with a toolbox that has increased sabotage speed is a questionable choice, and David King’s ‘No Mither’ perk is terrible with ‘Inner Healing’ because the ‘Broken’ status prevents any healing effects from working, making it a total waste of a slot.

9 Wasting Time With Hooked Survivors

There may be a time when a hooked ally must be rescued when a baddie is near. Spending too much time running around or overthinking things will only result in the victim potentially entering a second-stage of the sacrifice, or even dying.

If a Killer hits and injures a Survivor, the big baddie will take a few moments to recharge. Those who are successfully rescued will get a brief burst of Endurance, so anyone who’s been recently liberated could jump in front of a killer to nullify their attempts at downing the rescuer. Just don’t forget that the Endurance state will disappear during a rescue attempt.

10 Opening The Gates Too Early

Okay, the power is on, and the gates are ready to be opened. Problem is, not everyone may be ready to escape. Some Survivors may be hooked or in a chase. Opening a gate triggers the Endgame Collapse, giving everyone a limited amount of time to escape or get rescued before they’re automatically killed.

When powering up either of the gates in a map, they can be charged up 99% of the way there. That way, it’ll only take a split-second to finish the job, while giving everyone as much time as possible to tie up loose ends. And the more people who successfully escape, the bigger the point payouts is.