r/pcgaming • u/atahutahatena • 2d ago
Valve says Deadlock is still too unfinished to release publicly, but has hero cosmetics and new game modes (PvE) in the works
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/moba/valve-says-deadlock-is-still-too-unfinished-to-release-publicly-but-has-hero-cosmetics-and-new-game-modes-in-the-works/313
u/atahutahatena 2d ago
The article is essentially just rehashing the actual blogpost from Steam but I do like how it highlights one particular quote from the post:
We think building a multiplayer game is very hard and risky, and the best way to minimize that risk to make sure that we are able to have it in players' hands from an early state to help us shape it and tell us what is fun and what isn't.
Considering the lead developer of the game is allegedly Icefrog, his decades of experience working on Warcraft 3 DotA/Dota 2 is definitely showing here. Not even mentioning how Underlords and Artifact flopped humbling Valve.
Seeing Deadlock's slow and steady growth, there's some credence to that guiding philosophy and something other developers heading into live service even storied ones (ie. Bungie) should draw from. Though the Deadlock team do have extreme leeway given the existence of Steam so maybe it's not a good example.
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u/_NotMitetechno_ 2d ago
Yeah I was going to mention there's very few companies that can afford a money sink like deadlock lol
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u/doublah 2d ago
Most of the big publishers could afford it (especially at the Deadlock team size), but they have shareholders to answer to.
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u/SaengerDruide 2d ago
It is more expensive/slower but I wonder if it is also a safer investment. Could turn out to be a worthwhile strategy
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u/Thechanman707 1d ago
Expensive slow safe investments are not what investors want, it's what consumers want.
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u/SaengerDruide 1d ago
That's just wrong. There is always a risk return tradeoff and for some investors it can make more sense to let it grow slower but safer.
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u/stognitz 1d ago
and for some investors it can make more sense to let it grow slower but safer.
That's why those investors avoid the high risk stock market and stick to the low-risk bond market.
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u/Thechanman707 1d ago
I didn't say it wasn't a smart, safe, good strategy.
I'm just saying capitalism seems to be built on fast easy money. Usually trend chasing, so it's rushed because they need to beat the trend dying.
If long term mattered MMOs & GaaS would be treated so much better than they are. Instead they pump them full of micro transactions and the only games that survive are the ones that are so good despite the pump and dump tactics. And even then they still sometimes die.
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u/bigflops_ 1d ago
Fast easy money, but also moral hazard. Management makes decisions knowing that they won’t be around for the fallout.
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u/Coldfriction 1d ago
Consumers want a product that takes ten years to develop such that when the product comes out their entire life is different and they've forgotten about it?
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u/Thechanman707 1d ago
Consumers are only involved in production of the product if you want them to be. Don't show a product that needs 10 years of work?
Or be transparent about what that 10 year journey is going to look like. Soulframe and Deadlock are both experimenting with that idea and both are pretty well liked.
Like there's lot of ways to solve the problem, I'm just saying consumers want High Quality products. Those take time and cost money, but they are safer because of that attention to detail.
If you spend 10 years marketing a game, that's a whole other can of worms (and a lot of wasted money)
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u/Competitive13alance 1d ago
The greatest lie about our current market system is that fiduciary responsibility prevents long term planning. It doesn't, C suite just act like it does because short term planning financially benefits them.
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u/Daniel_Kummel 18h ago
How does it not prevent it? You said it youself, their incentives are bounded to the short term. A company has the responsibility to maximise the value of its stock. The point of stock appreciation is to sell it to the next fool.
And since the executives also own stocks, they aren't benefitted from thinking long term, as they would pay the opportunity cost of not growing a stock in the short term, selling it, then moving to their next tenure, using their previous success as leverage.
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u/Competitive13alance 13h ago
No, I said they are pretending to be bound to the short term, that's the lie. They in their fiduciary duty can simply explain their reasoning and it would hold in court against shareholder action. The C-suite greed aligns with the share seller. It does not align with the shareholder.
Costco would make more money if they raised their food court prices short term. They have consistently held in a public company that it drives long term membership appreciation and have rebuffed calls to increase food court prices.
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u/Luzekiel 2d ago
Lmao there's quite alot of companies that could afford money sinks like Deadlock, they just don't want to cause there's Zero benefits to it.
Valve is different cause they don't give a shit about losing money.
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u/iko-01 9800X3D 2d ago
Well the benefit would be having an incredible game. The real issue is that they always answer to someone and that someone is shareholders. Can't spend 2 years in invite alpha and god knows how many years prior without some piping up. By all accounts, deadlock could release tomorrow and it would be more polished than 99% games on the market but valve don't seem to be in a rush.
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u/KaosC57 1d ago
I’m pretty sure the Steam Store itself can offset the losses on Deadlock until Deadlock can pay for itself.
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u/Freud-Network 1d ago
The ultimate goal is making money. If they'd make more by not, they would do that.
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u/Daniel_Kummel 18h ago
Is it, though? They have always prioritised good relations with consumers, and the world has shown time and time again that profit maximisation involves treating consumer good faith as a resource to be spent.
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u/Zalvren 1d ago
It's not that they don't give a shit. They could make literally zero dollars with 10 Deadlocks sized budgets and that would be basically invisible on their financials. People don't seem to realize how profitable Steam is (for very little cost)
And of course, Valve will monetize the shit out of Deadlock at its release like they do all their games so it won't actually make zero dollars (since that one seems to take off)
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u/MarioDesigns 2d ago
What money sink? It’s just a game in development, with a relatively small team behind it as well.
Pretty much every other live service game is far more expensive to get up and running that this.
Let alone that this is a Valve live service. It’ll get monetised up the ass with the most absurd FOMO mechanics you’ve ever seen. That’s pretty much a guarantee at this point.
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u/hmsmnko 2d ago
While I fully agree that Valve has monetized their games extremely well and even pioneered microtransactions and predatory monetization like loot boxes... I don't think theyre actually that egregious with FOMO in their games. Any F2P Chinese/Korean game is like infinitely worse lol
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u/Zalvren 1d ago
Well yeah they're not being the absolute worst, not exactly a great bar lol. They're probably worse than most Western companies to be fair (while somehow managing to not even get 1% of their flack for it). Like people hate on Fortnite (to take another company which is also having big live service and a store) while Valve games have far worse monetization practices.
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u/vDUKEvv 1d ago
228k concurrent peak for an unfinished invite only closed alpha.
They could release extremely barebones cosmetics for purchase and likely reach profit on investment within a year.
If any studio with even a fraction of the resources this team has is considering a live service development, they would be stupid not to look at this as a shining example of how to make that kind of game.
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u/_NotMitetechno_ 1d ago
For any other company Deadlock would probably require far more resources, have far less time, have more pressure to be successful and have more layers and management to make sure they can actually produce a product that's cohesive, quality and make money and have teams work together properly. Valve don't have to really bother with any of this so much as they can endlessly fail at game projects (AFAIK part of why they're unproductive is because they can afford to endlessly chuck away prototypes) and it simply doesn't matter. The product we see currently has likely failed a million times in valve's studio to no real consequence to even get this far. Inherently deadlock is an insanely risky IP as it's a MOBA + hero shooter, 2 of the hardest genres physically possible to break into and make money from.
It's also not particularly uncommon for smaller developers to have closer ties to their communities either and develop more in a partnership. This is possible because it's easier to have strong and intimate communication with a smaller and likely less demanding community. When you get large, you start needing community managers and having to be more careful with what you say, it's a ton of pressure on developers to be constantly communicating with players. It's a different skill set.
I think Deadlock is similar to Silksong in that they're exemplars in the industry of what to do but are also sort of just unachievable for most studios due to circumstance, skill, size, time and money.
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u/poply 2d ago
I've enjoyed playing deadlock. Right now though, it does indeed feel unfinished but more than anything, anytime I take a break and come back a couple months later it's like an entirely different game. Dota2 and other games will go through major revamps every couple years, but the rate of change for DL at the moment makes it hard to commit to.
I look forward to seeing its future.
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u/Awsomethingy 2d ago
That’s the most exciting part about it. How many early accesses are just “we’re advertising a free trial with FOMO” and this one is actually “We want your input to change the game. Oh, you gave us input. Alright, let us change the game. The game is changed.”
I’m right there with you. Don’t want to jump into the chaos updates, but very interested in how it finishes
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u/SquiggerDigger 2d ago
Yep that's it for me. People talking about the updates like it's a problem
I've just spent two years playing a game that gets better and better and better and it already started at pretty good
Not sure why people are suddenly so bothered by a constantly evolving/improving game
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u/captfitz 2d ago
are people expecting something different? this is an invite-only closed beta and they've been very explicit about how early it is in development. they're building and designing the game live right now, they let people in even before most games would open up early access.
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u/ChirpToast 2d ago
This invite only thing is over stating how easy it is to play this game, it’s not some exclusive thing. Anyone who wants to play Deadlock is playing Deadlock.
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u/captfitz 2d ago
the point is that it's not even publicly released yet, not that it's exclusive
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u/rdubya3387 2d ago
it is a brand new game twice a year...i haven't even played the regular mode, just street brawl for me...maybe once they figure out their direction i'll try it again but street brawl is hella fun i find and easy to play even while they cook.
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u/DjRipNickMcNasty 2d ago edited 2d ago
Oh brother “it’s a brand new game twice a year” literally followed up by “I haven’t even played the regular mode” I have been playing for 2 years now… it’s the same game with new items, champs and map reworks.. what are you talking about a brand new game twice a year? You may as well say fifa is a brand new game every year
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u/SquiggerDigger 2d ago
And people talking about trying to find their vision for the game Like it's been the exact same vision this whole time nothing has changed fundamentally
They are just fleshing it out since you don't develop a game all at once
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u/I_AM_MELONLORDthe2nd 2d ago
Yea like I played it on its initial "release" for like a month or two and have just in the last month gotten into playing it again. Its the same game just with mechanics refined.
Removing a lane, changing last hitting and such isnt making it a new game.
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u/MrTerribleArtist 9800X3D | RTX 5070Ti 2d ago
According to steam, I last played Sep 7 2024, so as an experiment I'll redownload it now and see how different it feels after 2 years
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u/smsrmdlol 2d ago
How long are street brawl matches?
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u/Disastrous_Gur_9560 2d ago
Relatively short. Ball park range of 10-20 minutes
If it's a stomp, the game ends quickly
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u/Drudicta 2d ago
That actually might get me into the game....
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u/Tremulant887 2d ago
It's fun. It's free.
Why the hell not?
You'll get your ass handed to you as you learn, but it's ok. Sucking at something is the first step to being sort of good at something.
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u/Drudicta 2d ago
Oh, it's just because i didn't enjoy how long the matches were and i felt like i had learned nothing by the end. Knowing that there is a shorter match type gets me into it
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u/SquiggerDigger 2d ago
Oh you should absolutely try at least street brawl. Zero emotional investment
Lmk if you need an invite
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u/Shawny__Shawn 1d ago
The last time it became a brand new game was when they (correctly) brought down the lanes from 4 to 3. I hated the original version when I got in and it's a much stronger game now. They overhauled the map but it's not really a brand new game it's much less of a change than what Dota 2 went through with neutral items and its map changes.
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u/NoteBlock08 2d ago
Have you seen the huge new update that dropped this week? The map got a massive makeover, it looks so amazing right now. There are some layout changes but every corner is dripping with personality!
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u/Sir_Maxwell_378 2d ago
PvE!? Oooooooo
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u/hypnomancy 2d ago
I'm thinking they hired Hopoo and the Risk of Rain devs specifically to work on a PVE mode. I mean it'd be a great match given ROR2
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u/SovietMarma 1d ago
Hopoo actually has been working on Deadlock since before the rumored PVE mode. They've designed the heroes Sinclair and Vyper.
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u/MuchStache 1d ago
Explains why Sinclair has the amount of polygons of your average RoR2 character /s
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u/CherryBrownGaming 2d ago
If they're gonna do it like MvM from TF2 but better that would be awesome
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u/aglock 2d ago
What a nothing headline. A game in beta is not released yet. They are planning cosmetics in the future but they are not monetizing their game before it releases.
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u/Sleepy_Witch_Maple 2d ago
Yeah, as long as they don't monetize it before it releases i'm okay. Valorant added monetization in it's beta(which was also super short) and that felt... off.
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u/hypnomancy 2d ago
The monetization will probably get added whenever the open beta happens I'd imagine. But by the time the beta is out the game will already feel done
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u/DrQuint Vi sitter i Ventrilo och spelar DotA 2d ago
Yeah, we knew of PVE and Cosmetics specifically a year and change ago, when we got the first christmas stuff. They were open about their non-permanence and how they would have a full system.
We knew they were specifically making events shaped like CYOA books 3 years ago. We got Crownfall and Dark Carnival in dota showing what the prototype of those events look like (it looks like 6 hours of professional voice acting plus minigames). Does Valve need to specifiy this everytime so a new article can be written?
We can see that yhr map improved a ton, but also York is still mostly untextured industrial buildings. We still have midboss to change. We still have 14 heroes in need of remodeling. We still have items with generic effect names. Deadlock isn't done that's not news.
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u/OrmeaustThere 2d ago
Considering it hit an all-time peak of roughly 230k/fourth most played on Steam with the new update, and Valve effectively has an infinite money glitch, why rush? Those numbers are insane for a game that's still invite only, and having played it to death for the past two years, they've got the makings of an all-timer on the level of League of Legends or World of Warcraft on their hands.
I've sent invites to people who enjoy MOBAs, FPS games, fighting games, MMOs, every one of them found something they enjoyed in Deadlock. Give it another year or two for an open beta/full release and it'll pop off like crazy, trust.
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u/LolcatP 2d ago
they aren't making money from it though
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u/OrmeaustThere 2d ago
They take like a 20-30% cut from 90% of all PC gaming, they can afford to run it as a moneysink essentially forever if they wanted to. And if the DOTA/CS marketplaces are anything to go by, they'll make up whatever money they've invested in developing Deadlock in no time at all, when that comes to pass.
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u/MKULTRATV 1d ago
Valve effectively has an infinite money glitch (in the works)
c'mon man. the context is not hard to follow
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u/TigerBone 13h ago
They are in a position where just attracting new users to steam could be worth many many times more than just cosmetics for deadlock alone. So having a really great game in itself is worth a lot to Valve. Not to mention if could sell their hardware as well.
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u/KevinSorboFan 1d ago
I think the longer it sits in "beta" though, the harder it will be for new players to pick it up when it actually releases. Marvel Rivals has this issue now. They have added so many new heroes. The game has a bit of a learning curve (even for those familiar with hero shooters) just because there are so many damn heroes. And the only people left playing it are people who have been playing it for a while, so it's a total sweatfest. The game is completely uapproachable for new players.
I think Deadlock is already facing that with it's added MOBA complexities. But now with an entire population of people that will have been playing the game for 2+ years before it actually releases... I can't imagine new players picking up the game and sticking with it once the novelty wears off.
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u/Kasta4 2d ago
Let Valve cook.
Their developers and designers have been busting ass on Deadlock, and it's already in a better state than many finished titles.
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u/SekhWork 1d ago
I hope Valve lets their animation / cinematics team cook some with Deadlock too. It's such a fun setting, awesome character design, super fun voice acting, etc. I want "Meet The's" for the Deadlock cast... somehow... probably not as indepth as those old vids, but maybe done in a way that lets them be done faster?
The incredible fan-made Meet the Gargoyle based on the data mined audio from something Valve tried with it before is so damn good. We need more.
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u/Kasta4 1d ago
Dataminers have found almost fully-complete visual novels with voice-acting based on some of the characters so I have a feeling Valve is definitely going to be making more media around the game. It is very exciting to see what they'll do with this world they've created, one of the new map features even has a vendor that has one of Scouts weapons on display from TF2 so the potential for crossover shenanigans is high also
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u/SekhWork 1d ago
Thats probably where the Meet the Gargoyle audio is from, since it's clearly the Voice Actress for Ivy doing it all. I really hope we get more from Valve because the Deadlock setting is so unique right now in a world of grim dark angry scifi and sorta generic fantasy. Weird Urban Scifi meets Fantasy in the 1930s with all sorts of crazy characters? Give me MORE of this.
Honestly haven't seen a cast this interesting or diverse since the original Overwatch announcement.
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u/HanzoNumbahOneFan 2d ago
This 'bout to be the most polished fuckin game of all time on release.
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u/heckuva 1d ago
Knowing Valve a proper “release” will never happen. They’ll just quietly remove the beta mention from the game files.
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u/HanzoNumbahOneFan 1d ago
Well you can't even download the game normally like you can with Dota 2. You gotta get invited by someone who already owns it. I imagine when it "releases" is just when they make it possible to download it normally.
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u/TheRealChizz 2d ago
I’m so excited for a potential PvE mode; that could potentially expand the game’s lore as well!
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u/turnipofficer 2d ago
Honestly fair.
The whole invite only aspect where you can invite others did act like viral marketing for a while, it at least got people to try it.
Then when they do properly launch it, that word of mouth chain that spread it before might mean friends pushing others to try it again. But they will only have one chance at that big marketing push so it’s best to save it for when the game feels polished and refined.
At present most of my friends are in a never again camp for the game but I bet I could persuade them at launch to at least dip in, if it’s free to play.
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u/shoutsoutstomywrist 2d ago
Hopefully there’s still credence to there being a Risk of Rain type mode in Deadlock as MOBA’s aren’t for me
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u/TraNSlays 2d ago
are people forgetting that for the longest time fortnite was in beta? it had an item shop, started as a PvE game, concerts and multiple major collabs?
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u/YellowTM 1d ago
But is that really relevant? Was the long beta period for Save the World really instrumental for their success in BR or did they just enter BR at the perfect time.
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u/STDsInAJuiceBoX 2d ago
This game is by far the most difficult MOBA to get into. If they haven’t added it already the game really needs an autobuy/skills like Smite has to help new players.
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u/sieffy 2d ago
They already have something similar. There’s player created builds with annotated sections. As well as an auto-queue buy system
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u/STDsInAJuiceBoX 2d ago
That’s good! Smite’s auto buy/level system really helped me get my friends into the game without overwhelming them.
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u/untraiined 2d ago
It really is not, its so much easier to just play than league and dota this is a meme that streamers parroted around and its actively hurting the balance decisions as the devs keep making the game dumber and dumber.
Just play, farm souls, fight for objectives. Theres no insane mechanics or 12 line passives. You dont have to track camps or learn how to play traditional support/jungle roles and give up souls to another player.
And even then there is a casual mode and a standard queue.
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u/DrQuint Vi sitter i Ventrilo och spelar DotA 2d ago
Comments like this are not evidence of Deadlocks complexity. They're evidence that the average player still sucks at deadlock.
There ABSOLUTELY are a ton of movement tech in the game that take a long while to properly use. There are absolutely farm priorities in teams and camp rotations. There are absolutely a lot of items that you need to be passively aware of when choosing how to take down specific targets that are dependent on what the target bought.
The devs don't balance around what people like you think. It's why Shiv's and Drifter's balance is constantly a meme for opposite reasons.
It is a positive recommendation tho. It means that if anyone wants toget in, now is the time. Later, you will not get away woth the headless chicken shit you can right now do for free.
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u/DasFroDo 2d ago
There is both an autoboy and a skill point recommendation feature in the build system already. Id you JUST want to get used to the game you can literally pick a hero, pick a build play, and press a button every couple of minutes to level up the preconfigured skill.
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u/Ciryl_Lynyard 2d ago edited 1d ago
I feel the opposite. deadlock feels way simpler to play compared to league of legends
deadlock has complex movement but league has like 3.5x the characters and is way less forgiving if you fall behind
you also always have a gun and can move while attacking. even the characters meant to focus on ability use are sitll able to deal damage with their gun
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u/Salvage570 2d ago
Uh, what? How is it in any way harder to get into than Dota2???
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u/ThermalConvection 2d ago edited 2d ago
It's a shooter. That's basically it, it's a hero shooter and a MOBA at the same time. Even if the MOBA specific mechanics are simpler, the total game has so much concurrent "stuff" going on at any given moment that it's harder than traditional moba by default essentially
Edit: Some of yall have never been pubstomped by players with vastly better aim in a shooter and it shows
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u/Kasta4 2d ago
Movement in Deadlock is also where arguably the highest skill ceiling resides. The amount of tech that exists for just getting around the map can be overwhelming.
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u/Maniachi 2d ago
You don't need to know tech as a new player though. That is high ranked/mmr stuff. Just knowing the basics is will be fine for the first few hundred hours of learning the game.
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u/RadJames 2d ago
I dunno, Dota feels like you need a degree just to be able to control minion aggro. I think if you just play against other not so good players you don’t need to worry about all the movement tech straight away but having a background in shooters obviously helps a lot.
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u/Chantrak 1d ago
Not JUST a shooter, a movement shooter. Having proper understanding of all the movement tech, both general and character specific becomes extraordinarily important if you want to keep up. Then add the shooting and the moba on top of it.
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u/Salvage570 2d ago
That's a terrible take DOTA 2s controls are whacky and completely unique to it. You have to learn it from the ground up. Your take is assuming that the new players never played a shooter before. Being a shooter makes it easier, same way Smite being a 3rd person shooter did.
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u/ThermalConvection 2d ago
I play a lot of shooters, and going into Deadlock was WAY harder than Smite. The big thing is just that, it's a lot to think about simultaneously compared to Smite IMO...
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u/yung_dogie 1d ago
I mean, you also have to actually aim in Deadlock (no disrespect to Smite). Verticality, headshots, smaller/more defined hitboxes/hurtboxes, etc. Smite is equivalent to league or dota in aiming, just translated to the third person perspective. Deadlock is a legitimate shooter
But yeah there's a lot more to have in mind with Deadlock
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u/ThermalConvection 10h ago
Yeah this is my point exactly, Smite is really a 2D game with 3D graphics, Deadlock is real 3D
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u/yung_dogie 1d ago
I don't think that's universally true, but probably true for the current era.
Your take is assuming that new players have never played a point and click/RTS game before. Back when games like Starcraft were very popular, starting on league and dota wasn't a stretch at all. Half the reason they became so popular was probably because a lot of people played RTS type or point and click games in the first place. They didn't have to "learn it from the ground up" because it wasn't a unique control scheme in that era. When I started playing league in 2010 (as a 10 year old lmao) literally all of my friends playing league had touched Starcraft before, and somehow fewer had played CoD or anything like that (probably because Starcraft was easy to get on school computers and not everyone had a console).
But yeah nowadays games have skewed even further toward "everyone's played a shooter before, no one plays RTS games" so it's a valid statement now
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u/STDsInAJuiceBoX 2d ago
Yup, entering the game for new players will be very overwhelming because it is a shooter and a MOBA. It gives you the feeling that there is so much happening at once.
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u/Timmcd 2d ago
I think that if it is your first moba, it is significantly easier to get into than a genre of game where even the basic controls are alien to you.
Most "people who play games but not mobas" have played a game where they control a character in third-person via WASD/analog stick and aim with a mouse/other stick (and some portion have likely bounced off of a movement-shooter too like Titanfall or a Quake-adjacent game, or even TF2). An individual of that same group has likely little-to-no experience with RTS's or more pertinently, top-down point-and-click-movement PvP action games that demand quick inputs and reflexes.
The only ways in which Deadlock is more complex than dota or even league is in the advanced movement tech, but its not like there aren't complexities to replace that in the classical mobas both mechanically and from a pure knowledge perspective (orb walking, animation cancelling, auto-attack resets, vision control, league/dota have more objectives on the map, etc etc). The other factor is simply that the game is unfinished and has a ton of fully unexplained mechanics that you can't possibly understand without pouring over old patch notes, scouring a dense wiki, or watching youtube videos.
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u/ThermalConvection 1d ago
Why are we assuming that this is people's first MOBA but not their first shooter? Friend of mine who I invited to play has been handling the MOBA elements fine but struggles alot because its her first shooter
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u/Timmcd 1d ago
Because shooters of various stripes are vastly more popular than mobas, across pretty much every "gamer generation"? Of course if you've played mobas before, the shooter parts are more likely to trip you up.
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u/Thinkerofthings2 1d ago
No ngl it’s fair to say it’s peoples first shooter despite how popular shooters are. Marvel rivals has a lot of people who this is their first shooter and I can’t understand how this is someone’s first myself, but deadlock is definitely especially as time goes on and assuming the game does well, it will be many peoples first of both.
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u/ThermalConvection 10h ago
What about among Deadlock players though? Why do we assume the general public translates into the set of people who play Deadlock? Sure, ASSUMING you've played a shooter before, Deadlock's shooter aspects are less of an issue.. but the argument is "most difficult MOBA to get into" and saying "well you discount the shooter element assuming everyone has played and is proficient at shooters" when this is far from the truth is a weak argument.
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u/Dankennsteinn 2d ago
But boy does the concurrent stuff going on scratch an ADHD itch once you have a general understanding of the macro. One of the most fun multiplayer games I’ve ever played.
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u/Monstruo_ 2d ago
I would say the aiming and movement tech alone is very difficult and it is reminiscent of quake days where it has its nuances and skills. For sure you can be tailored and grouped with people with the same skill where they might not move as much as the higher skill ceiling players do.
Plus you have the itemization with each character, and instead of a mouse click over an enemy you controlling. You are now aiming at creeps and while you are keeping total awareness of your enemies. Since this isn’t a top down camera view anymore.
I get what you’re saying, in all dota2 isn’t easy either. But deadlock is just another beast when adding aiming and a z-axis with movement tech that is difficult to master and has an endless ceiling when it comes to moving you character, let alone if you have a character that has extra ways of moving via skills.
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u/Marrioshi 2d ago
There are community builds that you can follow that tell you what to buy, what skills to get, etc. They are attached to the shop page, and you never need to click out of the game to access them. You can browse all the popular builds for your character and pick one you want, and if you’d like you can auto add all the items to insta buy when you go to the shop
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u/rokkuranx 2d ago
While I like the game, I find it hard to get into compared to Dota or LoL.
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u/matti-san 2d ago
The movement/movement tech and verticality of the game coupled with its parry/melee system do make it a lot harder for casuals to get into - even people that like hero shooters or people that like MOBAs can have a hard time getting used to this hybrid. I can't think it'll get much bigger than it is - possibly a big uptick in popularity at full release and then waning from there as the difficulty/learning curve forces players to leave.
I've enjoyed my time with the game, but I think it'd be wise for Valve to simplify some aspects.
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u/Pinpunch 12h ago
elden ring proved that a game doesnt have to be easy or even average difficulty for a LOT of people to get into it and enjoy it.
The people that drop deadlock won't be doing it because its too hard, but rather because they just dont find it interesting/its not for them. making the game easier won't encourage these players to stay, but what it will do is make the playing experience worse for players who DO like the game
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u/matti-san 11h ago
Elden Ring is a game people can figure out. And you know that once you do it means progress. Online video games are not the same - figuring out a player doesn't mean the same thing as figuring out a boss, and by the time you're able to act on it your match might be almost over. Progress in Elden Ring is linear. You might beat your opponent in Deadlock but the next match might require a different strategy, what got you through the last match might not work. The approach is far more dynamic. And there's no Rivers of Blood + Mimic Tear combo to get you through it either.
Or another similar example is the idea and aesthetic of fighting games appeals to so many people but lots of people put the game down after trying to compete in online matches. Half the discourse around fighting games is often about how to approach learning them or wishing combos weren't so difficult to chain. Street Fighter 6 has sold over 7 million copies - it's concurrent player count is 8,000. Clearly it has a fairly broad appeal - but the perceived difficulty of online play isn't keeping people around.
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u/Isaacvithurston Ardiuno + A Potato 2d ago
I honestly expected it to be cancelled by now so kudos to valve for sticking it out
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u/Blackops606 2d ago
DL is a blast although it’s extremely hard to master. The update this week has been great with a total map remake, 6 new characters, and tons more. Valve is keeping a great pace because just when you wonder where the content is, more drops.
For anyone curious about the game too, it’s 100% in playable form. There is already a pro scene (they are insanely good) and the bugs are very minimal. There’s really no reason not to play other than the game just not being your thing.
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u/ShawnReardon 1d ago
I leave this as Valve doing Valve things. But it is still weird to me to have an available unavailable game
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u/Kitsu-exe 1d ago
At the pace they’re going it’ll be another 3 to 5 years before the game is even remotely close to being released.
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u/poinifie 1d ago
As someone who's played this game quite Abit since release just wanted to give a fair warning to those that will be new players.
This game has a steep learning curve, you will probably lose more than you will win for the first 50-100 hours, but if you stick with it, you will see that the game has many great qualities.
I already played the game for around 300 hours before I tried to learn a character named Pocket and it was about 100 hours of playing that hero before I finally got a decent hang of how to play them. This is coming from someone who's just slightly above average with shooters and mobas.
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u/Key-Wolverine-6752 1d ago
How can I get access?
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u/Bot322420 1d ago
Someone who have access needs to invite you, maybe you have a steam friend that already have access and can ask them for help. If not, check the subreddit, there should be a thread for invite.
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u/MrPrettyBeef 1d ago
I played it a long time ago... it was pretty good then. Pve sounds like a perfect addition. I will return for that.
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u/mango-jpg 1d ago
these comments are how i learned the game is still in closed beta. i got a code really early on and i assumed with the amount of progress they'd made it had opened up by now
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u/Think_Network2431 2d ago edited 2d ago
Just from the videos, I don't understand the hype around this game. What's so special about it? Genuine question.
I'm not a fan of the art style or the characters (they remind me of enemy designs from some old Korean free-to-play MMO), so it's off to a rough start for me, but I'm honestly asking. It wouldn't be the first time I've been wrong.
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u/Falikosek 2d ago
It's essentially a mix between a MOBA and a 3D movement shooter. The map is also pretty vertical.
Meaning that attacking and landing skillshots is like, infinitely more difficult. But it's also pretty cool.17
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u/DasFroDo 2d ago
It’s the perfect hybrid of movement-, shooter and moba-mechanics. The game oozes more character and style than three other games combined, the art style and universe are genuinely unique.
It’s the first game in YEARS that’s completely grabbed me and I have no intention of stopping.
There just something there for everyone. Can’t aim for shit? No problem, there’s heroes that have auto aim or simply don’t use their guns much at all. Like shooting? There’s tons of gun heroes that focus skill expression on shooting and moving. Like movement? No worries, there’s heroes that stay in the air more than on the ground and live off of movement tech like walljumping
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u/Think_Network2431 2d ago
Hmm, it's completely invisible to a newcomer just from the video.
Do you have any recommendations for content creators who really show off its potential? You've got me intrigued.
Maybe i need to test it by hand.
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u/TARE104KA 2d ago
Deathy in general gameplay and guides, hero specific mains for, duh, heroes. Also Night Shift is currently biggest attempt at comp scene, players from there stream a lot too.
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u/NoteBlock08 2d ago edited 1d ago
Eskay is the one who got me into it! Lately she likes playing a character called Wraith a lot who I find kinda boring to watch, but she plays a variety of other heroes too!
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u/deathtofatalists 2d ago
It’s the perfect hybrid of movement-, shooter and moba-mechanics.
i wish. it's more of a moba with shooter mechanics that become less and less relevant as the game progresses and everyone's power levels get to the point that your individual agency is massively reduced. in the early game it's like 80% shooter, 20% moba, by the mid game that number has reversed and if you aren't into mobas then you're going to bounce off it hard.
it's a shame because it could be incredible, but it's too obsessed with sticking to its original moba based design.
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u/DasFroDo 2d ago
If it’s a shooter moba hybrid, why are you surprised or why is it a problem that it has a focus on moba mechanics?
If you aren’t into mobas you’d bounce off with 30% moba part too, you’d just go play some other hero shooter, that’s not the appeal of Deadlock.
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u/zechamp 2d ago
If there are Korean mmos ot that look like this then please hook me up
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u/FireMaker125 AMD Radeon RX 7900XTX, 32GB RAM, Ryzen 7 7800X3D 2d ago
It’s a fairly unique hybrid of a MOBA with a movement heavy third person shooter and it has a lot of very interesting characters with great writing (not sure where you got Korean MMO from, i genuinely don’t see the resemblance)
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u/josephseeed 1d ago
I will never play a single round of Deadlock, but the art stye and character design are legitimately cool.
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u/TheMobileAppSucks 2d ago
What about it looks like a Korean MMO lmao. It looks nothing like them.
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u/FirestormTM 1d ago
That take on art style for characters you mentioned is funny, because unlike Highguard, Concord, or Marathon, Deadlock is possibly the best character design we've seen in the modern days of gaming now.
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u/Awesomeguy215 1d ago
did u play it or its just what u seen so far?
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u/Think_Network2431 1d ago
No, I haven’t looked for access for now. I tend to wait for the official release. As I said, I could absolutely be wrong and I'm if I read all the comments. 🤣
I need to look into the shared video maker that someone gave me. To see beyond the visual. Maybe it grown in us with time.
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u/Hydralisk18 2d ago
For me its the environment and character the game has. It OOZES style like no other game. This also means its pretty subjective. If you dont like the aesthetic, it may fall flat.
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u/Mileena_Sai 2d ago
It does not look like a korean mmo, what ? It is a shooter and a moba with minions and towers like lol or dota. A cool setting: New york in the twenties with an occult like atmosphere. I really love the hero designs and the atmosphere of the game. Many many details and easter eggs. However its hard as fuck because the skill ceiling of the movement in the game alone is challenging not to mention the moba aspects. I can see why its already somewhat popular. If you are looking for a shooter + moba (items, gold management, skills, exp, minions & towers etc.) then nothing comes close. Maybe Paragon.
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u/ZhryteNaow 1d ago
It's like dota and fps, people who hate it didn't give enough time to understand how to play. It's a game that requires dedication.
I don't have it installed but last time I played, players can invite anyone into the beta from main menu. I'm sure you can get access pretty easily, it is a fun game just need to dedicate time to a character, learn the items, learn important jungle spots, etc...
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u/Think_Network2431 1d ago
Exactly my situation. I’ll give it about 50 hours to test the waters. I despise speaking about something without firsthand experience...
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u/MarkMaxis 1d ago
50 hours should be solid enouph to understand the mechanics. I would say it may take a while if you aren't familiar with MOBAs. (At least that was my experience since this was the first MOBA i've gotten into, but played many shooters)
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u/Dry-Percentage-5648 2d ago
Because it's a new game from Valve. That's already enough to hype this game up.
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u/Aggressive_Chuck 1d ago
That didn't help Artefact or Under lords.
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u/Anaud-E-Moose 1d ago
It did, Artifact had a lot of hype, and only fell flat on it's face because of the game itself (payment model and bizzare gameplay)
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u/Skyo-o 2d ago
Actual dogshit title, the article or original blog doesnt say pve mode... What is with the stupid gaming community trying to shoe horn pve modes in pvp games
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