In the second half of August, Valve officially unveiled its new game, the team-based shooter Deadlock. The game, similar to Dota 2 and Overwatch, has already attracted the attention of tens of thousands of Steam users, and the peak of online action continues to grow.
At first glance, the new game seems very simple, but in fact the shooter has many mechanics that may seem incomprehensible to beginners. In this material we will share all the details of the project, analyze the basic mechanics and help you adapt to Deadlock.
Related materials
We play Deadlock: this is Valve’s new shooter for Dota 2 and Overwatch fans
Deadlock: Game information
Name: Deadlock Platforms: personal computer Developer:Valve Editor:Valve release date: a stranger Gender: third-person online action, MOBA Launch in Russia: will come out.
How to access the neutral point
Currently, you can play Deadlock only after receiving an invitation from a friend who is already participating in the shooter’s tests. But if you don’t have any friends with access to the game, Steam users will come to the rescue and give you invitations simply to add them as friends.
To get an invitation, go to the Deadlock Community Hub discussions on Steam using this link, after which we find a thread that distributes invitations, add the author as a friend and wait for the coveted message about joining the tests. This usually takes several hours.
Deadlock provides 12 hours of daily preventive maintenance. Because of this, the game is only available from 16:00 Moscow time to 04:00 Moscow time on weekdays and from 12:00 Moscow time to 04:00 Moscow time on weekends.
Stalled discussions with threads for getting game invites
Photo by: Steam
Optimal graphics settings in Deadlock
Before launching the game, it is advisable to look at the game settings, paying close attention to the graphics. Even in its current state, Deadlock supports FSR2 image scaling technology – it is suitable for those who want to increase the frame rate without sacrificing the image a bit.
Render quality can be set in the range of 75% to 80%, but it is advisable to leave the texture quality on “high”. Shading looks good on medium-low settings, but it is better to disable vertical sync to reduce input lag.
The remaining items can be examined directly in the menu by hovering over them: pay attention to the indicators that greatly affect performance and reduce them to achieve a comfortable 60 FPS or more.
Optimal balance between quality and performance
Photo by: Valve
Deadlock’s First Release: What to Look For
Right after launching and preconfiguring the graphics, it is best to learn the basics of the game. To do this, select “Go to training” and perform basic tasks where you can test the overall performance and understand the basic mechanics of the shooter.
After completing the training, you can go to the Sandbox and try out the characters. First, pay attention to each hero’s skills – their preview can be seen in a small window when you hover over them.
Try to at least basically evaluate each character: even if you are not going to play for this or that hero, you will definitely meet him in the match. Understanding in advance what to expect from a particular warrior is one of the keys to victory in Deadlock.
Related materials
We play Deadlock: this is Valve’s new shooter for Dota 2 and Overwatch fans
Best heroes for beginners: how to make character a priority
There are currently 21 heroes in Deadlock, each with unique characteristics and abilities. As in other team-based shooters, characters are unofficially divided into classes: some are ideal for killing opponents, others are great at absorbing damage and can fight on the front lines, and others act as support – they can heal the entire team or create ideal conditions for destroying the enemy.
The easiest heroes to master are marked with a special green icon. They are now: melee warrior Abrams, robots Bipop and Dynamo, fire lord Infernus and ice support Kelvin, engineer McGinnis and machine gunner Mist, as well as sniper Reckoning, electro warrior Seven, archer Gray Claw and machine gunner Shadow.
First, take a closer look at these heroes, having first tested them in Sandbox mode. Choose three or four main characters and hone your skills for them: to do this, before you start looking for a match, you need to right-click on them and select priority.
The purple frame is the highest priority, use it for the hero you want to play the most. Leave the orange frame for a spare hero, who you can play at a high level, and highlight heroes with a white frame for those cases when your favorite characters are taken by other players.
Select priority heroes before the start of the match.
Photo by: Valve
How to stop your hair from creeping out and get more souls.
Farming mechanics in Deadlock are very similar to Dota 2: the core economy is based on killing creeps. The reward for destroying them is split into two types: for landing the final blow and for killing the soul that has flown out of the unit.
The second point is especially important for a competent laner, because the enemy hero can also finish off the expelled soul. If he does this, he will not only deprive you of the additional reward, but will also keep it for himself. Therefore, in the lane you need to constantly monitor all creeps and constantly put pressure on your opponents, depriving them of their precious souls and gaining additional farms.
Additional souls can be used directly in the lane, purchasing additional upgrades and quickly demolishing the enemy tower.
Green souls dropped after the death of monsters, heroes and buildings.
Photo by: Valve
How to buy upgrades and where are the secret shops?
There are no such elements in Deadlock; instead there are improvements in three categories. So, Weapon responsible for the damage and speed of the shots, Vitality – for health and endurance, and Mysticism Increases damage and effectiveness of skills. Each stat has four slots to level up; additional slots can be unlocked by destroying quadripods near the enemy base.
Upgrades are purchased in special shops, marked with large green icons on the map; they can be found near each of the four lines. Additionally, there is a shop right at the base where items can be purchased even if the character has not yet been revived.
To buy, you must accumulate a certain amount of souls and press the button B on your keyboard. A menu will open with various power-ups; then the choice is yours.
Upgrade shop near the orange line
Photo by: Valve
What to buy and how to choose the best construction
Deadlock has dozens of different upgrades, divided into three groups; we talked about them in the previous paragraph. The correct setup, taking into account the enemy’s skills and the hero’s capabilities, is a key factor in winning the game, so you should approach your setup with the utmost responsibility.
To make things simple, Deadlock already has ready-to-use community builds that are suitable for beginners. Press a key on the keyboard BGo to the “Builds” tab, click “View Builds” and select one of the popular builds under the “From the Community” item. There, the setting can be added to Favorites so that it becomes the default setting in subsequent fights.
Not all popular builds are suitable for the chosen hero. Many of the best builds were created before the first patches, in which hero skills were changed and balance was corrected. Therefore, pay attention to what exactly this or that buff brings and adapt to the match situation.
Builds (left) for the archer hero Gray Claw
Photo by: Valve
Neutral Creeps: When to Farm Them and Whether Roshan is Worth Killing
The Deadlock map contains neutral warriors who do not attack players on their own. They are meant to farm with heroes in moments when there is free time and all lanes have already been cleared.
Common neutral creeps located near the lanes do not pose a threat even to low-level characters – they can be killed right at the laning stage. It is worth going with your teammates to kill more powerful red units at a later stage of the game, and it is better to destroy the local Roshan – an extremely dangerous monster in the center of the map – with the whole team animated.
For defeating him, all party members will receive a skill upgrade point and a reduced cooldown after the next death.
The local Roshan does not yet have a name; in-game he is referred to as the Boss in the center of the map.
Photo by: Valve
How to destroy defensive towers and demolish the enemy base
Unlike Dota 2, the mechanics of destroying defensive structures in Deadlock are a bit different. By default, guards and quads are invulnerable to any type of damage; they remain in this state until allies approach them.
As soon as this happens, you should shoot at a weak point in the structure – critical shots are marked with larger, brighter damage numbers. In the early stages of the game, do not rush to spend all your resources on towers – many heroes in shooters have cunning skills that can punish excessive aggression.
To destroy the enemy’s throne, you must first destroy two protective modules, which are located on opposite edges of the base. After this, you must destroy the enemy structure twice and end the game in your favor.
Enemy quadropod on the brink of destruction
Photo by: Valve
Related materials
“Heroes of Might & Magic” will return in 2025: Heroes of Might & Magic: Olden Era announced
