DEADLOCKFrom Neon Prime to Deadlock
Neon Prime is the earlier codename, not a second game you can buy. Deadlock is the name on Steam app 1422450, and that app is still unreleased.
I kept the codename and the playtest date in separate sentences on purpose. Wikipedia and the wiki agree the public name is Deadlock. They do not agree on whether day one had 19 or 20 heroes, so I quote both.
A short timeline
Biweekly major patches ran from August through December 2024 and were dropped on 8 January 2025, according to the wiki’s patch index. Do not expect that cadence to resume on a promise.
| Date | What is documented |
|---|---|
| Before announcement | Codename Neon Prime |
| 2024-04-24 | First documented hero release day |
| 2024-08 to 2024-12 | Biweekly majors, later dropped |
| 2025-01-08 | Wiki says the biweekly cadence ended |
| 2026-01-22 | Old Gods, New Blood |
| 2026-03-06 to 2026-05-22 | Three Gameplay Updates |
| 2026-07-30 | Matchmaking Update brings Ranked back |
| 2026-09-29 | City Never Sleeps |
| 2026-10-16 | All-time peak of 303,347 concurrent players (SteamDB) |
| 2026-10-28 | Still coming soon on Steam |
Questions
What is Neon Prime?
The development codename used before the game was publicly called Deadlock. The wiki keeps a page for that name.
When did Deadlock come out?
It has not had a public release. The first documented playtest heroes are dated 24 April 2024.
How many heroes launched the playtest?
The wiki lists 19 heroes on 24 April 2024. Wikipedia says there were 20 characters at the start. Both are cited; we do not pick a silent winner.
Sources
Checked 2026-10-29. Volatile numbers are labelled as estimates when they come from a tracker rather than Valve.