# Valve Deadlock player count growth

> Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/valve-deadlock-player-count-growth
> Updated: 2026-10-12T09:33:00.000Z. Sources: 14. Developments: 3.

Valve’s unreleased hero shooter, Deadlock, has experienced significant growth in its concurrent player count on Steam. Following the ‘City Never Sleeps’ update, which introduced map overhauls, interface improvements, and six new heroes, the game reached a record of 228,086 concurrent players. This surge more than doubled its previous peak of approximately 99,000 players.

By October 2026, Deadlock’s popularity continued to climb, reaching a peak of 262,145 concurrent users on October 9, 2026. This milestone allowed the title to surpass the all-time peak concurrent player record previously held by Team Fortress 2, which set a record of 253,997 players in 2023. 

As of mid-October 2026, Deadlock has become one of the most-played titles on Steam, ranking as the fifth most-played game overall, trailing Counter-Strike 2, Dota 2, PUBG: Battlegrounds, and AION 2. Within Valve’s own portfolio, it holds the third-highest all-time concurrency, following only Counter-Strike 2 and Dota 2. This growth is attributed to the gradual release of new characters, including Solomon, a chess-themed wizard. Despite remaining in an invite-only early development phase, the game continues to ascend in popularity.

## Timeline

### 2026-10-12: Deadlock surpasses Team Fortress 2 player record on Steam

Valve’s Deadlock reached a peak of 262,145 concurrent players on Steam, surpassing Team Fortress 2’s all-time record while still in an invite-only testing phase.

3 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/deadlock-surpasses-team-fortress-2-player-record-on-steam

### 2026-10-10: Valve's Deadlock surpasses Team Fortress 2 player record

Valve's unreleased game Deadlock surpassed Team Fortress 2's peak concurrent player record on Steam, reaching over 262,000 players following a recent major update.

3 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/valves-deadlock-surpasses-team-fortress-2-player-record

### 2026-09-30: Valve’s Deadlock hits record 228,000 concurrent players

Valve’s Deadlock reached a record 228,086 concurrent players on Steam following the ‘City Never Sleeps’ update, which introduced six new heroes and a major map overhaul.

10 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/valves-deadlock-reaches-player-peak-following-major-update

---
Cite as: Valve Deadlock player count growth. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/valve-deadlock-player-count-growth