Deadlock Ranked Beta Season 2 Is Live With Fewer Rank Shields and Four Hero Bans

Valve has wrapped up the first Ranked Beta Season in Deadlock, its competitive multiplayer game that Steam users tag as both a MOBA and a third-person hero shooter. In a Steam announcement posted on November 5, the team started Beta Season 2 and laid out a long list of rule changes based on how the first season played out.

Deadlock is still officially in development. Its Steam store page describes it as "a multiplayer game in early development" and lists the release date as "To be announced."

Season dates and rewards

Beta Season 2 started on November 5 and ends on Thursday, March 11, 2027, giving it a four-month run. Players who took part in Beta Season 1 will receive a commemorative Hideout plaque showing the highest rank they reached once the new season rolls over.

A smaller rank reset – and a redistribution

Every Ranked player gets a soft reset, but Valve says this one is "significantly smaller" than last time. On average, players should drop about one badge, with a further adjustment of one or two subranks based on last season's win rate. Returning players don't need to calibrate again; newcomers to Ranked do.

Valve is also running a global rank redistribution. After watching the first season, and accounting for what it calls "the recent influx of new players," the studio is reshaping the overall rank curve before applying the soft reset. The result, Valve warns, will differ from player to player: some people may actually move up despite the reset, while others may drop a little further.

The rule changes

Rank loss protection. Players in the Phantom, Ascendant and Eternus ranks lose their protection shields entirely. Everyone else gets fewer: full-rank boundaries drop from 5 shields to 3, and subrank boundaries from 2 to 1.

Rank points. Each match is now worth 350 points instead of 300. Moving from a final subrank to a new badge takes 1,500 points instead of 2,000, while the gap between subranks stays at 1,000.

Hero bans. Ranked matches now have four hero bans instead of three.

Placements. New-season placements can now reach Ascendant I, with some players placed as high as Ascendant III based on last season. Previously the cap was Oracle VI.

Hero unlocking. Unlocking a hero for Ranked now uses points instead of counting wins only. You need 35 points, earning 2 for a win and 1 for a loss. Valve notes that the old 15-win requirement worked out to roughly 45 points for a player with a 50% win rate, so the new system is quicker to clear.

Leaderboards. Each season now has its own leaderboard. To appear, you need at least 50 Ranked matches in the season within the last 30 days. Hero-specific leaderboards require at least 15 Ranked matches on that hero in the same 30-day window.

Why it matters

The changes make it easier to climb and to unlock heroes, but tougher to hold a rank near the top, where shields are gone. Four bans also give teams more room to remove frustrating picks. If you're a MOBA player curious about Deadlock, which Steam players tag as both a MOBA and a third-person shooter, its competitive structure may feel familiar if you've played Dota 2, Valve's long-running free-to-play MOBA.