Dead by Daylight is getting a top-to-bottom graphical and visual overhaul in The Realm Beyond. DbD will continue to feature the same asymmetrical horror multiplayer gameplay our players love but with a visual upgrade beyond what we have seen before.
As part of The Realm Beyond project, and as players and fans inch closer to Dead by Daylight’s 5th Anniversary in 2021, the game will continue to look and feel better than ever with new content drops released at the same time as our regularly scheduled updates.
To get more insight into this ongoing project, we spoke to Product Manager Joris Four and Lead Level Artist Stephanie Hellin about what players can expect with each new update.
What is the Realm Beyond project When is it coming
JF: Between now and Fall 2021, we will be introducing a series of free updates to our visuals, graphics, lighting, animations, and more for players on PC, Xbox One, PS4, Nintendo Switch, and Stadia while also building up to a Dead by Daylight experience for the next generation of consoles.
This project also includes the ongoing support of Cross-Play and Cross-Friends, released earlier this Summer, and future quality of life improvement to help expand and unify the Entity's Realm.
Players can anticipate even more environmental elements in the Killing Grounds, resulting in more immersive maps. Dead by Daylight characters will have more realistic modeling and texturing, related to and informed by each character’s lore. Also, we’ll be making improvements to the lighting and VFX for a more engrossing experience. Blood in the moonlight looks a certain way—these details matter!
What is this specific update about?
SH: For this first major update, we focused on updating Springwood and Yamaoka Estate. We gave a lot of attention to the lighting to make the experience of roaming these maps more realistic and engrossing. Individual rooms will now be more distinct, with each serving a specific function. This allows players to better orient themselves in a Trial, while also filling the maps with environmental storytelling details for you to discover. On top of that, the team has also made some significant changes to both the visuals and interaction animations of Generators and Chests.
What are your favorite improvements in this first update
JF: It’s really cool to see environments that have been in the game for years be reworked in a way that makes them stand out even more. Personally, I love the new Killer Shack in the Yamaoka Estate. It’s amazing to see a whole new building in that map, and it really feels unique.
SH: I love that we can make the realms of Dead by Daylight even more immersive. For me, this is especially apparent in the Boiler Room of Badham Preschool.
What do these updates bring to the players
SH: These updates aren’t just about making the game more visually impressive, they’re also about making you feel like you’re truly running for your life from a blood-thirsty Killer or chasing down a group of pesky, elusive Survivors. These changes aim to make Dead by Daylight more terrifying and intense than ever before.
What was the most challenging part of this update
JF: There will always be hurdles when reworking over 4 years of live content. It’s important to strike a balance between improving the players’ immersion and overall experience while also maintaining and staying true to the game they love. The Realm Beyond project is about improving Dead by Daylight while maintaining the same fun, exhilarating game of deadly Hide & Seek that our community expects.
There are also multiple platforms to consider, especially now with the recent introduction of Cross-Play and Cross-Friends. We want to ensure that these visual improvements are noticed and beneficial to all DbD players, no matter what platform you choose to play on.
What’s next?
JF: With each future batch of updates, we will be slowly but significantly be updating the visual fidelity of Dead by Daylight’s maps and characters. We’ll be communicating about what you can expect in the next update once we are closer to release and have something to show our community.
SH: All of these elements and upgrades come together and emerge with an emphasis on mood and ambiance that serves to make the game more engaging for both Killers and Survivors.
It’s an ambitious year for Dead by Daylight, and with our undying player base and our talented team of developers, September 8th marks the beginning of a new era, and we couldn’t be more excited to exceed ourselves.
See you in The Fog.
The Dead by Daylight Team.
