Valve has released the first major patch for Deadlock since it was revealed and it’s a big one, with a lot of changes to the map, items and heroes, including a big rework for one of them.
The biggest changes in the patch notes are for the map, which remains the same shape and size, some things players have called to change, but a number of things have been added to make traversal easier. Many of the taller buildings now have ropes, like you would find in Valorant, to climb up to the top of them. As you climb you can still fire your weapon, so this should be great for escapes and allow the less mobile characters to get some height. Some of the vertical bounce pads have been replaced by these.
The other big map change is to teleporters, with four of them changing location and another two being added. The two new teleporters can be found in the outerlanes at the mid-point. However, now all teleporters are closed until the 10-minute mark, and the new model for them will show them as being closed until that point.
Valve has also added a wall jump mechanic to further increase your movement abilities and make it easier to get around the map, which seems to be a theme for this update. It does not consume any stamina and requires you to do a directional jump away from a wall. This again should make getaways a lot easier.
When it comes to Deadlock heroes, a lot of them get some changes, but seemingly the biggest is to Viscous who gets a mini rework after feeling a little underwhelming compared to others. His primary fire is now easier to use and does more damage, but he now also has a secondary fire that has limited range but deals AOE damage. A lot of his damage numbers have been rescaled and in some cases buffed, so now he should pack more of a punch when it comes to group combat.
The full Deadlock patch notes also include big changes to the likes of Gray Talon, Abrams and my boy Kelvin, who seems to mostly be getting buffs which is good news for me!
The patch comes as Deadlock broke it’s concurrent player record, breaking the 100,000 player barrier last night despite being invite only. To get a Deadlock invite you have to be selected by a friend who has access, but it feels like the game should open up to everyone very soon.
