Could we See Stephen King Properties on ‘Dead by Daylight’?

With Sadako from the Ringu franchise about to hit Dead By Daylight next month, everyone is looking toward what the future may bring, or more importantly, who the fog will be dragging in to terrorize us next! Whilst every DBD fan has a personals wish list of villains they would love to see enter the game, there is one individual  who has a few wicked ideas up his sleeve, and more importantly, the power to make them happen. 

Behaviour Interactive’s Dave Richard sat down with Harrison Abbott of Newsweek recently, to chat about the new expansion and how they managed to bring such a heavy hitting character into the game. One of the key points was how they picked up the Ringu IP.

“We always try to chase the original Intellectual Property (IP) wherever possible. Sometimes that can’t happen, and we have to take another approach to give players the content they want (such was the case with the Nightmare on Elm Street DLC, which ended up being based on the 2010 remake)”

Yes, DBD fans did manage to enjoy Freddy Kruger and Springwood Elementary, however the characters and sets were from the 2010 remake of A Nightmare on Elm Street. The character went through some redesign recently, with his abilities being completely reworked. However, for Ringu, the DBD team REALLY wanted the original franchise rather than the American Ring remake. Does anyone really want Naomi Watts running around in their video game?

“Our intention was always to go after the Ringu license. It could very well have been the American Ring, but Kadokawa were interested in continuing the original story and having their characters be part of the Dead by Daylight universe… Japan is actually one of the countries where Dead by Daylight is most popular. In December, it was even nominated among TV Asahi’s Top 100 favourite games of all time according to Japanese players, which is a very high honour in our country. For several years, I had been thinking about having Sadako participate in Dead by Daylight. It’s a very popular title in Japan, and that’s why I wanted her to be the first horror queen from a Japan license to participate.

Abbott Mentions in his article about what a big deal it was grabbing this previous IP. 

In case you were wondering, Kadokawa is the rights-holders for the Japanese Ringu film and the original novel upon which it is based.

While the name might not be familiar to western audiences, the media conglomerate is an absolute powerhouse in Asia, where it is involved in everything from the publishing of books to film production, game development and magazine distribution… While the company has certainly has a lot of memorable IP — especially for anime fans — Ringu is arguably its most famous export in the United States.

However, with the IP in hand, the chapter current on test realms and the actual game hitting platforms next month, what is next? Richard’s is hoping that Stephen King may fill the book void in the mist. 

“In the past, we have mentioned some franchises that we want to work on. Of course, we’re a big team and we share a love for horror video games, movies and even novels. We all have dream collaborations and iconic moments that we’d like to replicate in Dead by Daylight.

Personally, I am a giant fan of the Stephen King universe and the villains from his books. I would love to be able to do one of his monsters at some point, I think that would be amazing. It’s such a great universe and there are so many different possibilities we could explore.”

Imagine what fun they could conjure up with Pennywise running around, or Randall Flag and Annie Wilkes. In fact, imagine a Shining set piece with Jack Torrance as the Killer, Wendy as the survivor and The Overlook Hotel as the map! Seriously guys, take my money all ready…make this happen. 

Sadako, known in-game as The Onryō, is joined by new survivor Yoichi Asakawa who was first introduced in the original 1998 Ringu film as a boy but his story is pushed further here with him being a full grown man.  The new chapter will be available on 8th March across Steam, PS5, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Epic Games Store, Windows Store, Nintendo Switch and Stadia. Enjoy…

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Who would you pick to be in game from Stephen Kings multiverse? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram! Or head over to our Fans Page to join like minded horror fans. You can also carry on the convo with me personally on Twitter @Lallen_UK

Stay in, Stay Safe, Love Horror!

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