Dead By Daylight's Stranger Things Chapter 2 just hit the PTB, and its new Vecna is even scarier than the last one

You can’t swing a metaphorical, potentially otherworldly cat these days without hitting something related to Stranger Things. It’s all over my Netflix; it’s dominating my social media timelines: it’s everywhere. As the Duffer Brothers’ long-running saga finally draws to a close, Dead by Daylight has just dropped its second Stranger Things-inspired chapter on the PTB, adding both Jane ‘Eleven’ Hopper and Dustin Henderson as survivors, and a new take on classic D&D villain Vecna, who enters the fray for a second time.

So let’s start with that last part. While the new DBD update adds Vecna, it’s a different iteration than the one that’s available in Dead by Daylight at the moment. The current version of the Greyhawk villain, The Lich, dropped with the D&D chapter back in 2024, and is voiced by Critical Role’s Matt Mercer. The horror game’s new (latest? are there more?) Vecna is simply entitled ‘The First,’ and is inspired by the show’s depiction of the character.

With the ability to manipulate the world around him, he can slip between The Fog and the Upside Down, then reappear at his leisure and hit Surivors with an Undergate attack. As if that’s not bad enough, he can also summon vines to lash at Survivors, and if you’re struck by any of his abilities you’ll be given a Worldbreaker token. Trust me when I say you don’t want one.

These tokens begin to stack, and if you’re afflicted with enough of them you’ll activate Worldbreaker. Vine Attack and Undergate now deal damage to you, and the eerie Grandfather clocks that are scattered around the map will come to life. If you can get to them, you’ll decrease your Worldbreaker timer, but beware: Vecna isn’t going to let you off easy.

While The Lich is all about closing the gap and slinging spells, The First feels like it could have the same impact as either The Xenomorph with his underground machinations, or Pyramid Head with his AoE focus. Either way, Dead by Daylight’s latest addition isn’t something to smirk at.

Thankfully, you’ve now got a total of four survivors who know all about this ancient horror. Eleven and Dustin join Steve and Nancy in The Fog, each with their own unique perks. Dustin is all about speeding up generator completion and supporting his pals (at a slight cost), while Eleven focuses on stealth and revealing the Killer’s location.

They’re joined in spirit by Jonathan Byres (a Legendary outfit for Steve Harrington from Stranger Things Chapter 1), as well as Hellfire Club leader Eddie Munson (Legendary for Dustin) and Robin Buckley (Legendary for Nancy).

Dead By Daylight’s Stranger Things Chapter 2 content is available now on the Steam PTB, and launches in full on Tuesday January 27. The show’s final season is also complete, so you can watch the entire adventure from start to finish before you take to The Fog, or check out the full patch notes here if you’re not quite ready for the heartbreak. We’ve also got all the latest DBD codes for freebies.

It’s the end of an era for sure, but I somehow don’t think that this is the last we’ll see of Dustin and company. But, even if it is, their spirits live on in The Fog, although, I’m not sure that’s any better than The Upside Down…