The Trapper finally gets love. The first killer in Dead by Daylight is getting significantly stronger and will be able to carry more traps soon.
Although the dust around the Cenobite and the mysterious disappearance of all his voice lines has not yet settled, the developers of Dead by Daylight are already revealing their plans for the future. In a new “Developer Update”, they spoke about upcoming changes and revisions. The oldest of all killers is also on the agenda. The Trapper will be significantly improved.
What was said? In the latest Developer Update, there are a number of adjustments for many killers. Numerous addons are being revised and unclear formulations are gradually being removed. Addons should now clearly indicate how much they influence something and reveal exact numbers instead of cryptic descriptions such as “moderate” or “drastic”.
What is changing for the Trapper? For the Trapper, it’s primarily “Quality of Life” adjustments that will make him a better killer, giving him more control over his traps and the game. The most important changes are:
- There will now always be exactly 6 traps spawning on each map. Previously, this could be a random amount between 4 and 6 traps.
- The Trapper will soon be able to carry 2 traps as a base and will also start with 2 traps in his inventory. By default, there will always be 8 traps available.
Some of his revised addons have already been introduced:
- Tension Spring: A bear trap will automatically reactivate after 2 seconds once a survivor frees themselves from it.
- Trapper Sack: All bear traps are already in the Trapper’s inventory from the start. Bear traps can no longer be picked up.
This gives the Trapper more options and also more tactical depth when selecting his addons.
What is changing for the Spirit? The killer Spirit is one of the best in the game. This is because she can use her ability almost unseen, forcing survivors to guess whether the Spirit is moving or not. However, this often felt more like a gamble than a mind game. Therefore, survivors are being given more options to counter the Spirit:
- Every survivor within a 24-meter radius around the Spirit will now hear the phasing sound, allowing them to determine the direction.
- The footsteps of the Spirit now kick up some dust while she uses her ability. On clean surfaces, this is easy to spot, while it is more difficult in grass and other obstacles.
Numerous perks will be improved and adjusted
The best perks in Dead by Daylight have been relatively unchanged for years. Little has changed about the classics, mainly because other perks are falling far behind expectations. Dead by Daylight wants to change that – and is overhauling a large number of perks. The most important changes include:
- Vigil: The regeneration rate has been increased from 10 / 15 / 20 % to 20 / 25 / 30 %. Additionally, the bonus now also affects other status effects such as exhaustion or obliviousness.
- Babysitter: The rescued survivor now receives a small speed boost for 4 / 6 / 8 seconds. The duration of the aura reading ability has been doubled.
- For The People: The “Broken” status effect now lasts shorter, from 110 / 100 / 90 seconds to only 80 / 70 / 60 seconds.
- Hex: Retribution: In future, interacting with any totem will make survivors “Oblivious”. The duration of the aura reading ability will be increased to 15 seconds.
- Hex: Blood Favor: This perk no longer has a cooldown and will also trigger when survivors are hit with special attacks, no longer just during standard melee attacks.
- Hex: The Third Seal: Special attacks will now also trigger the curse on survivors.
- Hex: Thrill of the Hunt: The perk has been adjusted so that the slowdown of the cleansing also affects blessing (a forthcoming, controversial feature).
Developers implement a “Kill Switch”
In addition to all these adjustments, the developers have now implemented a “Kill Switch” for pretty much all objects in the game. This basically means that the developers can directly disable individual features without relying on a patch.
If, for example, a certain bug arises—such as through the combination of two perks with a particular killer—the developers can temporarily disable one of the perks until a bug fix patch is ready. This should prevent players from having to deal with exploiters of bugs for days or weeks before a fix comes.
If an item, character, or perk is disabled by this Kill Switch, it will be clearly visible in the game.
When will the changes come? Although the developers haven’t provided a specific date for these adjustments, it is expected that the first changes will appear in the upcoming “Mid Chapter” patch. That could be in about 2-3 weeks. For many players, this should bring more variety and especially end the reign of terror of the Spirit – thus leaving the Nurse on the throne.
What do you think about these changes and new features? Good, sensible plans? Or do they ruin the game?
