Deadlock springs back to life with transformative new update, adding six heroes

It's been a hot minute since Valve's upcoming shooter, Deadlock, had a major update - six months, in fact. The streets of the Cursed Apple have been looking a little bit dusty as of late, as the developer-publisher's offered a little tweak here, and a small balance change there. Now, the city's received a fresh coat of paint, and six new heroes have moved in.

Deadlock's been simmering away nicely in the background for the past year. I more than put my hours in when it entered early access last August, but, like many, I fell off as the limited roster grew stale. I hopped back in when we saw Holiday and co. graduate from Hero Labs in January and immediately fell in love with weird frog-snake thing Vyper. It's clear that one of the best multiplayer games of recent times has been moving in the right direction, and I was glad to see the shift from four lanes to three in February's update.

As an early access title, I was more than happy to grant leniency on Deadlock's unfinished visuals. But it's no secret that the Cursed Apple lacked the je nais se quois needed to really establish its mood. The lighting in particular was missing the polish and dynamism to really make it pop, and it all felt a bit flat.

With the new update, Deadlock is finally projecting its visual identity with the grit and panache its Gotham-esque metropolis needed. It is stunning. While I'm often critical of menus being replaced by empty social hub spaces - hi, Killing Floor 3 - Deadlock's new Hideout adds to its spookily macabre atmosphere. Here, you can try out new heroes in the practice range, hop into matches, or even head into the cinema room to watch ongoing games. Valve says that there are future opportunities to provide "personalization, achievements, and events" to the area, which is great to see.

Speaking of heroes, the new patch adds half-a-dozen new eggs to the basket, though you can't play all of them just yet. Currently, the vampy Mina (is that bag Louis Bit-ton?) is the only Deadlock character you can try out, though Valve says a new addition is coming every other day; you can vote on who you want to get your mitts on next in the Hideout. The incoming roster also includes Billy the demonic goat, bookmancer Paige, a bloke ominously known as 'The Doorman,' the monstrous Victor, and the Spring-Heeled Jack-adjacent Drifter.

The hero selection screen's also had a makeover, seemingly taking its style inspo from the gorgeously stylized menus prevalent in Atlus' Persona games. Deadlock feels like a much more complete package now, and I can't wait to tweak my Deadlock crosshair for the billionth time and get my reps in when the Gamescom rush has passed.

If you're not quite ready to give the new-look Deadlock a go, check out more of the most promising upcoming PC games ahead of the full Deadlock release date. While Valve remains coy on when it'll leave early access, this latest update is a sure sign we're getting close.

If, like me, you're trying to be totally normal about Mina (she can fix me, I swear), then zip into our community Discord server and let us know.