Deadlock’s testing phase started in late 2023, although exact dates and initial numbers are unknown. At some point, likely in May 2024, a true private test began. It seems that the first 2,000 or more testors from this were directly invited either by Valve or by existing testors. This is when Deadlock first became known to the world, as public tracking via websites like Steam DB.
Within days, the first leaks had emerged. These leaks showed characters, the gameplay, and more, but details were still scarce. At this time those few thousand players with access began forming the first communities. , private YouTube channels, , and Steam Groups started to be formed. While initially restricted to those with access, these communities quickly grew to include theory crafters, casters, pro players from other games, and more.
Then, in late July, a more public friend-invite system was implemented, and a surge in players began. Between July 28 and Aug. 18, the player count rose from around 2,500 to in excess of 44,000. Players who joined the beta during this time were asked to not leak details via a simple dialog box. However, it was during this time that The Verge, on Aug. 13 published , causing controversy, and reportedly leading to a matchmaking ban of the account associated with the journalist.
On the 23rd of August, Valve went public with Deadlock for the first time, publishing a Steam page that just about met minimum guidelines, and a blog post. More importantly, it lifted the ban on Streaming and making videos about the game, causing the streaming numbers for the title to jump enormously. The game jumped from zero to over 100,000 viewers on Twitch, similar to a AAA game release day. What’s more, the invites started flowing. Less than a week later, the game had hit 100,000 concurrent players. As we entered September, the game threatened to hit 200,000 users with each passing week, and the number of installations is likely far higher.
Since this soft announcement and release, the game has progressed in a more traditional early access development path. During early days of the beta, online matchmaking was based on timing, with the European servers open later, and US servers starting a little too late for some East Coast players. Now there’s 24-hour matchmaking. There’s blog posts on Steam when new features are added, but still no big promotion. An expected trailer and reveal at The International 2024 never materialized, and Valve hasn’t even really updated its store page since Aug. 23. This doesn’t feel like a marketing campaign, but equally, this is a far more polished game than you’d expect in a beta test. And the game is still beating out day one releases on Steam. So what’s going on?
