Valve has announced deadlockits latest game, which combines elements of several popular multiplayer genres. Its announcement came with little fanfare, following a long series of extensive leaks about Valve’s upcoming title.

deadlock has been Valve’s worst-kept secret since May 2024, when the company launched its invite-only alpha version through Steam. Anyone who joined the test was initially greeted with a screen asking them not to “share anything about the game with anyone.” But since all testers received an unlimited number of invites, it didn’t take long for deadlock starts leaking everywhere.

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How to play Deadlock

Join the growing number of players with access and try Deadlock for yourself on Steam.

Deadlock Steam page goes online

Valve has now finally decided to make the game official by launching its Steam page on Friday, August 23rd, in the late evening hours ET. The listing on the store is quite sparse in details and describes deadlock as a multiplayer game that is currently in early development. Given this state of affairs, the current version contains a lot of placeholder graphics and “experimental gameplay,” the product description states. The site doesn’t mention much about PC system requirements, other than that the game only runs on 64-bit CPUs and operating systems. According to previous player reports deadlock works on both Windows and Steam Deck, which runs the Linux distribution SteamOS 3.0.

While the Steam page doesn’t feature any gameplay screenshots, there is a short video teaser there. The 22-second clip, rendered in the Source 2 engine, shows a look at the game’s only map at the moment. Towards the end of the video, some mobs can be seen running across a street in the background, while a cigarette-smoking figure can be seen leaning against the wall of a Third Eye Supply store in the foreground. The detective-like figure may not currently be a playable character, as he wasn’t mentioned in the recent leak detailing all the details. deadlock Heroes, of which there are currently said to be 19.

Although deadlock looks like a hero shooter at first glance, but the game is much more of a traditional MOBA than the third-person camera would suggest. Matches take place on a huge map, where two teams of six players each try to control checkpoints by leading minions across four lanes, destroying enemy defenses, and purchasing upgrades. While good aim doesn’t hurt, large health pools and a wealth of ways to become more robust both help deadlock It is more of a strategic game than one where players rely on their reflexes. A typical game lasts about half an hour.

Valve removes deadlock restrictions on content sharing

deadlock has so far reached over 44,000 concurrent players as of August 18, five days before its official announcement. The game’s reveal coincided with Valve lifting restrictions on content sharing, allowing game testers to freely upload footage and screenshots of the upcoming MOBA on social media. Although the company has not said anything official about the game’s business model, deadlock has all the prerequisites for a free-to-play title.

deadlock

Deadlock is an upcoming game from Valve that seems to combine elements of the MOBA and hero shooter genres.

Systems

Multiplayer

Online multiplayer

Motor

Source2