Steam Makes Hit Horror Free For 72 Hours

1 week ago 12

Published Jan 30, 2026, 12:56 PM EST

Nicholas Becher is a gaming journalist with an MFA in Creative Writing from FAU. With extensive experience playing video games, he covers all forms of gaming content at Screen Rant, from breaking news to the latest fan theories. Most-played games range from Clair Obscur to Civ to Elden Ring to Halo 2 and beyond.

Steam has been firing on all cylinders so far this year, adding a ton of free games throughout January in limited-time offers that have been a massive draw for users of the platform. In a new free offer, Steam has made one of the best horror games of 2016 available to play for the weekend.

Gamers can officially download Dead by Daylight on Steam for free until Monday, February 2 at 1:00PM EST. Dead by Daylight is a critically acclaimed asymmetric survival-horror game that features three-person co-op teams who fight together to survive against a single-player-controlled killer.

Dead By Daylight Is Free Right Now

Officially turning ten years old this year, you can celebrate Dead by Daylight's decade-long run right now by downloading and playing for free on Steam. Released in 2016, the asymmetric survival-horror game was a massive hit when it first launched, and the game definitely holds up after all this time.

Dead by Daylight is a multiplayer-driven horror experience that pits three Survivors against one player-controlled killer, switching perspectives depending on your selection. Survivors play the game in third-person, allowing them to see more of the environment and have a better chance at spotting any threats. On the other hand, the Killer will experience the game from a first-person POV, making gameplay feel incredibly personal and immersive.

Dead by Daylight comes highly recommended among players on Steam, with literally hundreds of thousands of positive reviews and an overall Very Positive rating.

Players on Steam highlight Dead by Daylight's truly twisted and horrific gameplay, with users like fryxia is a cutie saying it's "the most sadistic, mind-boggling game" ever, also noting how addictive it is for horror fans.

Importantly, many users on Steam have brought up the game's toxic community, but you can avoid this entirely thanks to the game not having voice chat as a core feature. As kaeneuksi puts it, "this game is crazy fun. Don't let the saltiness of the community keep you from buying the game," or in this case, trying it out for free.

It Won't Stay Free Forever

This limited-time offer is only scheduled to last through the weekend, so you'll have until Monday to download and play for free. Afterward, you'll have to purchase the game to continue playing, but it's available on a special promotion until Tuesday, February 10.

If you've never played Dead by Daylight, now is definitely a good time to see what it's all about on Steam.