Dead by Daylight — PC action system requirements, expected FPS and crash fixes

2016 · Action · Behaviour Interactive · ESRB Mature · Metacritic 72

Dead by Daylight cover art

Official system requirements

Publisher-published Minimum / Recommended values via RAWG, retrieved 2026-08-21. Real-world performance varies with drivers, resolution and your full build.

SpecMinimumRecommended
OSMinimum:Recommended:
ProcessorOS: 64-bit Operating Systems (Windows 7, Windows 8 & Windows 8.1)OS: 64-bit Operating Systems (Windows 7, Windows 8 & Windows 8.1 or above)
MemoryProcessor: Intel Core i3-4170 or AMD FX-8120Processor: Intel Core i3-4170 or AMD FX-8300 or higher
GraphicsMemory: 8 GB RAMMemory: 8 GB RAM
StorageGraphics: DX11 Compatible GeForce GTX 460 1GB or AMD HD 6850 1GBGraphics: DX11 Compatible GeForce 760 or AMD HD 8800 or higher with 4GB of RAM
DirectXDirectX: Version 11DirectX: Version 11
Item 7Network: Broadband Internet connectionNetwork: Broadband Internet connection
Item 8Storage: 15 GB available spaceStorage: 15 GB available space

Multi-GPU FPS estimate

Estimated average FPS by GPU at 1080p / 1440p / 4K, derived from Dead by Daylight's demand tier (tier 4, Moderate (mainstream GPU)) and published TechPowerUp-style relative-performance indices (RTX 4090 = 100), retrieved 2026-08-29. Planning estimates, not benchmarks.

GPU1080p1440p4K
RTX 409020213377
RTX 4080 Super18111969
RTX 408017411566
RX 7900 XTX19312873
RX 7900 XT18111969
RTX 4070 Ti Super15410259
RX 7800 XT15410259
RTX 4070 Super1459655
RTX 40701369052
RX 7700 XT1409253
RTX 30701278448
RX 6800 XT15310158
RTX 4060 Ti1127443
RX 6700 XT1369052
RTX 30601026839
RX 6600 XT1167644
RTX 2060936135
GTX 1660 Super775129
RX 580895934
GTX 1060 6GB734828
GTX 1650583822
Intel Arc A7701187845
UHD 770 (integrated)24169

Method: a game's demand tier maps to a “GPU index needed for ~60 FPS at 1080p”; each GPU's relative index produces an estimate via a diminishing-returns curve, then scaled for resolution. Source: TechPowerUp GPU database (relative performance), 2026-08-29.

For the full hardware spec sheet and a deeper performance breakdown, see Full specs & performance data on GameFigs.

Age rating & regional compliance

GameRulePro pairs each title with its ESRB age rating and, where documented, real regulatory notes on loot boxes, skin gambling and randomized monetization. Every line is source-linked and labeled with its retrieval date. This is an educational reference, not legal advice — verify the specifics that apply to your jurisdiction.

FieldValueSource
Age ratingESRB MatureESRB rating via RAWG.io, retrieved 2026-08-21.
Verify locally. No GameRulePro-curated regulatory note is indexed for Dead by Daylight yet. Jurisdiction-specific rules on randomized monetization, loot boxes and simulated gambling vary — confirm against the ESRB rating above and your regional authority before allowing purchases or play by minors.

Similar games you may tune or rule next

Best graphics settings for Dead by Daylight

Pick your PC and get a starting preset — resolution, upscaler, shadows, ray tracing and an FPS cap — tuned to how demanding Dead by Daylight is on hardware. Print it and tune from there. Everything runs in your browser.

Best graphics settings for Dead by Daylight

Dead by Daylight hardware-demand tier: 4/9. Pick your PC above to get a starting preset, then tune up if you have FPS headroom or down if you're under your target.

Estimated starting point — real FPS depends on drivers, thermals and background load.

Dead by Daylight — Best settings (Mid-range (GTX 1660 – RTX 3060))

Resolution1920×1080
Upscaler (DLSS / FSR / XeSS)DLSS / FSR Balanced
ShadowsMedium
ReflectionsMedium
Ambient occlusionLow
TexturesMedium
Volumetric / effectsMedium
Ray tracingOff
Anisotropic filtering8x
FPS cap60–120 FPS
V-SyncOff (G-Sync / FreeSync if available)

Generated at GameRulePro · 2026-09-25

Release, patch & rule-change notes

Official release date: 2016-06-14. Ongoing patches and version history are published by the developer — for the latest patch notes, see the official store or support page. GameRulePro summarizes the official release only and does not invent patch dates. When a developer ships a rule-affecting update (balance pass, mode change, or ranked-reset), re-run the generator above to keep your house rules in sync.

Steam AchievementsMultiplayerAtmosphericCo-opThird PersonHorror

About Dead by Daylight

This asymmetric multiplayer horror game in which one of the players tries on the role of a brutal killer, while the other four try to escape. Survivors play with a third person perspective, and the killer uses the first-person camera. The game has no singleplayer. Players can choose from 13 survivors and 12 killers. Each of them differs from each other with own upgrades system and special actions. There is no need to be polite and cooperative - every player for himself. Each level is procedurally generated, and each new round is offering a unique experience. The game engine selects from 10 presets, The plot of the game tells a story about the supernatural being of The Entity, who created the world and populated it with serial killers. To save players have to perform a number of tasks, which include the repair of generators and other interactions with the items on the map. All actions with objects launch the so-called Skill Check - RNG that decides whether or not the action will be successful.

Performance reality & how to tune Dead by Daylight

GameRulePro editorial — these notes are based on Dead by Daylight's published specifications and genre profile, not a single benchmark run. Use them to set expectations before you open the settings menu.

As a 2016 action title, Dead by Daylight sits at demand tier 4 (Moderate (mainstream GPU)) — moderately demanding on PC. Most discrete GPUs from the last few generations run it fine at 1080p with headroom to spare.

What to tune first on Dead by Daylight

  • Start from the Best graphics settings generator on this page for a hardware-matched preset.
  • Shadows and post-processing effects are usually the cheapest FPS wins.
  • If you crash or stutter, jump to the crash-fix and optimization guides linked below.

The FPS table above is a model estimate from the demand-tier + GPU-index method. Real frame rates vary with drivers, background apps, thermals and resolution. Treat it as a buying or upgrade planning aid, then verify in-game. For step-by-step fixes, see the crash-fix and optimization guides linked on this page.

● Data updated 2026-09-09

Sources & attribution

  • Game data (release year, genres, platforms, system requirements, description, cover art) via RAWG.io, retrieved 2026-08-21.
  • GPU relative-performance indices via TechPowerUp GPU database (relative performance), retrieved 2026-08-29.
  • FPS estimates on this page are GameRulePro planning estimates from the demand-tier + GPU-index model — not benchmark results.
  • House rules and tournament formats are community-style templates for casual play, not official rulebooks.
  • Pre-launch intelligence (release windows, settings, editions, pricing, beta dates) is compiled from each title's official publisher / studio announcements and is source-linked per item with its retrieval date (2026-09-09). Where a detail is from reporting rather than a primary source, the item's source line states so. This is preview material, not an official specification.
  • Per-game age-rating & regional compliance reference (ESRB rating via RAWG; curated regulatory notes) from the GameRulePro game-rules dataset, retrieved 2026-08-29.
How the Dead by Daylight FPS estimate and rules generator are computed

Each game is scored on a 0–9 demand tier from its published PC requirements (and a year/genre fallback when requirements are absent). The FPS estimate compares your selected GPU's relative-performance index against the tier's required index using a diminishing-returns curve, then scales for resolution. The rules and tournament builder is a community-style template engine: it formats your group size, match format and tiebreaks into a printable sheet. All outputs are planning guides — verify in-game and agree house rules with your group before play.

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