Deadlock: Everything You Need to Know About Valve’s New Game

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When the developers from Valve start creating a new game, we should certainly expect something extraordinary. The company has blessed the world with bangers such as Team Fortress 2, Dota 2, and Counter-Strike. We sure remember the shaky path of Artifact, but beyond that, every title by Valve is great. With such heritage, we expect nothing less than a masterpiece in Deadlock, a new MOBA hero shooter by Valve.

Yes, it’s true! The genre of Deadlock can be described exactly as this. A match here is based on classic MOBA rules: teams should kill a powerful boss on the opponents’ base, they have lanes to approach it, heroes can respawn and improve their abilities, etc. At the same time, it’s certainly a hero shooter, with unique characters bringing their guns and amazing powers to the battlefield.

The Deadlock game is a title to keep an eye on. It is still in an early development stage—only the alpha version is available. But if you have an invite from a friend, why not dive into the action to experience this excitement directly? Before you do so, check out our article with everything you need to know about Deadlock! This will help you understand the game better, discover some rather hidden (but pretty important details), and enjoy early success and quick progress.

Deadlock: The Game’s Basics

Somewhere in the virtual city of Cursed Apple, two mighty teams face each other. Each consists of six extraordinary heroes, equipped with weapons and various abilities. Their goal is to defeat a Patron, a huge golem—which is a clear analog of Nexus from League of Legends and Ancient from Dota 2.

Cursed Apple is an unusual take on the real-world New York. The city invites players to the atmosphere of the 1930s, but Deadlock also adds some magic vibes to this world.

MOBA Elements in Deadlock

In addition to the main objective being similar to MOBA games, Deadlock has plenty of other similarities to this genre.

• Lanes—The map has four clear lanes that connect the teams’ bases. These are the main paths for the heroes.
• Defensive structures are located on the maps to stop heroes. Destroying them is crucial to reveal the main target, the Patron. The structures are also mini-bosses that provide players with important resources.
• Troopers—These bots try to approach the opponents’ base via the same lanes. They are an important part of the Deadlock gameplay! Heroes kill them to farm experience and Souls (a currency-like resource). Also, the bots distract defensive structures, so players can approach and attack them freely.

• Respawns—Like in all MOBAs, Deadlock heroes are immortal. They can be taken down alright, but after some time, they are back in action. They can also regenerate health around the spawn area. The respawn time gets longer closer to the match end.
• Updates—In the Deadlock game, characters get stronger throughout the matches. They are weak in the beginning, but they kill minions and destroy structures to earn Souls. This resource is needed to level up abilities. Souls can be exchanged for items to unleash the true power of Deadlock game characters.
• “Jungle”—There is unexplored space between the lanes. Players should go there to farm Souls and buffs. Usually, it’s a role for one of the team members, a “Jungler”.

The similarities of Valve’s new game to MOBAs are obvious. It’s a great creative move, but you would certainly expect that from the developers of Dota 2, one of the best MOBAs ever.

Deadlock: Still a Hero Shooter

The way you control your characters in Deadlock leaves no doubt that here we have a hero shooter. It’s not a top-down view from LoL and Dota 2. Deadlock has a third-person view. The controls here are also traditional for a shooting game: they are not the point-and-click style of MOBAs.

Valve was among the first studios to release a hero shooter. Team Fortress 2 remains one of the best in this genre even after many years of existence. Sure, competitors such as Overwatch have got the throne of popularity, but the genre’s fundamentals are very well known to Valve.

• Deadlock heroes battle with various weapons and bring their unique abilities to the matches.
• Team compositions are an important aspect of the game, as the heroes should be in synergy with each other.

As for the bare shooter part, Valve has Counter-Strike in their catalog of games. It’s a title that defines the shooting genre, so this aspect is also great in Deadlock.

Deadlock Characters

As the game is still in the early development stage, the full list of Deadlock heroes may change and get bigger. Currently, there are 21 characters in Deadlock. Each has three normal abilities and one ultimate.

It is pretty important to know which hero you want to play in Deadlock. Before starting a multiplayer match, go to the practice mode (sandbox) to mess with the abilities and just feel the character in action.

If you want to start with an easy-to-play Deadlock character, pay attention to green banners over the heroes in the game. They clearly highlight who is beginner-friendly. Picking up Infernus, Seven, or Haze may be a good idea to grasp the basics of this game.

However, in Deadlock matches, you can’t choose an exact hero, although you can mark those you know and love as high priority. You need to have a few characters in your active roster to be effective in different battles.

Knowing your opponents is also a crucial factor in Deadlock! It’s not CS2 where all the characters are the same. You need to know the strengths and weaknesses of the heroes you meet on the lanes and in the city. This knowledge comes with practice. You can boost this process by taking unknown characters to the sandbox mode and exploring them. Even if you don’t plan to play them, you may face them in a multiplayer Deadlock match.

The Deadlock heroes have different builds: items to purchase and abilities to unlock and level up first. Many recommended builds are present directly in the game. Check them out and feel free to use them before you know what is really better for your playing style.

How to Play Deadlock

There are two aspects here. The first one is about adding the Deadlock game to your Steam library.

• While the game is in early development, you need an invite to play Deadlock. The invites are free, and your Steam friends can send you one. Check out who in your friend list already has Deadlock and ask them for an invite.

The second aspect is about the gameplay. We’ve actually discussed this a lot in the Basics section. Let’s just list a few important Deadlock tips.

• Purchases are possible on the home base and in special shops across the map.

• You can quickly travel across the city with special ziplines. They are dangerous, though, as your opponents may shoot you down and then kill you on the ground.

• The right mouse click activates zoom for better aiming.
• Melee attacks are performed with Q. Hold the key to charge your melee attack. These hits are super powerful, but you (and your opponents) can parry them with F.
• The lane assignment is automatic in Deadlock. It’s better to be ready to play everywhere on the map.
• In general, there are three phases in each match. The laning phase is when most players stick to their lane roles to gain Souls and experience. The mid-game is about team fights, and you should look to form groups with your teammates to eliminate opponents and secure important objectives. In the end, defeating the Patron becomes the primary goal.
• You do not get Souls automatically after a kill. They drop as a blue orb, and after the laning phase is over (10 minutes into a match), you should shoot the orbs to collect this important resource. Stealing Souls from the kills of other players is a real thing in Deadlock.
• Orbs from the kills of your opponents are orange. Try to steal them!
• Melee kills do not create the orbs, and Souls go directly to a player’s account.

• If you are not familiar with MOBAs, pay special attention to the items you get. Some of them are passive boosters. Some should be activated manually, like healing.
• Lurking outside the lanes is important as defeating NPCs and farming objects gives various buffs to your team.
• You need to destroy both opponent’s shrines for the Patron to appear.

Deadlock has a lot of depth, but with these tips, you are generally ready to enjoy the action and explore the game on your own.

Skins and Tradable Items in Deadlock

One question has been asked often in the skins trading community: Does Deadlock have tradeable items?

For now, there is nothing of that sort in the game. We have to wait for the full release for Deadlock skins and items to be announced. Considering the monetization success Valve has with other games, supporting the market of tradeable items feels like a logical step for the company.