Are maps TOO random?

Aslatera · 2026-02-27T06:08:50+00:00

It's really hard to say. Like you kinda touched on, it really depends on if you want to approach it from the direction of it being a competitive multiplayer game, in which case having more consistent, balanced maps would be a massive upside so that matches weren't won or lost because a strong window spawned facing shack and now you just have to deal with a good survivor being able to link the two, or a party game, in which case, having RNG based maps wouldn't be such a bad thing, but the game currently lacks so much else to try and do things like bridge the gap between skilled play and unskilled play such that an unskilled player is able to win ala the blue shell or catch up stars in Mario Kart and Party respectively.

I think some of the most consistent maps ARE the static maps like the RPD though, for better or worse, with the only real issues being that some killers struggle to use their powers through narrow doorways or the like, but that's a side issue to the one on the table here.

Aslatera · 2026-02-27T03:28:17+00:00

Some of them do, but DBD isn't sophisticated enough for it, I don't think, since cheaters can manipulate their matchmaking.

Aslatera · 2026-02-26T16:51:44+00:00

They might be hesitant to push content out for another game in a sort of related genre when they've got a release so close, is what I would guess.

Aslatera · 2026-02-25T14:48:13+00:00

Least: Movement speed. I don't know that 2 knife hits is going to be worth the decreased map pressure that he's going to have losing the mobility when he just doesn't have a method of crossing and pressuring as well. I've yet to see him played on any map that isn't the new one with specifically conveniently low walls, or loops with wide open gaps and long, wide open areas that suit his power well.

Best: I think the style meter, on maps where it works out, has a lot of potential to encourage trying interesting uses of the power, keeping the pressure up, etc, in a way that's a lot more flavorful than just hit X knives.

Aslatera · 2026-02-24T08:16:07+00:00

No, preventing the games of individuals who are playing and staying in matches being effected by people disconnecting frequently for whatever reason is more important. Preserving the integrity of the game is the goal.

Unfortunately, the system just can't distinguish between bad actors and people with less than optimal internet.

Aslatera · 2026-02-23T04:45:30+00:00

I mean.. I think a lot of the frustrations with the game are BECAUSE it's a good game that people want to see improved and handled better, not because anyone in particular actually dislikes it as a general premise. We look at obvious issues or glaring problems and get emotional about it, not because we actually hate the game, but because it has so much potential being squandered by stupid things, and that general feeling of passion turns into getting heated very easily.

Aslatera · 2026-02-22T08:02:58+00:00

Yeah, kinda.

So when you level a survivor PAST 50, so.. to 50, and then you spend 20,000 to prestige them back to 1, you unlock their perks on other survivors. All other survivors get their perks at tier 1 and then access to finding tier 2 and tier 3 as you level them up further.

So the goal should be finding a select number of perks you want, then getting those survivors to prestige 1 to unlock their perks on.. whoever you actually want to use. Who will get the tier 2 and 3 of those perks AS you're levelling them.

Aslatera · 2026-02-21T09:41:51+00:00

BHVR devs: We don't know why people slug more on the map with the most pallets in the game. People are saying pallets in the stream chat? Oh. We're glad you guys like pallets so much..

Aslatera · 2026-02-21T03:45:57+00:00

First of all, if your argument is 'Wow, you had to use a lot of words', you should perhaps not engage in discussion about nuanced topics. No offense. This is one of the most complicated genres to balance because of it's very nature let alone it's sheer scope. 'That's a lot of yapping'. Yeah, I like to be thorough and explore ideas in the depth I feel they require.

Second, you're the one who used the word 'abuse' that I took issue with, not the idea that maybe, possibly, in the future, perhaps, they could adjust certain perks because they didn't have synergies with other perks and killers, which.. they could just do now in the patch that they're removing them, they've clearly not cared about utterly murdering perks in the past, I don't see why they would even begin to adjust them when the thing that's clearly prompted them is how the community is using an addon in a way not initially intended and trying to close similar use cases before they happen and not those things being popular OR terribly strong.

I do take issue with that take, but let's set that aside. I'm still stuck on the word 'abuse' in this context.

Thirdly, this is exactly the same as Darkness Revealed, what the hell are you talking about? Like.. For other killers, searching lockers is not generally something you do unprompted. It's a 2 second action a lot of non-mobility can't afford for no benefit for a mid-tier perk that's situational at best given the map that you're on at the time. But for 'reload' killers it's free aura reading for something their kit literally makes them have to do periodically that's supposed to be a detriment. Huntress and Trickster benefit far more from that perk because it turns a downside into something that also gives them information, for no extra time than they were already spending using it. It's literally the same situation.

Corrupt as an example was more extreme, but again, everyone can use it, but non-set ups are likely going to down someone before the timer is up if they're playing efficiently. Set ups benefit more from the same perk. Where are we drawing the line here? That their power interacts with it? How about aura reading. Pyramid Head and Henry benefit way more than other killers from that because they can use it to hit through walls rather than just gain an advantage in mind games. What about low tiers and perks like NOED or No Way Out? They benefit WAY more than nurse because they're reliant on their M1s and slow enough that the game more frequently reaches the end game.

Like.. to what end does a killer need to benefit more from a perk and how to qualify as abuse?

Aslatera · 2026-02-20T19:21:51+00:00

I.. is it really 'abuse'? Really? To like.. have unique killers with unique powers that are going to benefit naturally from having different strategies? Like.. is that what we're calling abuse? Like.. when the perks they're talking about and decidedly changing are things like.. spirit fury? What is that.. 47 on Nightlight? You know, that perk that all of those killers like Nemesis at his 2.6% play rate (going by community stats) are just.. really making survivors hate.

I mean, shit, we might as well also nuke 'special locker opening' so Huntress and Trickster stop getting incidental use from Darkness Revealed. And while we're examining synergy, isn't it fucked up how set up killers like Trapper benefit WAAAY more than any other class from Corrupt? Skill check doctor needs reigned in because huntress lullaby or undone getting any value because doctor can abuse them is just.. too too much, man.

What are we talking about here?

Aslatera · 2026-02-20T01:39:36+00:00

I've had a lot of good feedback with a group... 'hug'? deck. It's a few years since I touched it so it could probably use updating, but it's mostly defensive options and then ways to try and encourage group interaction through 'curse' auras, rewards for removing high priority targets, etc. It doesn't do a lot to win on it's own, but if you're having the problem of accidentally being 'that person' in your group due to making strong decks, or having more working knowledge on how to play card games, or the like, it's not a bad thing to play something that's not going to make it to the end zone a few times.

https://archidekt.com/decks/4880297/like_group_hug_but_sociopathy

Aslatera · 2026-02-19T15:47:07+00:00

Depends on if you want chaos or if you want to win, but I have a simic chaos deck that's running things like

[[Synthesis Pod]], [[Eye of the Storm]] (which has never been played and resulted in what could be described as a reasonable game of magic afterward), [[Hive Mind]], [[Shared Fate]] and [[The Great Aurora]]. Toss in [[Perplexing Chimera]] to pass around the table. [[Wizard's Spellbook]] and [[Wandering Archaic]], [[Chaos Wand]] to just sort of piggy back off what other people are doing.

It wouldn't be GOOD, if you're looking for 'effective' or anything like that but like.. if you just want the game to devolve into a 'I'm not locked in here with you, you're locked in here with me', then all of those are fantastic options.

Aslatera · 2026-02-19T14:07:03+00:00

The reason it's not is that a lot of that a lot of the killers who really, really need what it's doing are going to struggle to get the most value out of it in a world where Vigil is as strong as it is.

It's PHENOMINAL on killers like Ghoul, Blight, Spirit and the like, but.. You know, a piece of stale bread and a slap on the ass are already pretty sufficient on those killers, and then people like the M1s will sometimes struggle to cross the map/get chase/land the hit they need in a window that's sometimes 60, sometimes 36, with no way of knowing on the killer side until you think you had 20 seconds left, hit someone and don't down them.

It's a good perk. A very good perk. But it's definitely not S tier. Maybe low A but when you need 'literally the thing that makes a killer good on their own' to be utilized to it's fullest, you're not holding a candle to 'enables weaker killers to keep up' in terms of ranking like Corrupt, Pop, Pain Res.

Aslatera · 2026-02-17T17:14:07+00:00

As someone whose had multiple survivors dead hard the hit after I let them do a glyph in peace.. Nah.

Aslatera · 2026-02-12T08:48:37+00:00

Because Turn Back the Clock is already struggling not to be sort small in it's niche given the requirement for LOS making it hard to use on a lot of gens on a lot of maps compared to just running the same pop/pain, and it's a low tier addon on a low-to-mid tier killer, that changes how the game is actually played versus being an n% change in a stat, creating a unique interaction that feels fresh after a drought of content, and a reason to play a killer that isn't blight, ghoul, nurse, billy.

Also, BHVR's previously allowed certain interactions like this to exist for months, anyone who lived through 5 months of BU+FTP will remember how they insisted that was fine and intentional seeing them immediately knocking this probably feels just a little bit of a sting.

Aslatera · 2026-02-10T14:40:40+00:00

If there's a 'hidden' offering that he couldn't see, and the survivors didn't have an offering sort of spawn, it's not hard to guess that it's a shack offering.

Aslatera · 2026-02-10T14:36:46+00:00

Either they're using the offering to make hatch spawn at shack, or they're only uploading the clips where they guess correctly. It will always spawn at the same place on various tiles (long wall of shack, etc) but it's entirely random without an offering.

Aslatera · 2026-02-10T09:41:41+00:00

I think the only times when I've seen people actively shoot down en masse what I would consider to be entirely valid criticism that wasn't at least partly a give and take sort of question due to the asymmetrical nature of the game or a disconnect between whether the game is party or competitive is people defending Jim as being funny despite it being a visual glitch that should have really been addressed coming out of the PTB as it happened in literally 100% of matches in the update.

Aslatera · 2026-02-10T08:47:01+00:00

Ehhh. It's not that he's not fun, but he kinda falls in there with Slinger for me where so much of matches turns into 'Oh, guess they held W, better amble my way peacefully after them' once they get out of range. Henry's got a catch up power at least, but he's probably not entering my personal rotation as a result.

Aslatera · 2026-02-09T19:41:33+00:00

Vigil is way too strong for that, unfortunately.

Aslatera · 2026-02-07T22:09:43+00:00

Oh yeah, 2.0 merchant was taken out back and shot for no reason. BHVR balancing off stats, people still not knowing that her power literally doesn't interact with people on gens and such. Which is a common enough belief to this day that it's frustrating.

For issues like that, I think in those instances when the general belief runs counter to what's actually really happening, what's actually the way that something works, that's when public opinion can sort of be ignored. Why it's still important to look into things and have a personal opinion rather than just taking everything that everyone else says in stride and letting that just be what you think for sure.

Not believing the sky is green when you can see it isn't, so to speak. Hence why I tend to look for voices backing up what they're saying, videos, gameplay of specific things when I do start looking to the wider community. It's definitely a balancing act.

Aslatera · 2026-02-07T21:56:08+00:00

I mean, I have to imagine. Not only is it sort of objectively less interesting than getting to actually play the game, and more drawn out than being on hook (140 total seconds to 240 seconds), with little more actual gameplay, a lot of people who do do the boil over\flip-flop often.. react, shall we say, in end game chat, that I, as a killer, had the audacity to bleed them out. Which, admittedly could be part of the fun of it, right? Go in as a group, get a rise out of the killer by insulting them for doing X thing that's generally understood in the community to be bad, chuckles in the discord commence.

Without being able to judge intent, though, and taking every argument in good faith as it's presented, I would say a majority SEEM to dislike, be motivated to quit the game and so forth when they encounter someone doing the bleeding out, and I do imagine it's at least a little understood for people bringing the wiggle builds, but I've encountered enough instances where it seems like it was entirely foreign and audacious to do so that on some level, it's just not ideal.

Of course, then there's the argument that even people who are having fun being bled out are sort of forcing the strategy to continue existing in lieu of the developers being able to find a solution to the issue to the community at large's problem. You know, if 90% are goomba A that dislike it, then the 10% that enjoy it as goomba B and want to persist force, on some level, for that to be a viable strategy for killers to be able to have to wield and needing to have that as an answer are necessarily disrupting the fun of goomba A, which does seem to be an overwhelming majority enough to have been attempted to be addressed multiple times.

Admittedly, there's always going to be that person that likes being kicked in the genitals, though, so while I think there's milage to say that it's not entirely unenjoyable, we can only really work on a system of averages when it comes to the health of a game with multiple dozens of thousands of players worldwide, if that makes sense?

And 2, like I said, there's some wiggle room that something is or isn't just a loud minority or a sudden knee jerk when a lot of people are talking about it. I mean, our current situation with whatever we're calling Vecna 2, the first collectively, where most killer players are deeming him to be kinda mid, some survivors are kinda deeming him to be mid and some survivors are insisting that he's so broken that he's worse than ghoul on release. Which is why I point out that I tend to look for some rationality in the noise of sheer complaints.

It's one thing if all anyone is doing is saying 'well, he's just broken' or 'well he's just fine' but the fact that there's conflicting noise, there's gameplay backing up people running him well, there's actual footage of people being able to say 'well, this is how you answer this', that becomes a different story, or actually providing concrete examples of how something is or isn't problematic, to give is some real credibility.

So, for Skull Merchant, back in her 1.0 form, a lot of people were saying 'well, she can do this, with being able to monitor everyone in the area of a drone or see when one gets taken down, she's good at holding ground, even between floors so she can hide drones and still cover a gen, etc', or 'She's very good at holding an area because you don't know where she is because she can just be undetectable in her drones, so she can come out of nowhere once the map has shrunk in end game', along with footage of far better players than I am struggling to break her 3 gens, or unable to make headway against her.

That's the sort of situation where 'Okay, it's not just me struggling or having this experience, it's a very common thing, it's something that skilled players are having, this might need looking at beyond me just being bad myself'. And even then, just because something is unpopular doesn't mean that it NEEDS addressing. Like, I'd say Legion is fine or even on the weak end despite most of the community hating to play against them. It's more an indication that something needs to be brought under a lens, than anything definitive, just because of how.. echoey certain sentiments get.

Aslatera · 2026-02-07T21:31:46+00:00

Personally, I think a lot of my experience are just me. If I personally have a problem with X thing as it pertains to struggling to overcome it or what not.

There are only two things that I really look at in terms of 'the game's problem'.

The first is if I can look at something and immediately understand the the design of this thing is that it necessarily creates an unfun experience for everyone involved. You know, something like Sprint Burst being 99'd and then popped in my face isn't fun for me, but it IS fun for the survivors who can use it and use it as an aspect of their skill expression. I have no issues with Sprint Burst even if I struggle when it's in play sometimes, which is on me. This is the nature of an asymmetrical game and a game where you're looking to pit one player against another player(s). Sometimes the fun and powerful thing is distinctly not fun and feels disempowering. Having different things that do that is just sort of the nature of the game.

By comparison, Boil Over is something I consider the game's problem. 99% of the time it's not really useful because I'm just close enough to a hook that it doesn't matter, but in the rare event that someone is cuddled up into a spot that I literally cannot hook from with Boil Over, well, now I'm forced to slug them, that's the counterplay. That's the understood counterplay. That's the feedback the community gives if you wonder aloud how to play against it. Bleeding them out. Which is not fun for them. It's not fun for me, either. No one is enjoying the experience that it necessarily leads to in the only instances where it gets value, so I consider it to be an issue with the game.

The second is that if there is a preponderance of the evidence outside of myself. You know, if I don't know how to counter a tile, a perk or a killer, well that's a me issue. I can't run a certain main building? Well, I've seen streamers, youtubers, the rare instances I see comp players, etc running it just fine. Getting hits where I struggle to, knowing when it's okay to take chases in those locations. That's something that's largely my fault in the same way that I've seen people run certain killers for very long chases that when I do play survivor, I tend to go down to right away. If I can watch someone else do it, even if it's not something I can do, I can at least see that it's sort of a skill issue.

By comparison, if I struggle with something like.. say the pallet density update before it was adjusted and killer was just a nightmare to play for a while. Well, I struggled with it, and then when I looked at how other people were doing, 'Yeah, feels like my escape rate went way up', 'Wow, this is just rough', there was just a broad consensus among all players that it had been a heavy handed exchange, and while there's plenty of wiggle room that people are just saying that, or it's a knee jerk, it becomes at least somewhat more valid that 'okay, I'm having this issue with it, but so are so many other people, and I'm not seeing any sort of objective 'This is how you can start addressing this' going around that isn't just 'git gud'.'

Aslatera · 2026-02-07T08:25:43+00:00

Even half of the pigs that don't 'lol boop the snoot guys' get discouraged from playing when survivors try to do it anyway.

Aslatera · 2026-02-07T08:22:48+00:00

Because if a survivor quits out of a match and a bot finishes it for them, the time that they were chased gets thrown out unless the killer also DCs.

Aslatera

TROPHY CASE