Deadlock devs confirm “full rewrite” of key feature in the works

Valve has announced their intentions to revamp an important aspect of Deadlock in order to fix the game’s current matchmaking issues.

In response to a question from a fan about how players are paired in the game, a developer of the game acknowledged on Discord (via Reddit) that the current implementation of a feature called hero-based MMR (Matchmaking Rating) is not functioning effectively.

“They continued by stating that the matchmaking system they are currently working on will be more effective once a full rewrite is completed.”

Valve has not yet revealed the specifics of Deadlock’s Closed Alpha lobby system, making it uncertain if it follows the traditional MOBA approach of using skill-based matchmaking to assign players to their respective groups.

Despite the announcement, the changes are not happening fast enough, as seen by the negative responses from many who are dissatisfied with the current skill disparity.

“I’m glad to hear that. The matchmaking system has been negatively impacting my enjoyment,”one fan shared, also expressing hope that it will become fairer with further improvements.

Hero Based MMR isn’t Working as Intended, New MMR in The Works byu/Stannis_Loyalist inDeadlockTheGame

“It was evident that something was not quite right,”another person chimed in. “While I have had many evenly-matched games, there have also been instances where my opponent was significantly better or worse than me,”they elaborated.

In its initial post, Valve did not make it clear whether the upcoming rewrite will completely replace the current hero-based matchmaking system with a new one, or if it will simply make improvements to the existing system.

Despite the regular trickle of new players, it is best that nothing is set in stone at this early stage. As with any game in development, everything is subject to change as progress continues.

Valve released a significant balance patch on August 29, and quickly followed up with another on September 1. The latter included multiple hero adjustments, including significant nerfs to Viscous.