Read more Dead by Daylight ➜ https://deadbydaylight.mgn.gg
random theory I’ve had that I’ve felt in my gut for a while, supported by a little data.
http://www.twitch.tv/ScottJund
source
Is Dead by Daylight's Audience Shifting to Competitive? – Dead by Daylight
Read more Dead by Daylight ➜ https://deadbydaylight.mgn.gg
no no no please no. we already see what 2v8 does to the que times, we cannot have a ranked mode. the game is not big enough to split the players anymore. please.
Skermz is the only casual content creator for DBD that I watch 100% of his videos. They are always a good time, his content is the best for the game imo. That being said, I kind of got tired of the takes from casual DBD streamers/content creators. They almost always swing in one direction and don't represent the game as a whole.
I think that's most people though, we want to watch someone having a good time with the game. That can be hard to do when SBMM exists, streamers have to sweat and it makes it apparent they don't have a good time most of the time. So I think the game is becoming harder content to enjoy watching because of how sweaty games have become.
My take on 2v8 is people are spending more time playing the game (no MMR so its wacky and fun) and less time watching people play.
I can only give you a look into what my experience has been like. I have 17 people on Steam, that I used to regularly play the game with. Of those 5 remain.
Most of us used to regularly watch online content, especially during the pandemic. All of the more casual players were the ones that started the game with me, when it came out. The newer players who joined during the pandemic, were all younger and more competitive (actually played in two tournaments with them).
All but two of the casual players I know, have quit the game completely for different reasons. Me and the other two are nearing thirty and life has simply changed for us to the point where gaming often doesn‘t fit into our daily schedule, due to all the additional responsibilities of adulthood. And when we have free time on our hands, we‘d rather game than watch other people do it, so I ended up only watching a handful of streams over the last 2 years.
I‘m sure this is not completely representative of what‘s happening, but I‘m sure we‘re not the only friendgroup this has happened to and I have no idea how popular the game is among people in their early twenties or teens.
Try comparing ohtofu to himself. Friday scrim nights vs any other day
Wym fix it let them boys get some shine shessh
Inb4 Tru3 stans and himself use you seeing his DBD viewership decreasing as a personal slight…
BHVR thanks for sbmm and hidden mmr (hidden or not – please give us the old rank system at least as a test!)
And I think maybe people like to watch sweaty or comp games – I really like to watch it, but they don't necesarily want to play sweaty games – I don't like playing full meta on neither of side.
I won't play DbD either if all the game has to offer is sweating, "comp" mindset. A game should be a game, and if someone wants competition, they should start playing team sports or games that actually have competitive modes
It's not a party game anymore. There isn't much carry potential, if you're a good player playing with a casual, inexperienced, or simply bad-at-games friend, you're not gonna win many matches at all once the weak link is taken out and the game snowballs.
If you're that good player, with casual friends, or simply dealing with the pain of soloQ, the options you're pushed towards are either stop playing because your casuals friends stopped due to 100% loss rate, or start playing in coordinated group with other good players. Leave the game, or sweat.
The fun police has been doing the balancing. Party games shouldn't be balanced. There should be fun unbalanced things on both sides.
I've been saying DBD will trend this way for years now. As games get older, the smaller things like flashlight saves or zany builds will always get less appealing. There's only so many times you can run a No Mither build before it loses it's appeal. Winning, however, doesn't really ever lose its appeal until you're just burnt out on the game. Winning always gives that boost of dopamine and that goes for any game. Whether its a killstreak challenge you've set for yourself, just escaping the killer, or whatever goal you decide for that match.
A problem is also the fact that DBD has a LOT of bloat. A consistent stream of new players is what combats this trend, and with how old DBD is now and how much stuff there is in the game, it makes it less appealing for a new player. A potential new player can look at DBD and see 50 different $10 DLCs and just compare it to The Sims and go "nah, i dont wanna spend that much money for the full experience" then never bother trying the game. Most new players come into DBD because of friends that already play DBD, kind of like a cult ironically.
I don't think this trend is a problem though. People still love blaming this trend (that happens to every game) on BHVR for implementing MMR, or nerfing perks in such a way, etc etc but really, its just the players who are playing are getting older and have already invested so much time into DBD that they suffer the sunken cost fallacy. Also the fact that watching people who are good at something is just REALLY satisfying and makes you want to try and get better.
I don’t play DBD because of how competitive and sweaty it has gotten. It use to be scary, fun and nostalgic for me smh
Wow they put in competitive matchmaking systems and people are surprised
The game has been getting sweaty since SBMM, and it's been getting progressively worse ever since that
who would've thunk that a game with 2 parties playing against each other would become competitive?
just a very weird dude
lez go
Ever since 2v8 all i get is sweating matches map off every match and syringes out the wazzu
1) "Casual" Dbd content isnt an endless pool. All the creators named have been doing this like 5+ years by now. Its not a knock towards the "content" per say but there comes a staleness in watching dbd as opposed to actually playing dbd. Also the amount of streamers/creators has grown exponetially over the years. The content has quite frankly been squeeeezed.
2) Dbd is the ultimate skill ladder game. Players with 1500 hrs are still considered noobs lol. We may not be "better" at the game now than before, but there are more ways to "being good" at the game. Doesnt surprise me that competitive content has increased
(Footnote) I dont think the games gotten anymore sweaty than before. The first 30-60 seconds on 90% of the matches i play still begin with survivors derpin around lol. i watch WAY less dbd content than i did say 2 years ago. i basically only watch dbd content for understanding how new perks/killers work
yes
Someone may have already said this in the comments, but a lot of the casual streamers content now just feels the same. Random perk builds, meme builds, what's the big update coming. I've watched a lot of this stuff for a few years now and it doesn't interest me anymore.
I haven't watched the competitive stuff much either, sounds like it's just tunnelling 1 person off but I may be wrong. Maybe it offers some interesting tips though rather than "here's a video of dead hard value" for the 40,000th time
No it’s not
2v8 was horrible when i play trapper and am matched with a wraith… usually get 0-2 kills anytime we are matched. Gens fly and everytime we try to chase, it feels like we are playing against 2 comp teams in solo que killer
switched to survivor for the rest because the matches were very rough for most killer pairs (unless the killers were duo que)
Comp is wayyyy cooler because you see skill
It's definitely something I've noticed in my games too, and it's rapidly getting me less involved with playing or watching content. The game has gotten sweaty, and it's effecting even the "for fun" streamers, actively stressing them out while they try to play making it an uncomfortable viewing experience. The number of times I've gone to try and watch Otz only for it to really just look like he's miserable has been way higher than previous years. And it feels the same when I go to play. I can only handle doing like three matches in a row before I'm done for the night now. I used to be able to play for hours as a way to unwind. Now if you want to unwind you just eat pavement for four minutes while you get WS'd the whole time.
The problem for me then becomes the fact that I think Comp DBD is just… it's stupid. The game is way too buggy and poorly designed for me to ever take comp DBD or the people who aspire to play it seriously. I don't think it needs to be in a brain-dead spot where no one takes it seriously, but the balance we had before between some matches where the players took it seriously to matches where people just wanted to try goofy shit has all but evaporated. Playing the middle ground just leads to frustration, and the content creators who frequent that middle ground playstyle are having a hard time. I wouldn't be surprised if 2025 really pushes a lot of bigger names out of the scene and onto new games.
It’s because as a survivor now you have to play crazy good to win.
I’m telling you killer is wayy too easy.
Competitive in DbD is the funniest thing ever, the amount of randomness involved in a "Competitive" game is a joke, this game is casual and should always be seen as casual
Agee…
Hi Scott.
For me after 2-3 years I just lost interest in dbd and moved on to other games. I would stick around and hop in streams here and there but I'm at the point I'd rather watch something not dbd related.
I feel like it’s entirely possible that MMR might be driving people to sweatier players because people are trying not to lose and learn the most optimal play style instead of watching meme builds. Almost no one runs meme add ons or builds in my games
As a regular viewer and player of dbd, I think I just cant keep up with the amount of brain power required to play it doesn’t feel satisfying anymore.
Its the snowball effect that true has talked about before.
idk if this might be a useful sidenote Scott, but I've noticed youtube recommending me new/rising DbD content creators much more frequently as of recent, and coincidentally most of their content is mainly "meta perk builds". Last week alone I stumbled upon four new content creators.
I’m more interested in comp and streaks. I’m kinda bored by casual content, where there’s pretty much no stakes in the matches.
Skill Issue Bum ass player
I think you are onto something because I've found myself bored of more causal, "lets try a fun build" type dbd ccs, and its not because i've stopped liking their content or anything but it's just…all been done before? it's not as entertaining. And despite comp games all relatively going the same (ie, hard camp 1st hook until 2nd stage, most likely tunnel them out), it's still just fun to witness the team aspect of it all and to see what's considered efficient as well as the little techs that can be replicated in solo (like crouching billy/demo or dropping an item to trick a phasing spirit).
I'm rambling but i'd be interested to see what the data for hens is considering he's sort of in the middle of comp and casual, as well as 'lesser' known twitch comp streamers like momoseventh/angelz/haunt, etc who i don't really 'like' per se, but i enjoy their comp/sweaty streams more than someone causally playing and not paying full attention
In my personal perspective, DBD is still watchable. But playable? Depends what side you prefer. At least how I look at it.
Are we just gonna forget that Dual/Tri-Streaming began this year or..? These numbers are being poached by their own channels. You're misdiagnosing the viewer numbers because they aren't all on twitch anymore.
What website does he use to check the stats tho
I enjoy watching you on Twitch but with your stream I get 9 consecutive ads. With others I watch, I get 2 and maybe a banner ad. That makes me click off
Genuinely Scott, as somebody outside of dbd now after playing and hitting red ranks for 7 years… I think the correlation is that the community is significantly smaller now. The hardcore audience stayed.
I don’t think it’s at the fault of the creators. I don’t think it’s necessarily bad game design. It’s just an old game man and interest is waning.
If BHVR dropped a DBD 2 with a whole new cast, new base gameplay mechanics, more ways to chase ect. I think they would once again capture the entirety of the horror gaming audience’s gaze. Power to the players still playing but even the trailers for original killers don’t perform as well as they used to
again?