After ten years of Dead by Daylight fans begging developer Behaviour Interactive to add one of horror's most iconic slasher villains, as part of the game's 10th anniversary celebrations, Friday the 13th icon Jason Voorhees will join the game's growing roster of villains on Tuesday, June 16, 2026, with the game's next update (though public beta test build players on Steam can get a taste of Jason's evil even earlier).

Jason's long-awaited entry into The Fog as a new killer for players to control was revealed with a teaser trailer (which you can check out below) that hits all the right notes for Friday the 13th franchise fans, particularly with its inclusion of the most recognizable bit of the films' score.

Of course, whether Jason's inclusion hits the right notes for franchise fans within the gameplay is something players won't know until they get their hands on him, which as previously mentioned, can be much earlier for public beta test build players on Steam. For players opting into the public beta test build, Jason will be available as early as tomorrow, May 26, 2026, before his official release on June 16.

"There was never a question that our 10th anniversary chapter couldn't just be big, it needed to be something really special," said senior creative director at Behaviour Interactive, Dave Richard, in a press release. "When we started to see a path to finally making this partnership a reality for our 10th, we knew then the perfect Jason moment had come. We're just thrilled the stars aligned and we were able to work with the great folks at Jason Universe to deliver this for our players on such a major milestone for Dead by Daylight."

Jason will feature two major abilities: Omnipresent Evil and Improvised Carnage. Omnipresent Evil is a stealth ability that allows him to disappear from the map entirely and move faster, all while survivors are completely unaware of his whereabouts. Players controlling Jason with this ability activated will also be able to track survivors with footprint clues, so you can recreate some of his most iconic moments and his ability to appear seemingly out of nowhere for a perfect jumpscare.

Improvised Carnage lets Jason throw items that have been scattered across the map, like locker fragments, hooks, broken machine parts, and more that will stagger survivors with a successful hit. If you can time it properly, you can even use a thrown item to pin a survivor against a wall, letting you savour the kill even more.

"Our fans have wanted Jason to enter The Fog since Dead by Daylight launched," added Robbie Barsamian, executive vice president at Horror Inc., the heralds of the Friday the 13th franchise. "We're thrilled to help make the game's 10th anniversary celebration even more special for fans, and can't wait for players to experience the killer new skins and gameplay that only Jason can deliver. Dead by Daylight has always been about nightmare horror stories, and Jason adds a new chapter we hope players will enjoy."

Speaking of skins, there will, of course, be a collection of skins for players to purchase to complete their own idolized recreation of Jason's best kills in the Friday the 13th franchise in Dead by Daylight.

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Dead by Daylight's official 10th anniversary is on June 16th, which means Jason's arrival matches up perfectly with the actual date itself. This is the latest milestone for the game and for its studio Behaviour Interactive, after Behaviour acquired the team behind 7 Days to Die back in March 2026. Unfortunately though, weeks after the acquisition was finalized, Behaviour suffered an unknown number of layoffs.

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