For a studio that has spent years building a reputation as friendly to LGBTQ players, a single Halloween-weekend decision has put Dead by Daylight in an uncomfortable spot. The devs’ attempt to walk the decision back has not calmed things down either.
The controversy forms as a result of a recent “TheBurntPeanut” stream on Twitch. For the uninitiated, TheBurntPeanut is a prominent Twitch streamer and content creator who appears on camera as a noseless face on a peanut-shaped body. He has a large following and even won the “VTuber of the Year” award during the Streamer Awards in 2025, but he also has a long trail of controversy.
Certain clips have been circulating online that appear to show him joking about controversial topics, and his chat and fan community on X are also infamous for being associated with edgy, “anti-woke” humor.
Dead by Daylight BurntPeanut Controversy Explained
During TheBurntPeanut’s recent Dead by Daylight stream, a community manager from the DbD team had sent the game’s entire catalog of characters and add-ons to him via the in-game mail system. The official Dead by Daylight Twitch handle also reportedly visited his chat during the stream, saying that the studio could handle any criticism and that the items were his to keep.
Many longtime DbD players saw this move as the studio endorsing a creator whose community they find hostile.
Within the span of the next few hours, the subject began circulating like wildfire across social media forums.
Dead by Daylight Devs Apologize
Shortly after the controversy exploded on Reddit and X, Behaviour Interactive responded publicly, and it somehow made things worse.
As per their official statement, giving away in-game content to creators isn’t unusual, but this particular decision lacked the proper approvals, and the employee’s follow-up comments didn’t reflect the company’s values.
“When concerns about this decision became apparent during the stream, we should have responded by looking into these concerns, not dismissing them,” the devs said. “Unfortunately, we’ve now seen the fallout of this decision unfolding in many conversations across the DbD community. We appreciate and stand with our community’s willingness to ensure our shared values are being upheld, at all times, regardless of popularity, and we’re heartbroken at the inflammatory language now being directed towards our community.”
However, instead of putting an end to the controversy, Behavior Interactive’s public statement further exacerbated the situation. Supporters of TheBurntPeanut started accusing the developer of bowing to online pressure, while the game’s longtime fans, on the other hand, were unhappy that the gift had happened at all.
Both sides have started leaving negative reviews for the game on Steam, one over the giveaway itself and one over the apology.
Despite the review-bombing, the game continues to maintain its “Mostly Positive” rating on Steam, at least for now.
Games like Dead by Daylight can depend on community goodwill almost as much as on gameplay, and that goodwill is built or lost in moments like this one. The apology also shows the bind studios now face. Staying silent would have looked like endorsement, while apologizing was read by another group as surrender. Neither side is likely to be fully satisfied, so what matters most is what Behaviour does next.
