Dead by Daylight Steam Ratings Rebound After Valve Flags Review-Bombing

Dead by Daylight has shifted back to a ‘Mostly Positive’ recent review rating on Steam following a period of decline caused by community backlash. According to reporting by IGN, Valve has intervened by labeling a cluster of negative reviews posted between November 1 and November 6 as ‘off-topic.’

The Source of the Backlash

The review-bombing began following controversy surrounding developer Behaviour Interactive’s partnership with the streamer TheBurntPeanut. Players flocked to the Steam page to express their frustration, leading to a noticeable drop in the game’s recent favorability scores. In response to the influx of negativity, Valve implemented its review-filtering tools, which are designed to detect anomalous activity that does not reflect a player’s actual experience with the game.

Steam’s disclaimer clarifies that reviews during the identified window were excluded from the default score because they were deemed “largely unrelated to the likelihood that you would enjoy the product.” While the ‘Mostly Positive’ rating is now the default view, users still have the option to manually unmark these reviews to see the ‘Mixed’ score that reflects the community’s recent grievances.

Understanding Valve’s Review Process

The sudden change has sparked debate among the community regarding how Valve identifies ‘off-topic’ activity. As noted by IGN, Valve maintains a system that monitors for anomalous review spikes in real-time. Once flagged, a team at Valve investigates the period before notifying the developer and applying the label. While some players argue that the negative reviews were a justified form of protest, Valve’s long-standing policy remains focused on filtering out activity it deems anomalous to protect the platform’s review integrity. When asked for comment by IGN regarding the process, Behaviour Interactive stated it is not at liberty to discuss platform-specific review protocols.

Why it matters

For the average player, this change means the store page’s public-facing review score no longer reflects the specific wave of protest that occurred in early November. While the developer has promised to take “appropriate action” and has removed gifted content from TheBurntPeanut’s account, the divide between the developer’s actions and the community’s reaction remains apparent on social media platforms.

If you are looking at the game’s recent reviews, be aware that the default rating is filtered. Players who want to see the full scope of recent community sentiment can adjust their settings on the Steam store page to include the excluded reviews. As the situation stabilizes, players should continue to monitor official statements from Behaviour Interactive regarding their future community engagement and content management policies.