Another win for Deadlock.
Valve’s Deadlock continues to break its concurrent player record following the release of its newest hero, Deadman Danny. His arrival saw the game reach a peak of 275,452 concurrent players, an increase of more than 13,000 from its previous record last week.
Deadman Danny was the fourth-most-voted hero to join the game as part of the City Never Sleeps update, following Rat King, Baba, and Solomon. The next player choice, either Violet or Nurse Harrow, is set to join the game on Friday, 16 October.
Deadlock
Release date: TBA (playable through invite-only access)
Platform: PC (Steam)
Developer: Valve
What are Deadman Danny’s abilities?
Deadman Danny is a valuable salesman from Fairfax Industries who wields a jetpack and demonstrates the company’s explosive technology through his abilities. He has a hovering movement style, courtesy of his jetpack. His weapon deals minimal damage with regular hits but can be charged for more explosive damage.
Deadman Danny’s abilities are:
Strix Salvo: Launches a salvo of spirit missiles that embed themselves in the ground along a line. The missiles explode after a delay or when they detect an enemy, marking the target and dealing spirit damage. Shooting a marked enemy with a charged shot consumes the mark, dealing bonus spirit damage and applying a fading slow.
Chimera Mk1: Hold SPACE to fly using your jetpack, which builds up heat over time. Once the heat gauge is full, the jetpack overheats and sends you crashing to the ground. You deal damage if you hit an enemy, but if you fail to hit a hero, you will be stunned. Press 2 to dive early before overheating.
Jettison Fuel: Sprays fuel at enemies in front of you, dealing weapon damage over time and reducing their bullet resistance. This builds towards a powerful backblast that deals spirit damage and knocks you backwards.
Close the Deal: Grabs an enemy and flies high into the air before crashing back to the ground. Both you and the enemy take spirit damage over time during the fall, followed by additional spirit damage on impact. The damage dealt to enemies is increased if they have less than 50% health.
Deadman Danny pushes Deadlock to a new concurrent player record
Deadlock’s City Never Sleeps hero release campaign has been a resounding success, with each new hero attracting an influx of players.
The update introduced a major map overhaul and plenty of quality-of-life improvements, alongside a lineup of six upcoming new heroes. It also propelled Deadlock to a new concurrent player record, surpassing the peak recorded when the game’s playtest first opened to the public in 2024.
Deadlock’s reach continued to expand in consecutive weeks as new heroes arrived. Rat King’s entry saw the game reach a peak of 228,208 players, followed by Baba, who pushed the figure to 236,730. Solomon, a highly-anticipated chess-themed character, joined the game last week and attracted around 25,000 additional players at its peak.
Deadman Danny has continued this pattern, bringing Deadlock’s latest concurrent player record to 275,452. It remains to be seen if the game's next heroes, Violet and Nurse Harrow, can continue this upward trend.
Valve’s MOBA-shooter hybrid has attracted considerable attention despite remaining unreleased. Since the update, Deadlock has consistently ranked among Steam’s top 10 most-played games, drawing player numbers comparable to titles such as Apex Legends, ARC Raiders, and AION 2
