What Is Tunneling In Dead By Daylight? Explained

If you've played Dead by Daylight for a while, you've no doubt heard the term "tunneling" - perhaps from an agitated survivor who has fallen victim to this approach from killers or in a heated debate about whether it's a valid strategy. Tunneling can certainly be annoying for those survivors who are tunneled, but it can also be a game-winning move for killers.

But what exactly is tunneling, and how does it work in the game? In this article, we'll delve into what tunneling is in Dead by Daylight and how survivors can combat this strategy.

What Is Tunneling In Dead By Daylight?

Tunneling in Dead by Daylight is when a killer player focuses on one survivor player. This is usually in the form of continuing to pursue a survivor who was just unhooked. This is different than face camping, another controversial strategy that requires the killer to stand in front of a hooked survivor, preventing other survivors from unhooking them.

Some players may also define tunneling as when a killer player focuses solely on one survivor throughout the match, even if they're unable to hook that player.

Dead by Daylight has implemented some measures against tunneling and face camping, such as granting survivors a short burst of Endurance and Haste after they're removed from the hook. However, killers can circumvent this by hitting the survivor twice or by simply waiting out the duration of those buffs.

While tunneling can be frustrating for survivors who fall victim to it, it can sometimes be a viable strategy for killers. Tunneling a survivor can earn you a kill or even multiple, so especially in late-game, it might make sense for some killer players. In fact, in competitive games, it's a tactic that many killer players rely on to some extent. However, many DBD players frown upon this behavior, as it tends to lend itself to repetitive, tedious gameplay.

How To Combat Tunneling In Dead By Daylight

While tunneling is never fun for the survivor who is on the receiving end of it, it's thankfully possible to combat it. As we mentioned, DBD has already implemented some measures against this strategy, but killers can still work their way around those little boosts for survivors.

Here are some of the best Dead by Daylight anti-tunneling perks for survivors:

• Off The Record - This perk from Zarina Kassir grants survivors numerous benefits upon being unhooked or unhooking themselves, including protection from aura reading from the killer, noise suppression, and the Endurance status effect for 80 seconds. (Conspicuous Actions will cancel Endurance). It's a surefire way to get away from the killer after being unhooked, and will almost certainly encourage them to go after someone else.
• Borrowed Time - The classic and first anti-tunneling perk, Bill Overbeck's Borrowed Time provides the simple benefit of extending a hooked survivor's Endurance and Haste window after they're unhooked. This ensures that they can escape without issue.
• Guardian - Guardian allows you to see the killer's aura after unhooking; you can use this information to find the killer and draw them to you rather than the unhooked survivor, or communicate that information to teammates. It also boosts the unhooked survivors' Haste duration and speed, as well as suppressing their noise and Scratch Marks.

While tunneling might work for some killers, many survivors don't enjoy playing against survivors who engage in it. Thankfully, if you're a survivor player, you can combat tunneling from killers using the help of perks and strategies.