Dead by Daylight: Jason Voorhees Officially Joins the Killer Lineup After Years of Waiting

4 hours ago 3

Published May 23, 2026, 11:00 AM EDT

Laurence Wall is a Staff Writer at DualShockers who has been writing professionally since 2022 and covering games since 2023. He primarily writes guides and lists, with a focus on indie games, RPGs, ARPGs, Soulslikes, MMOs, card games, boss fights, and detailed tutorials.

Before joining DualShockers, Laurence worked as a game reviewer for Movies, Games and Tech. He also co-founded and served as a contributor liaison for a university creative writing magazine, where he was one of the publication’s principal contributors. Laurence holds a B.A. in English Literature and Creative Writing from Royal Holloway, University of London.

Turn out the lights and lock your doors tight, because a brand-new Killer is on the prowl in Dead by Daylight, and it looks like you’re next!

After 10 long years, Behaviour Interactive has finally announced that the legendary Horror Icon himself, Jason, is coming to the eclectic roster of Killers. As a part of Dead by Daylight’s 10th Anniversary, the developers couldn’t have picked a better time.

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At last, excited fans will finally get to don the classic hockey mask and machete to hunt down the ever-fearful survivors in the fog.

The Real Killer: Copyright Issues

While I’m thrilled to have one of the most widely recognised horror icons finally part of the team, there’s an elephant in the room. Just why has it taken this long?

Dead by Daylight started off with a collection of unique killers created by Behaviour Interactive, some designed as homages to classic killers from old-school horror. However, as the game blossomed and certain licenses were acquired, the actual inspirations themselves were revealed.

Famous faces like Freddy Krueger and Michael Myers arrived to wreak havoc in the fog. Over the years, many more joined them, from Pyramid-Head to Nemesis to even Manga/Anime characters like Ken Kaneki from Tokyo Ghoul. The roster was ever-expanding, but something was always missing. The man who started it all was nowhere to be seen, and naturally, the fans weren't happy.

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This is, unfortunately, due to a list of issues regarding copyright and licenses. That isn’t to say that Behaviour Interactive wasn't already trying; they have been for years now. So you can have a character, for example, The Trapper, who already exists in Dead by Daylight, bearing a fairly striking resemblance to Jason Voorhees, but you couldn’t take it any further than that.

The roster was ever-expanding, but something was always missing. The man who started it all was nowhere to be seen, and naturally, the fans weren't happy.

Between the original licenses for the character and other licenses for the movie, location, and even other video games, it was a bit of a logistical nightmare to get all the pieces aligned. Thankfully, after a fairly lengthy legal battle, this dispute has been resolved, opening the way for Jason to finally arrive in the world of Dead by Daylight.

Now the band is back together, with every iconic slasher character being present under the ever-watching control of The Entity. And this, of course, begs the question, who or what else is waiting in the wings? Dead by Daylight continues to grow every year, and with the 10th Anniversary on the horizon, this twisted and bloody world is about to get a whole lot bigger and a whole lot darker.