When Valve introduced ranked play in Deadlock, the distribution of players was somewhat unusual. During its closed beta phase, player rankings exhibited an atypical distribution rather than the standard bell curve. Initially, this was chaotic, but the situation has stabilized for most players over time.
According to TrackLock, there is now a noticeable bell curve representing a more typical skill distribution, albeit leaning towards the middle range rather than having a lot of players at the lower ranks.
This middle-heavy distribution could suggest that players taking the time to establish their rank in Deadlock are more serious than those in other games, or perhaps the game doesn’t experience the same rank deterioration typical in older competitive titles. Whatever the reasoning, this has led to only a small number of players remaining at the lowest rank, Initiate.
Among 70,000 competitive Deadlock players, only 75, which is 0.1%, are placed at the bottom rank. Of those, only seven fall within the initial subrank, Initiate I. While being at the bottom isn’t necessarily a negative, players are still scratching their heads over the small numbers.
“Okay, but only 75 players?! They should have some company down there,” remarked one player on Reddit. Another user suggested that rather than just enabling a live-watch option for top-tier ranks, there should be an option to observe games at the Initiate level.
Although having such a low count at the bottom might seem unusual, it doesn’t pose a significant problem. Initiate players generally compete amongst themselves but may also face Seeker players when trying to rank up. More players are expected to join the lower ranks upon the game’s official release, bringing in new faces as the player base expands.
The ranked mode of Deadlock has improved rapidly since its launch, thanks to regular updates from the developers. Features aimed at addressing player strengths and weaknesses with specific heroes have been incorporated, alongside introducing an even stricter competitive option for serious ranked players. While updates may not arrive as swiftly in the future, Deadlock’s ranked play is poised for continued growth.
