It’s been a pretty wild 2023 for Dead by Daylight. Earlier this year, the developers unexpectedly released the iconic actor Nicolas Cage as a playable survivor, and recently launched the Alien chapter, featuring the terrifying Xenomorph, Ellen Ripley and a new map – the Nostromo Wreckage. They even just announced the return of the Stranger Things chapter to the game just a day prior, after the developers removed the chapter around 2 years ago due to licensing issues.
And it’s seems like the hype will just not stop, as on the 8th November, they announced that the newest killer is the horror icon Chucky. Chucky is the main villain from the Child’s Play franchise and is famous for his sadistic yet goofy behaviour. He has appeared in 8 movies, a TV show, and now Dead by Daylight.
He was also one of the only iconic horror villains that Dead by Daylight had not added yet, alongside Jason Vorhees from Friday the 13th and Pennywise from It. The cherry-on-top is that Brad Dourif – Chucky’s original voice actor – is voicing Dead by Daylight‘s Chucky as well!
The developers had previously mentioned their desire to get the licence for Chucky as a playable killer but noted difficulties in his adaptability to the game. For example, Chucky is the smallest killer in the game, which makes some mechanics – such as picking up survivors – a bit more difficult. Luckily, they seemed to find a way to make it work, as Chucky’s human form – Charles Lee Ray – appears as a spirit to help the doll do any heavy lifting.
How Does Chucky Work in Dead By Daylight?
Chucky joins Michael Myers and Ghostface as a stealth killer. He has three special abilities designed to allow him to sneak up on survivors and unleash a devastating attack. As he walks, he leaves a trail of footprints which let survivors keep track of his movements.
His first ability is Hidey-Ho Mode, which lasts for 20 seconds. Whilst in Hidey-Ho Mode, Chucky has no terror radius, and his footprints and audio will spawn across the map, tricking survivors to think that you are nearby. This ability is great to confuse survivors or to sneak up on them. I mean, it’s already easy enough to sneak up behind survivors due to his small stature.
Chucky’s second ability is Scamper. This ability can only be activated whilst in Hidey-Ho Mode. When near a vault or pallet, Chucky can scamper through it without breaking it. Again, this ability is great to sneak up on survivors from an angle they won’t expect.
Finally, Chucky’s third ability is Slice & Dice. Again, the ability can only be activated in Hidey-Ho Mode. Pressing and holding the special attack button will charge up his Slice & Dice attack. He will quickly sprint forward and attack. This is fantastic during chase, and is pretty similar to The Demogorgon’s ‘Shred’.
It’s also important to note that Chucky is the first killer in Dead by Daylight with a third person perspective. The camera is fixed behind his body, meaning that he benefits from a larger field of view than other killers.
From first impressions, Chucky seems to be a pretty good killer. He is good at stealth and especially strong in chase, where his Slice & Dice power allows him to quickly dash and swing at enemies. Most of all, his tiny size means that it’s easy to mind-game survivors around pallets and get an easy down.
Chucky’s Cosmetics in Dead by Daylight
Amazingly, Chucky will release with a cosmetic of his on-screen other half, Tiffany Valentine, or better known as the Bride of Chucky.
For fans of the franchise, you might recognise the voice of Jennifer Tilly – the Bride of Chucky’s original voice actress, when using this cosmetic. It’s fantastic that they were able to get both voice actors on-board with the collaboration.
Chucky’s Perks in Dead by Daylight
As with every new character, Chucky releases with 3 brand-new perks. Players can only obtain these perks by purchasing Chucky, or by spending in-game currency on the rotating ‘Shrine of Secrets’.
Hex: Two Can Play – This perk turns a dull totem into a hex totem anytime you are stunned or blinded by a survivor twice (and there is no hex totem associated with this perk). Whilst the hex totem stands, survivors which stun or blind you also get blinded for 1.5 seconds.
Friends ‘Til The End – When the killer hooks a survivor that is not the obsession, the obsession will be exposed for 20 seconds and their aura revealed for up to 10 seconds. If you hook the obsession, another survivor will scream and become the obsession.
Batteries Included – Within 12 metres of a completed generator, the killer will move with 5% haste (i.e. 5% faster).
Some of these perks are pretty good – notably Friends ‘Til The End – so we’ve included them in our Best Chucky Builds guide.
Other Mid-Chapter Updates: Trickster Changes and Map Updates
The mid-chapter update also adds some other minor changes! The Trickster is receiving some significant changes, such as a movement speed increase, the removal of recoil when throwing his knives and changes to his main event ability. Plus, the developers are altering many of his add-ons. If you’re a fan (or hater) of The Trickster, it’s definitely worth checking out the update’s patch notes.
Behaviour is also updating 3 maps in this patch – Mother’s Dwelling, The Temple of Purgation and The Garden of Joy. The first two maps are receiving a size reduction, whilst The Garden of Joy is having some tile changes around the main house and Killer Shack.
New Customisable Player Cards, Banners, and Badges
Behaviour has added a new screen – the Player Profile. You can now earn banners and badges to customise your player card within the player profile. Players can show off their awesome player cards during the end-of-match screen, adding some much-needed colour to the UI. So, where you can earn these banners and badges? Well, players can earn them from events, tomes and as archive rewards. I’m looking forward to next year’s Halloween event banners, I’m sure they’ll be great.
And that’s about it for this update. We’re so happy to see Chucky join Dead by Daylight’s huge roster of playable characters. He is an extremely unique killer which hopefully will spice up the sometimes-boring gameplay loop. Make sure to check out Chucky’s brutal and gory reveal trailer below!