As Team Fortress 2 veterans gaze at Deadlock with interest and envy, steadfast fans are still waiting for Valve to notice them

It’s probably unfair to say Team Fortress 2 is on life support—Steam Workshop content is implemented regularly enough and the recent bot banwaves show Valve at least has a hand (or pinky finger) on the wheel—but it has been a hot minute since the game has had a meaningful content drop. The elder statesman FPS still gets its annual, community-led Summer Update, but it’s coming up on seven long years since Valve threw its weight behind TF2 with the Jungle Inferno update that brought new maps, items, and Pyro balancing. Valve implied the same treatment would be coming to the Heavy as well, but so far, every content update since has come with the same caveat: manage your expectations.

It’s arguably impressive Team Fortress 2 was supported with meatier updates for as long as it was since its launch in 2007, but despite its age, TF2 boasts a content-hungry and massive playerbase that wonders why Valve has left them in the cold. Cleaning up those aforementioned bots took a massive, monthslong push from players over social media, and that Heavy update is more of a punchline among fans these days than something to genuinely look forward to. One reason is that Valve is busy nurturing the massive playerbase of Deadlock, its new shooter/MOBA hybrid.

Deadlock’s staying power is difficult to gauge at this point, but it’s off to an electric start, with over 100 thousand testers playing frequently, despite Valve only recently acknowledging it exists and access still restricted to an invite-only alpha. And though Deadlock is obviously not Team Fortress 3, its similarities to Valve’s former favorite child are causing a stir regardless.

Team Fortress 3 just released!!! #Deadlock pic.twitter.com/feyGhBS6llAugust 24, 2024

To some TF2 fans, Deadlock's proximity to TF2 as a new Valve shooter is a contentious issue. TF2 YouTuber Weezy polled his community on Twitter asking which game it thought would have a bigger audience long-term. Perhaps unsurprisingly, they overwhelmingly voted