Look, let's be honest, Valve's testing ground project 'Deadlock' has been making quite a bit of noise following a massive update dropped on the 30th. Ever since the patch rolled out, the player influx has surged, pushing concurrent player numbers past the 230,000 mark as of the 7th.

Dubbed 'City Never Sleeps', this latest update introduces six fresh heroes to the roster: Nurse Harrow, Solomon, Deadman Danny, Violet, Rat King, and Baba. Players now directly vote in the lobby each week to decide which hero joins the official roster, with Rat King and Baba making the cut by the 7th. Prior to the update, the game was comfortably coasting at around 70,000 concurrent players, but the sheer weight of new content catapulted that figure to 228,000 on the day of the update alone. The numbers didn't drop off either, climbing steadily to 236,730 by the 7th, comfortably clearing records from back when security was first lifted in 2024.

Alongside the hero injection, the battlefield layout received a substantial overhaul. Lane names have been rebranded to Blue, Yellow, and Green, while four new districts including Chinatown and a theatre have been wedged into the alleyways. High-risk, high-reward zones have also been peppered in, such as the Flooded Plaza—where visibility and stamina take a hit—and the Bell Tower, which broadcasts the location of anyone looting items there. Meanwhile, neutral monsters have been swapped out for hunts tailored to each district's unique flavor.

On top of all that, a special vendor system rolls onto the map after the 30-minute mark of a match. Players can swap out existing gear for corrupted items packing serious power, though the developer makes sure to saddle you with random penalties for your trouble. Rounding out the quality-of-life adjustments are a revamped shop UI, over 15,000 new ping options, and engine optimizations to keep things running smoothly.

Deadlock continues its routine of pairing monthly balance patches with hefty content drops featuring new heroes. While every major update causes concurrent player counts to spike dramatically, the game remains gated behind Steam playtests requiring an invitation from existing participants, with an official launch date still firmly under wraps.

Meanwhile, over on the global top-sellers chart, Gears of War: E-Day claimed the number one spot following its official launch on the 7th. StarWars: Galactic Racer, a fresh entry from the StarWars franchise released on the 6th, settled into second place with a 'Mixed' user review score. Dead by Daylight rounded out the podium at third place, catching a nice second wind thanks to a fresh content update and the rollout of NieR: Automata skins.