Valve Shooter Deadlock Already Has a Cheater Problem

Valve shooter Deadlock already has a cheater problem, with clips posted online showing players curving bullets around walls, automatically targeting enemies, and more.

As reported by 80 Level, Reddit user MintDoe posted a game replay which appears to show myriad cheaters participating in a Deadlock match. The clip opens with the accused perfectly timing a jump to avoid an unseen Lightning Ball before opening fire immediately upon a wall where their opponents emerge from.

This is a classic symptom of an aim bot mod, a cheat which automatically targets enemies even before they’re visible to the player. This was even more evident when the focus switched to sniping character Vindicta.

Her crosshair of her gun was lined up directly through a wall in front of her, with no players visible, yet the bullets would hit them regardless. “She’s just pulled a Wanted,” one of the players commentating said, as the clip was paused to show the bullet changing direction in mid air.

Reddit users in the comments insisted on the importance of reporting these cheaters, though MintDoe noted the direct reporting feature available in Deadlock doesn’t actually let players choose cheating as an option. It can instead only be done through the official Deadlock Discord channel.

Deadlock is a six versus six, third-person hero shooter with a Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA) twist, taking inspiration from genre classics such as Leage of Legends, Dota 2, and Heroes of the Storm.

Valve seemingly looked to keep it a secret for weeks despite data showing that thousands of players were already online, but has now acknowledged its existence proper with an official Steam page. The game is invite only, however, with players only able to join if invited directly by Valve or referred by someone already playing.

It’s a certified hit despite this, having already crossed 100,000 concurrent players. Data from player tracking website SteamDB shows Deadlock crossed the 100,000 milestone on August 29, 2024, with exactly 106,447 players online at the same time.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.