Dead by Daylight Returns to 'Mostly Positive' on Steam After Valve Labels BurntPeanut Backlash Reviews Off-Topic

Dead by Daylight's Steam review score has swung back to "Mostly Positive" after Valve marked a wave of negative reviews from early November as off-topic, effectively removing them from the default rating calculation. The asymmetrical horror title from Behaviour Interactive spent much of the past week sliding in user sentiment following the studio's collaboration with controversial streamer TheBurntPeanut, but Valve's off-topic review detection tool identified anomalous activity and notified a human investigation team, which then marked that specific review window as off-topic. For players who track Steam scores as a barometer of a live-service game's health, this is a significant moment — the rating players see by default no longer reflects the community's actual mood during the controversy.

The shift matters because Steam's review score is often the first thing prospective buyers see, and a "Mixed" or "Mostly Negative" label can deter new players before they even read a single review. Valve's off-topic review detection tool, originally developed in 2019, identifies anomalous activity in near real-time and notifies a human investigation team; investigators then determined that activity between November 1 and 6 fit the definition of off-topic and marked the period as containing reviews "largely unrelated to the likelihood that you would enjoy the product." The result: those reviews are excluded from the Review Score by default, though users can unmark them to reveal a "Mixed" score underneath. This mechanism is designed to combat coordinated review-bombing campaigns, but its application here has sparked fresh debate about what counts as a legitimate player grievance versus an off-topic protest.

What Triggered the Review Bomb

The backlash stems from Behaviour Interactive's recent partnership with TheBurntPeanut, a streamer whose involvement prompted widespread criticism from the Dead by Daylight community. The studio issued apologetic posts and fielded hundreds of comments, but the damage to player trust had already driven the recent review score down sharply according to SteamDB tracking. Behaviour's most recent public statement on the matter clarified that it had removed gifted content from TheBurntPeanut's account and promised "appropriate action" regarding how the incident occurred in the first place. The studio has not detailed what that action entails, leaving many players skeptical that meaningful change will follow.

This is not the first time Behaviour has faced community ire over external partnerships or content decisions. Last month, the studio announced that the Child's Play Killer Chucky would be removed from sale, telling IGN that Killers will "continue to have an open invitation to join (or rejoin)." The Chucky removal and the BurntPeanut collaboration have compounded a perception among long-time players that the studio prioritizes crossover marketing over core gameplay concerns. For a live-service game that depends on player retention, that perception is arguably more damaging than any single review score fluctuation.

How Valve's Off-Topic System Works

Valve's approach to review manipulation has evolved since the tool's 2019 introduction, when the company explained its goal was to remove anomalous activity that could "inaccurately reflect a game's rating based on factors the average player doesn't care about." The system identifies unusual review patterns in near real-time across all Steam games, then flags them for human investigators who determine whether the activity fits the definition of off-topic. If investigators agree, Valve marks the time period and notifies the developer. The process is opaque by design — Valve does not publicly disclose the specific thresholds or criteria that trigger a flag, and how the system may have changed in the five-and-a-half years since its launch remains unclear.

For Dead by Daylight, the flagged window covers November 1 through 6, coinciding precisely with the peak of the BurntPeanut backlash. Steam users who visit the game's store page now see a disclaimer noting the off-topic designation, with the "Mostly Positive" rating displayed by default. A single click reveals the "Mixed" score that includes those excluded reviews. This transparency measure is useful, but it also means the default score no longer captures a week of genuine player anger — anger that, whether Valve classifies it as off-topic or not, was directed at the developer's decisions and communication.

Community Reaction Remains Negative

Despite the restored "Mostly Positive" label, sentiment across social media and Steam forums remains sharply critical. Players argue that the negative reviews were a justified response to Behaviour's actions, not an unrelated protest.

"They can't reverse the damage to their reputation or s***ty customer service"

Steam user

"In this case, Valve is wrong. The negative reviews were completely justified."

Steam user

These reactions suggest the off-topic designation has not mollified the community — it may have intensified the feeling that player voices are being suppressed.

The disconnect between the algorithmic score and the lived player experience is the core issue here. Review scores are meant to help prospective buyers gauge whether a game is worth their time and money, but they also serve as one of the few public accountability mechanisms players have against developers. When a platform intervenes to exclude a concentrated period of negative feedback, it raises questions about whose interests the system ultimately serves. IGN has reached out to both Behaviour Interactive and Valve for comment and clarification on the process, but as of publication, neither has provided additional detail.

For now, Dead by Daylight's Steam page shows a healthy rating, but the underlying tensions — over creator partnerships, content removals, and communication — remain unresolved. A review score can be adjusted by an algorithm, but player trust is not so easily recalculated. Behaviour Interactive's next steps, not Valve's filtering, will determine whether the "Mostly Positive" label holds any meaning for the community that actually plays the game.