Is Identity V A Dupe To Dead By Daylight?

Four survivors, one killer – a popular, yet stereotypical dynamic. 

Keeping the killer at bay while you and your three buddies try to repair machines that will unlock an escape gate – now that’s where it gets interesting.

This form of 4 vs 1 gaming has been prevalent in games such as Secret Neighbor, Deceit and White Noise 2, but they’ve come from the OG game that started it all: Dead by Daylight. One game is in comparison to them since its release and this game is known to be almost a replica to them in various ways: Identity V. 

Is Identity V eerily similar to Dead by Daylight? We’ll find out. *drum roll*

Dead by Daylight – Behaviour Interactive Inc.

The first game that introduced this gaming style would be Dead by Daylight back in 2016. DBD – as players commonly refer to it – is a multiplayer survival horror and action game where one player plays the role of the Killer and the other four players play the Survivors. 

The Survivors are responsible to repair five of the seven generators located throughout the map in order to power up the Exit Gates and escape from the Killer. As the Survivors repair the generators, skill checks come up as you do this. Make sure to complete these skill checks properly because if you fail them, the Killer will be alerted and the repair progress diminishes. Multiple Survivors can be at one generator as this speeds up the repair progress. 

The Killer is in charge of hindering the Survivors’ escape plan. You will patrol the area and damage the generators as you find the Survivors. Ways to find the Survivors would be the noise alerts from the failed skill checks from the generators, healing skill checks from one Survivor healing the other and rush actions such as vaulting through windows or other items.

Players are able to choose if they want to be a Survivor or Killer and as they level up in either role, skill points are accumulated to beat the odds of escaping for Survivors or finding the players faster for Killers. 

Identity V – NetEase

Two years after DBD’s release, Identity V is born or IDV for short. With a gothic art style and mysterious storyline, this 4 vs 1 is an asymmetrical survival horror game strictly on mobile devices. You start out as the Detective who receives a mysterious letter being invited to an abandoned manor to investigate and search for a missing girl as you get closer to the truth of the manor and the people that came to it.

There are 39 Survivors you can choose from, each with their own skill set. As you play each survivor, you accumulate talent points, which will help increase your experience called Persona. To get these points, you and three other players decode five cipher machines located on the map. Once you find these machines, a message pops up to refine the cipher machine and you must do this correctly, otherwise, the Hunter will be notified of your location and your decoding progress hinders. If a Hunter is chasing you, you can stun Hunters by finding objects laying around the map or laying down pallets that inhibit the Hunters’ moving capabilities.

Likewise, there are 25 Hunters you can pick with a multitude of skills each Hunter possesses. They are tasked with patrolling the area, destroying the cipher machines, injuring, chasing and catching the Survivors and tying them to a Rocket Chair to make sure the Survivors don’t power up the Exit Gates to escape. You must make sure that once you tie up a Survivor, you have to watch out for other Survivors as they will attempt to untie the Rocket Chair and save the injured Survivor. Another way to catch Survivors is if they are healing each other or vaulting windows or ledges.

Is Identity V similar to Dead by Daylight?

The short answer: yes. Though Identity V is only a mobile game, the developers did use Dead by Daylight as inspiration. Ways Identity V is almost identical to Dead by Daylight are the methods of escape (the generators in Dead by Daylight and the cipher machines in Identity V), being MIA for too long (the crows circling around your head in both games), obstacles (to kite – save lives), traits (Survivor/Killer perks in Dead by Daylight and Survivor/Hunter Traits in Identity V), character background and gameplay in itself. 

Both games are vastly different, however. The aesthetic of Identity V is more macabre and gothic, whereas Dead by Daylight gives more of a realistic point of view. The main thing that sets both games apart is that Identity V has a well-written storyline. Though the multiplayer 4 vs 1 component is there, that’s not the only factor. The 4 vs 1 style brings in clues and other tips to progress the game’s storyline as a whole, whereas Dead by Daylight is solely focusing on the 4 vs 1 aspect.
With everything aside, players love the games as it is. Regardless of its uncanny objectives and eerily similar gameplay, you get to experience the best of both worlds. Dead by Daylight gives regular updates (and Identity V as well) to ensure the servers are running smoothly and efficiently while ensuring the players are enjoying themselves in the process.