Dead by Daylight x Ringu Crossover Revealed

Behaviour Interactive has announced that the next Dead by Daylight chapter will feature characters from Ringu, the cult-classic Japanese horror franchise.

Dead by Daylight: Sadako Rising will introduce a new killer in the guise of Sadako, the creepy woman who crawls out of televisions in the Ringu movies. Known in-game as The Onryō, Behaviour says that we should expect Sadako to provide a different take on Dead by Daylight's classic gameplay.

“Ringu introduces psychological horror to our game, which is very different from the slasher style our fans are used to. They can expect Sadako to come with creepy and surprising gameplay mechanics that are not found in other Killers”, shares Dave Richard, Creative Director, Dead by Daylight. “Survivors beware, she will freak you out!”

No details have yet been provided about The Onryō's specific abilities, but Reiko Imayasu, Producer for the Kadokawa Corporation that owns the Ringu films, sad, "The Dead by Daylight team did a great job in representing her characteristics in the game. I am convinced that it will be a chapter unlike any other. In addition to the new Killer Sadako, there are many other items that evoke the world of Ringu. I hope that players will be thrilled to see how they fit into the game, whilst they tremble at the sight of them.”

In addition to Sadako, the new chapter will also add Yoichi Asakawa as a playable survivor. Yoichi was first seen as a young boy in the original Ringu movie released in 1998, but is now portrayed as an adult in Dead by Daylight. Yoichi is the only character in the Ringu films to have escaped Sadako, and so this next chapter of Dead by Daylight offers an unusual method of continuing a character's story over 20 years later.

Ringu, also known as Ring, is the Japanese horror franchise generally seen as responsible for international interest in J-horror. It encompasses many movies, comics, a TV show, and extends to the American remake, The Ring, as well as its own sequels.

Dead by Daylight's most recent crossover introduced characters from Saw, and previous updates have seen Hellraiser, Resident Evil, and other major horror characters added to the game.

Matt Purslow is IGN's UK News and Entertainment Writer.