Valve's new MOBA-shooter Deadlock is making waves with two significant developments: the addition of a renowned indie developer to its team and a critical bug fix that restores game balance.
Risk of Rain Co-Creator Joins Deadlock Team
Duncan Drummond, co-creator of the popular Risk of Rain series, has officially joined the development team for Valve's Deadlock. This news comes after Hopoo Games, the studio behind Risk of Rain, announced its merger with Valve last month. Drummond's expertise in third-person shooters and itemized progression systems from Risk of Rain is expected to be a valuable asset to Deadlock's development.
Game-Breaking Shop Bug Patched Out
In a swift response to a recently discovered exploit, Valve has released a patch addressing a critical bug in Deadlock. The exploit allowed players to activate certain abilities by shooting at in-game shops, providing unfair advantages such as out-of-combat healing and pre-fight ability stacking. This fix demonstrates Valve's commitment to maintaining competitive integrity in Deadlock.
Additional Updates and Improvements
The latest patch also includes several other enhancements:
- Reduced initial respawn time from 12 to 8 seconds
- Increased outer lane zipline speed by 20%
- Fixed an issue with Mirage's Traveler ability and spirit urns
These changes aim to improve game flow and balance across different areas of the map.
Ongoing Development and Player Base
Despite being in early development, Deadlock continues to attract over 100,000 daily players on Steam. This high engagement provides Valve with substantial feedback and stress testing opportunities, enabling rapid identification and resolution of issues like the shop bug.
As Valve continues to refine Deadlock, players can expect frequent updates, new heroes, and potential changes to core mechanics leading up to the game's full release. The addition of experienced developers like Drummond suggests that Valve is investing significant resources into making Deadlock a standout title in the competitive multiplayer shooter market.