3 things we learned from Deadlock Fight Night #22

Deadlock Fight Night #22 brought us NA upsets and some nail-biter EU games, with the usual spattering of big plays and clean movement tech. Now that the dust has settled and this week’s champions are crowned, here are three of our biggest takeaways about Deadlock at its highest level.

#1: Picking the right carry hero can make or break you

Across the entirety of DFN #22, prioritizing which hero would become a team’s carry significantly impacted the match. This was seen most in the NA championship match between Hydra Nation and Melee Creeps.

In this series, Aidan “rocker” Grodin played Grey Talon and Sinclair in the two championship maps and ended up being among the leaders in souls for Hydra Nation in each. The problem? AVG and his unkillable Abrams was the soul leader on the other side.

Image courtesy of Deadlock Fight Night

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The gap in impact that a fed Abrams is able to have over a Grey Talon or a Sinclair felt vast in this series, and while there were certainly other variables and factors at play, this felt like one of the big difference makers in that series. So, as Hydra Nation looks to respond and reclaim glory next week, keep an eye on who they funnel resources to and specifically what hero they are on.

If I am a betting man, we will see Lukas “flick” Grabowski placed on more impactful heroes to give him a chance to be a backline carry in DFN #23.

#2: The midgame matters

In both regions’ championship matches, the midgame mattered more than it ever has. There were no cheesy double mid-boss steals; instead, the midgames this week were all about efficiency, trading value, and picking good teamfights. DFN #21 and #20 both felt like they were snowballed by powerful landing phases, but this week felt distinctly different.

Part of this has to do with different matchups, team compositions, and so on, but it also seems that these players are seeing more of the value in the phase immediately after laning. Multiple winning teams found themselves down in souls by ~10k souls at the end of the laning phase (around the 10-15 minute mark) and still found ways to claw back and win the map in the midgame.

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This is good to see, as Deadlock has seemed to struggle recently with comeback mechanics not feeling quite as effective. However, after watching this week’s matches, the midgame offers a massive window to get back into games, so long as the team picks their moments carefully.

#3: Both NA and EU will continue to be a battle

This fight night felt like one of the closest we have seen in a bit, and I anticipate this trend will continue. These players are getting an even more nuanced sense of how they operate within the current meta, roster shakeups are keeping things interesting, and no team is firmly in the driver’s seat.

We will have to wait and see how Hydra Nation and Virtus.Pro respond coming into next week, as each will have to claw through that initial best of one if they plan to reclaim glory and get their revenge against Melee Creeps and 1Win Team, respectively.

We’ll be following along with all of the DFN action here at The Game Haus, as well as all of the latest Deadlock news and updates. Stay tuned for more!

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