Introduction
Have you ever experienced a Michael Myers relentlessly stalking, only for him to suddenly burst forward with an uncanny burst of speed, leaving you scrambling for cover? This unsettling display of agility is often the result of the Dead by Daylight killer perk, Play With Your Food. Dead by Daylight, the asymmetrical horror game that pits a team of survivors against a terrifying killer, thrives on its intricate system of perks. These perks, unique abilities that grant killers and survivors distinct advantages, are the lifeblood of strategic gameplay. For killers, perks are not merely additions but integral components of their power, shaping their approach to chases, map control, and overall strategy. Among the many options available, Play With Your Food stands out as a high-risk, high-reward choice that can drastically alter a killer’s mobility and pressure. This perk can be incredibly effective in the right hands and with the right build but also carries significant drawbacks that can punish careless players. Ultimately, this perks utility can be determined by how well you know it, and the build around it.
Understanding the Mechanics of Play With Your Food
At its core, Play With Your Food is a killer perk that revolves around the concept of obsession and controlled chasing. The in-game description states: “You become obsessed with one Survivor. Each time you chase your Obsession and let them escape, you gain a token up to a maximum of three tokens. Each token grants you a percentage of increased Movement Speed. Lose one token by hitting your Obsession with a Basic Attack or Special Attack. The Obsession receives a notification when you lose a token.”
Let’s dissect this description to truly grasp its potential. The obsession mechanic is crucial. When the match begins, one survivor will be randomly designated as your obsession. Several other perks interact with the obsession mechanic, creating opportunities for powerful synergies. This system emphasizes that the obsession isn’t just a target; they are the linchpin of your strategy when running Play With Your Food.
Token accumulation is where the real strategy lies. To gain a token, you must chase your obsession and then deliberately allow them to escape. This is not about downing them but engaging them, pressuring them, and then backing off, letting them slip away. Mastering this controlled chase is fundamental to maximizing the perk’s benefit. Building up to the maximum of three tokens demands patience and a calculated approach.
The speed boost provided by each token is the heart of this perk. With each token, your movement speed increases incrementally. While it may not seem like a massive boost, those percentages can be significant. At maximum tokens, a killer becomes noticeably faster, allowing for rapid map traversal, quicker responses to generator progress, and more effective chases against other survivors.
The risk, however, comes with token loss. Striking your obsession with a basic attack, or special attack, instantly removes a token. This means that if you’re in a prolonged chase with your obsession and ultimately manage to down them, you lose your accumulated speed boost. This discourages tunnel vision on your obsession and instead encourages calculated aggression and strategic disengagement.
Finally, the fact that the obsession receives a notification upon losing a token is a tactical implication. This notification system provides the obsession with information about your intentions. A clever survivor may use this information to try to manipulate your behavior, luring you into advantageous loops or directing you away from generators that other survivors are working on.
Assessing the Strengths and Weaknesses of this Killer Perk
Play With Your Food has many benefits, the primary benefit being mobility. The increased movement speed is a game-changer, allowing you to traverse the map more quickly, respond rapidly to generator repairs, and close the gap during chases. This mobility can turn the tide in your favor, granting you a degree of map control that other killers lack.
Play With Your Food is also a great perk because of the surprise factor. Many survivors underestimate the speed boost it provides, particularly if they are unaware that you are using the perk. This element of surprise can lead to unexpected downs and a significant shift in momentum. It can make survivors panic and make mistakes they normally wouldn’t.
Loop breaking is another advantage. The extra speed makes navigating loops easier and helps you close the gap on survivors who are trying to waste your time. This can be particularly effective against skilled loopers who rely on precise timing and spacing to evade you.
With maximum tokens, the speed boost becomes truly significant. At that point, you transform into a highly mobile threat, capable of rapidly intercepting survivors and applying immense pressure across the map. This can overwhelm even the most coordinated survivor teams.
Despite its potential, Play With Your Food is not without its drawbacks. It relies heavily on the obsession being alive and willing to be chased. If the obsession is quickly downed or disconnected from the game, the perk becomes significantly less effective. It also requires time to build up tokens. It’s ineffective in the early game.
Losing tokens can also be detrimental, especially in prolonged chases. If you find yourself constantly engaging your obsession only to lose your tokens when you finally land a hit, the perk becomes more of a hindrance than a help. It also requires players to avoid tunnel vision, and can therefore make the game harder for the Killer.
Skilled survivors can anticipate your intentions and exploit the perk’s mechanics. By knowing that you need to let them escape to gain tokens, they may use this to their advantage, directing you away from generators or other survivors.
Play With Your Food is a risky perk. If you cannot effectively manage your tokens or if the obsession is quickly eliminated, the perk becomes a liability. It demands skill and calculated decision-making.
Killer Synergies and Builds revolving Play With Your Food
Certain killers benefit more from Play With Your Food than others. Killers with inherently low mobility or those who struggle to close the gap during chases are excellent candidates for this perk. The movement speed increase can compensate for their weaknesses, turning them into more formidable threats. The Shape is a strong killer that can benefit from the speed, combined with save the best for last and you can get to a tier one kill, with a strong speed boost.
Here are a few killer builds that effectively incorporate Play With Your Food:
The Speedy Stalker Build
Play With Your Food, Save the Best for Last, Bamboozle, Discordance. This build emphasizes speed and map pressure. Play With Your Food provides the initial movement speed, while Save the Best for Last further enhances your attack speed after hitting a non-obsession survivor. Bamboozle helps shut down loops, and Discordance alerts you to generator activity, allowing you to quickly intercept survivors.
The Hit and Run Build
Play With Your Food, Pop Goes the Weasel, Tinkerer, Surveillance. This build focuses on hit-and-run tactics. Play With Your Food provides the speed boost, while Pop Goes the Weasel allows you to regress a generator significantly after hooking a survivor. Tinkerer alerts you when a generator is close to completion, and Surveillance highlights regressing generators, allowing you to quickly respond and apply pressure.
The Mind Game Build
Play With Your Food, Monitor & Abuse, Spirit Fury, Enduring. This build utilizes mind games and deception. Play With Your Food provides the speed boost, while Monitor & Abuse reduces your terror radius outside of chases, making it easier to sneak up on survivors. Spirit Fury and Enduring allow you to quickly break pallets and continue chases without being significantly slowed down.
Countering Play With Your Food from a Survivor Perspective
If you suspect that a killer is using Play With Your Food, there are several strategies you can employ to counter it. Awareness is key. Pay close attention to the killer’s behavior. Do they seem to be deliberately letting you escape? Are they suddenly bursting forward with unexpected speed? These are telltale signs that they may be using this perk.
Use looping and mind games to your advantage. Force the killer to waste time chasing you, baiting them into situations where they are likely to lose tokens. A skilled looper can significantly hinder a killer’s ability to build up and maintain their speed boost.
Teamwork is essential. Coordinate with your teammates to distract the killer and prevent them from focusing on the obsession. If the killer is constantly being interrupted, they will have difficulty building tokens. Predictive play is also an option. Since the obsession gets notified when the killer loses tokens, they can predict when the killer will go for a chase and use that knowledge.
Here are a few survivor perks that can help counter Play With Your Food:
- Sprint Burst: Allows you to quickly create distance from the killer, making it more difficult for them to catch up and down you.
- Dead Hard: Provides an invincibility frame, allowing you to dodge attacks and escape dangerous situations.
- Lithe: Grants a burst of speed after performing a fast vault, helping you escape chases and create distance.
Gameplay Examples and Analysis of Play With Your Food in Action
Let’s examine a few hypothetical gameplay scenarios to illustrate how Play With Your Food can impact a match. Imagine a killer using the Speedy Stalker build on the Bloodlodge map. The killer identifies the obsession early in the game and initiates a chase. Instead of immediately trying to down the survivor, the killer strategically lets them escape around a jungle gym, gaining a token. They repeat this process a few more times, building up to maximum tokens. Now, with significantly increased speed, the killer quickly patrols the map, intercepting other survivors who are working on generators. The survivors are caught off guard by the killer’s sudden burst of speed, leading to quick downs and a significant shift in momentum.
In another scenario, a killer using the Hit and Run build on the Autohaven Wreckers map struggles to effectively manage their tokens. They engage the obsession in a prolonged chase but repeatedly lose tokens by attempting to land hits. The obsession, aware of the killer’s intentions, leads them on a wild goose chase through the map, wasting valuable time and preventing the killer from applying pressure to generators. As a result, the survivors manage to complete multiple generators, and the killer struggles to regain control of the game.
These examples demonstrate the risks and rewards of using Play With Your Food. When used effectively, it can provide a significant advantage, allowing you to control the map and quickly down survivors. However, if you fail to manage your tokens or if the survivors are able to anticipate your intentions, the perk can become a liability.
Conclusion on how to use Play With Your Food effectively
Play With Your Food is a high-risk, high-reward killer perk that can significantly alter your mobility and pressure. While it offers the potential for increased speed and map control, it also carries significant drawbacks that can punish careless players. Whether the perk is worth using ultimately depends on your playstyle, the killer you are playing, and your ability to effectively manage your tokens.
If you are a skilled killer who enjoys hit-and-run tactics or if you are playing a killer with inherently low mobility, Play With Your Food can be a valuable asset. However, if you prefer a more aggressive playstyle or if you struggle to manage your tokens, you may find the perk more of a hindrance than a help. Ultimately, the best way to determine if Play With Your Food is right for you is to experiment with it in different builds and situations.
What are your thoughts on Play With Your Food? Have you had success with it? Share your experiences and strategies in the comments below! I encourage all killer players to give it a go at least once, and see for yourself whether Play With Your Food is worth your time. With the right build and a bit of practice, it could be a game-changer for you.
