Dead by Daylight | Survivors vs. Killers

Dead by Daylight is an asymmetric multiplayer game, meaning each side plays by entirely different rules. Four Survivors work together to repair five generators and escape through exit gates, while one Killer hunts them down and hooks them to sacrifice them to The Entity. Neither side shares the same win conditions, controls, or perspective, Survivors play in third-person, while Killers play in first-person.

As a Survivor, your primary objective is to power the exit gates by repairing five generators scattered across the map, you need five generators repaired to open the exits and escape. You are vulnerable and slower than the Killer, so avoiding detection through stealth, using the environment as cover, and coordinating with teammates are your biggest advantages. Getting caught and hooked three times means you are sacrificed, so managing your health states, Healthy, Injured, and Dying, is critical to staying in the match.

As the Killer, your goal is to find, down, and hook Survivors before they can repair all five generators and escape. You are faster than Survivors in open space and can see scratch marks and blood trails they leave behind, giving you tracking tools that a Survivor's third-person camera cannot counter completely. Each Killer has a unique power, from the Trapper's bear traps to the Nurse's blink ability, so learning your Killer's power is just as important as understanding the basic chase and hook loop.

Survivors rely on communication, resource management, and map knowledge to outmaneuver a more powerful opponent, making the role feel strategic and sometimes nerve-wracking. Killers are more individually powerful but must manage their time across the entire map to stop four players at once, making the role feel like a constant balancing act. Both roles have a skill ceiling that takes many hours to master, but the fundamentals of each side can be grasped within your first few matches.

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