Dead by Daylight is getting a Zombie Mode, and it flips the usual goal of a match. Instead of sacrificing Survivors to The Entity, the Killer wins by infecting everyone and turning the whole team into zombies. Behaviour Interactive shared the early concept during the game’s tenth anniversary event in Montreal, framing it as one part of a larger plan to add new ways to play over the coming years.
Quick answer: Zombie Mode pits four Survivors against one Killer who must infect and transform every Survivor into a zombie, while Survivors carry vaccines to cure infected teammates before the infection takes hold. It is still in development, and no release date is currently confirmed.
How Zombie Mode changes the win condition
In a standard Trial, the Killer chases Survivors, hooks them, and sacrifices them. Zombie Mode keeps the four-versus-one structure but rewrites what victory looks like. The Killer’s objective is to infect every Survivor and use their power to transform each one into a zombie. The match is built around the spread of infection rather than the usual hook-and-sacrifice loop.
That single change shifts the rhythm of a game. Pressure no longer comes only from being downed and carried to a hook. It comes from the infection itself, which makes the Killer’s reach feel persistent across the whole team.
What Survivors can do with vaccines
Survivors are not defenseless against the infection. They are armed with vaccines that can cure infected teammates before the infection fully spreads. That gives the team a clear counter-play loop. Spot an infected ally, reach them in time, and use a vaccine to pull them back from turning.
The tension lives in that timing. A team that coordinates cures can keep itself intact, while a Killer who isolates targets can let the infection finish its work. Only a handful of specifics have been shared so far, so the finer rules around vaccines and infection timing are not yet detailed.
1v1 Mode and the rest of the roadmap
Zombie Mode was not the only new mode shown. Behaviour also teased a 1v1 Mode, alongside a wider set of plans for the game’s future. The reveals together point to a push toward more varied match types beyond the core Trial.
The bigger items on the roadmap include a major visual overhaul planned for 2027 and a set of modding tools. Here is how those pieces line up.
| Initiative | What it includes |
|---|---|
| Zombie Mode | Killer infects and transforms Survivors; Survivors cure with vaccines |
| 1v1 Mode | A new one-versus-one match type |
| 2027 visual overhaul | Improved character models, upgraded environments, dynamic weather, more voice work for original characters |
| Curated mod tools | Tools to create and share custom maps, modes, and other content |
The modding tools are described as curated, which means players will be able to build and distribute their own maps and modes within a managed system. Plans call for those tools to roll out over the following year.
Release timing for Zombie Mode
Zombie Mode is in development, and there is no official launch date for it yet. The reveal was an early look rather than a release announcement, so a specific window has not been confirmed.
Note: Behaviour typically details new content through its developer updates and public test builds ahead of a live release, so concrete timing and full rules for the mode would usually surface there before it ships. Until then, the infection-and-vaccine loop is the clearest picture of how the mode plays.
For a game that has spent ten years built around one match formula, swapping the sacrifice for an infection is a meaningful change of pace. Pair that with a 1v1 Mode, a 2027 visual refresh, and player-made content tools, and Dead by Daylight is clearly aiming to widen what a match can be rather than just adding another Killer to the roster.
