Valve's MOBA hero shooter hybrid Deadlock has set a new all-time concurrent user record on Steam, reaching 262,145 players and overtaking Team Fortress 2's previous peak of 253,997 from 2023. The milestone is particularly striking given that the game remains in limited access through a friend referral program and has not yet entered full release.
The surge in players coincided with the introduction of Solomon, a new playable character whose design centers on chess mechanics. Solomon transforms a portion of the map into a playable chessboard where players can deploy a knight to grant allies protective barriers or launch rooks as projectiles against opponents. The character's ultimate ability levels the entire grid, and reloading simply resets the board. The character's arrival marks the halfway point in a rollout of six new heroes being added to the game.
Current Standing On Steam
Deadlock now ranks as the fifth most-played game on Steam by concurrent users. Only Counter-Strike 2, Dota 2, PUBG: Battlegrounds, and AION 2 maintain higher player counts, with Deadlock sitting at approximately 262,000 concurrent players compared to Counter-Strike 2's 1.2 million and Dota 2's 917,000. The game has surpassed established titles including Apex Legends, Rust, and Arc Raiders. In terms of all-time peak concurrent players across Steam's entire history, Deadlock ranks at number 71.
Ongoing Hero Releases And Player Choice
Beyond Solomon, three additional heroes have already entered the game as part of the City Never Sleeps update. Baba is described as a notorious pigeon lady who steals enemy spirits using a spool of yarn, while the Rat King summons a loyal mischief of rats to swarm opponents. Players will vote next Tuesday at 2pm PDT to determine which of the remaining heroes gets added next, giving the community direct input into the release schedule.
Development Status And Future Changes
Valve has indicated that Deadlock remains firmly in active development with substantial work still ahead before the game reaches full release. Following the Old Gods New Blood update, the studio decided to focus on core gameplay improvements rather than moving into the polish phase, which would include tasks like updating older hero artwork. The development team is working on multiple systems in parallel rather than concentrating efforts on individual update components.
Progression systems and hero customization options are currently being tested and refined based on player feedback before the official launch. Item redesigns and additions are under consideration, along with alternate game modes that would expand the game's scope. Valve noted that some experimental features remain speculative, with their inclusion dependent on how playtesting results develop, though early results have been promising. This means the version players experience today could differ substantially from what releases officially.
The studio emphasized that features like progression and customization are being deliberately kept flexible during development so they can be adjusted and significantly changed based on community response before the game leaves early access. This approach reflects Valve's intention to use the limited access period to gather extensive feedback that will shape the final product.
Related Articles
About the Author
