Concord‘s $400 million blunder was alarming for AAA gaming and multiplayer live-service games in general. New hero shooters are now a minefield for any game studio, as was proven by Concord and to a certain extent, Blizzard’s Overwatch 2. So it can be puzzling why Valve chose what appeared to be a hero shooter, Deadlock, as its next big project. Still, you likely have nothing to worry about based on certain key differences.
Deadlock has already gained significant traction and a huge following even though it’s not out yet. After all, its developer, Valve doesn’t release games too often. For those afraid that Valve might repeat the same or similar mistake as Concord or Overwatch 2 did, you can take solace in the fact that Deadlock is not exactly a “hero shooter.”
First and foremost, Deadlock, while bearing a close semblance to a hero shooter, is leaning more towards its MOBA side, making it more akin to DOTA 2 or League of Legends. In fact, it’s closer to something like SMITE since Deadlock assumes a third-person view of the environment.
Don’t Play it Like a Hero Shooter Deathmatch
Deadlock does share some similarities with Concord and Overwatch 2, such as the 6v6/5v5 tug of war, unique heroes with their own abilities, and the generally ranged combat, but it ends there. Deadlock, like most MOBAs, is going to have ‘creep’ or ‘minion’ enemies controlled by the AI in lane fights with the goal being the destruction of the enemy base. In essence, Deadlock is going to be purely a MOBA, but in a third-person view.
That very well means Deadlock is filling a gaming industry niche that’s less competitive since it’s not going to be a hero shooter. If anything, Deadlock will compete with SMITE and SMITE 2, not with Overwatch 2, Valorant, or Apex Legends– all of which are established titles that ensured Concord didn’t stand a chance.
The fact that too many people are comparing Deadlock more to Overwatch than SMITE is a clear sign that third-person MOBAs are a lot less known. The sub-genre is essentially a gap in the gaming market.
Seeing as it’s vying for a less competitive market, Deadlock might just avoid committing the same fatal error as Concord did which is boldly entering an oversaturated market (and with a $40 price to boot). More importantly, Deadlock is supposedly IceFrog’s project. For those who don’t know, IceFrog is one of the creators of the original DOTA mod for Warcraft 3 and went on to work with Valve to develop DOTA 2. That should indicate more than enough hope for Deadlock.
