Deadlock might be an unannounced game made by Valve, but somehow, over 16,000 people are actively playing the game right now.
So far we have no official information on Valve’s purported upcoming hero shooter named Deadlock. Yet, somehow, 16,000 people are actively playing it as we write this article. More than half of those players have started playing within the last 24 hours, meaning the game is quickly getting into the hands of more and more players, presumably for some sort of alpha or beta test.
Information about Deadlock’s player count comes by way of SteamDB. The website, which is dedicated to tracking all things Steam, including concurrent player counts, as well as updates or changes to existing or new applications and packages, has been keeping an eyeball on Deadlock.
Per the website, the game began sprouting up in May, with a peak of just over 1,200 players. However, in recent weeks, its visibility has been slowly increasing before exploding over the weekend. Indeed, over the last 30 days, the game has experienced a 500 percent increase in players.
The all-time peak for the game, as of this writing, is just under 17,000 players. Just 24 hours ago, that peak was 12,000. Like we said, things are exploding pretty quickly and the game hasn’t officially been announced.
What’s A Deadlock, Anyway?
For starters, Valve’s Deadlock has no relation to Ratchet: Deadlocked. Instead, it’s reportedly a 6v6 hero shooter that, according to a Valve dataminer, is a combination of “Dota 2, Team Fortress 2, Overwatch, Valorant, Smite, Orcs Must Die.” Its hero design is reportedly inspired by Dota and is overall fantasy-inspired.
Gameplay screenshots involving a hero named “Grey Talon” were then leaked in May. Check it out:
Recently, gameplay videos began sprouting up online, such as this YouTube match involving the “Warden” character. For potentially being an alpha or beta test, the gameplay and overall presentation does look extremely polished.
As far as how to potentially become one of the 16,000 players actively playing, well, that’s a bit complicated. According to a Twitter user, they received an invitation by email to playtest Deadlock. It’s worth noting, however, that they have had a Steam account for 14 years, though it’s unclear if longevity plays a role in who gets an invitation.
Another user suggested that invited players can then add their friends to the playtest, though The Gamer is unable to verify those details.
Either way, Deadlock is real. And, hopefully, it won’t be long before everyone gets to play it officially.
