Valve’s unreleased MOBA Deadlock has just set a new Steam concurrent player record. On October 9 the game reached 262,145 simultaneous players. That figure edges past Team Fortress 2’s previous all-time high of 253,997, which the classic shooter hit in July 2023.

The surge came during the City Never Sleeps update. Valve is adding six new heroes through community votes. The latest is Solomon, a calm chess master who treats the battlefield like a board. His weapon is a chessboard that rearranges into historical game positions based on remaining ammo when he reloads. His abilities include placing bishops that create damaging diagonal squares, promoting allies into knights that gain barriers and invulnerable L-shaped dashes, sending charging rooks, and dropping a queen ultimate that stuns and locks down enemies in a checkmate.

Still Invite-Only

Deadlock remains in invite-only testing. Players can only join through friend invitations from existing testers. Valve has not announced an official launch date, and the current build still uses temporary art and work-in-progress mechanics. Even with restricted access the game has grown steadily and now ranks among Steam’s most played titles.

Gameplay and What Makes It Special

What sets Deadlock apart is its hybrid design. It is a 6v6 third-person game that mixes MOBA lane pushing with shooter gunplay and high mobility. Two teams fight across three themed lanes in an occult version of New York called the Cursed Apple. Players earn souls by last-hitting troopers and clearing camps. Souls serve as both currency and experience, so you buy items that boost your weapon damage, vitality, or spirit power. Each hero has unique abilities, and the item shop supports flexible builds instead of fixed roles.

Movement feels fluid. Characters can double jump, slide, parry melee attacks, and ride ziplines while shooting. The mix of strategic farming, precise aim, and team coordination rewards both mechanical skill and decision making. Many players describe the feel as roughly 80 percent MOBA and 20 percent hero shooter, with verticality layered on top of classic objectives.

The final goal is to destroy the enemy Patron. Teams must first clear lane structures such as Guardians and Walkers before they can push into the base and win. Matches usually last 20 to 40 minutes, though close games run longer.

What a Full Launch Could Mean

Because access is still limited, the current peak is already notable. A full launch could push the numbers higher if the invite system expands or the game becomes free to play. Valve has kept updating based on player feedback, adding heroes, map changes, and ranked modes while preserving the core loop.

For now Deadlock holds a rare position. It has already outpaced one of Valve’s longest-running multiplayer successes on Steam without leaving testing. Whether the numbers hold after an official release remains open, but the early interest shows clear demand for this hybrid style of play.