Tunneling in Dead By Daylight Explained

Even in a timeless hellscape like the Trials of Dead By Daylight, there are certain unwritten rules of decorum that everyone is obligated to follow. It may be a terrifying game of cat and mouse between a vicious Killer and helpless Survivor, but that doesn’t excuse bad manners. We’re not savages, here. To that end, allow me to explain one of the most common breaches of etiquette in Dead By Daylight: tunneling.

Major Trial Foul, Dude

In a game of Dead By Daylight, the Killer’s goal is to, of course, knock down Survivors and place them on the sacrificial hooks. Since a Survivor can only be knocked down and hooked so many times, it stands to reason that the fastest way for a Killer to win the game is to focus exclusively on a single Survivor at a time, to the point that you only attack and hook them until they’re dead. This is what’s known as “tunneling,” and to do so is often considered a show of bad sportsmanship. 

Tunneling in Dead By Daylight Explained

While there’s no explicit rule against tunneling in the game, it’s a bit unfair to whichever Survivor was unlucky enough to be targeted first. To attempt to hook a Survivor at the expense of all others effectively prevents that Survivor from playing at least half of the game, and that’s just no fun. 

A similar practice to tunneling is facecamping, in which a Killer hooks a Survivor and stands right in front of them until they die. Again, there’s no rule against this, and it is technically a good way to ensure a successful sacrifice. Of course, if you’re standing right there, the other Survivors likely won’t attempt to rescue their comrade, which means, again, you’ve effectively locked them out of playing the game. 

Remember, your goal as Killer is to hook all of the Survivors. Focusing exclusively on one, in addition to being in poor taste, will give the others plenty of time to fix generators and leave you in the dust. When you’ve hooked a Survivor, be a polite murderer and go look for someone else to torment. Maybe it’ll make your game a little harder, but think of how good it’d feel to hook all four Survivors at once.

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