Six New Heroes Arrive: Meet Mina and the Gang in The Hideout

The Cursed Apple welcomes its newest fighters with a fresh pre-game experience

The streets of the Cursed Apple are about to get a lot more crowded. Today marks one of the most significant content drops in Deadlock's history, introducing not one, but six brand new heroes, each with their own unique abilities and personalities. But that's not all—we're also unveiling The Hideout, a revolutionary new pre-game lobby experience that will change how you spend your time between matches.

Six New Heroes Join the Fight

Six new faces have been spotted prowling the streets of the Cursed Apple, each bringing their own brand of chaos to the battlefield. Rather than overwhelming players with all six heroes at once, we're taking a staggered approach to their release, giving everyone time to master each new fighter.

Meet the New Heroes

• **Mina the Vampire**: A glass cannon that delivers devastating Spirit damage with her Love Bites passive, transforming into bats to escape danger
• **Billy the Demonic Goat**: A terrifying force bringing supernatural chaos to the battlefield
• **Paige**: A mystical fighter who can bring books to life, wielding literary magic against her foes
• **The Doorman**: Always at your service, this enigmatic hero opens new tactical possibilities
• **Victor**: An unstoppable monster whose raw power cannot be contained
• **Drifter**: A mysterious wanderer who terrorizes the city with unpredictable tactics

Staggered Release Schedule

Starting today with Mina, we'll be unlocking one new hero every other day. The release schedule follows a Monday, Wednesday, Friday pattern for both this week and next, ensuring players have time to adapt to each hero's unique playstyle. Following each hero release, we'll also deploy balance adjustments based on early gameplay data.

Here's where it gets interesting: you'll help decide which hero unlocks next! Every completed game earns you a vote that can be cast at the voting booth in The Hideout. This community-driven approach ensures the most anticipated heroes get prioritized while maintaining excitement for upcoming releases.

Hero Spotlight: Mina

As our first new hero to hit the streets, Mina embodies the perfect blend of risk and reward. This vampiric assassin excels at delivering quick bursts of Spirit damage from range through her signature passive ability, Love Bites. Her kit revolves around high-damage, high-risk gameplay that rewards skilled positioning and timing.

Mina's Arsenal

• **Love Bites (Passive)**: Each kill triggers increasingly powerful vampiric damage that grows throughout the match
• **Bat Transformation**: Escape sticky situations by transforming into a swarm of bats
• **Nox Nostra (Ultimate)**: Unleash a massive swarm of bats that hunt down and silence nearby enemies

Who got blood on my brand new shirt?

Welcome to The Hideout

Say goodbye to the old Dashboard UI and hello to The Hideout—your new personal hangout space while waiting for matches. This isn't just a menu replacement; it's a fully interactive environment designed to make downtime between games more engaging and social.

Hideout Features

• **Social Spaces**: Invite friends to your hideout or join theirs for a shared pre-game experience
• **Interactive Terminals**: Access Play, Watch, and Learn functions through terminals scattered throughout the space
• **Practice Range**: Test movement and abilities without loading into the full Sandbox
• **Voting Booth**: Cast your votes for which hero should be unlocked next
• **Legacy Access**: The classic sandbox remains available via teleporter or the Play Menu

The Hideout represents just the beginning of our vision for pre-game social spaces. Future updates will introduce personalization options, achievement displays, and special events that take advantage of this new interactive environment.

Map and Visual Improvements

Beyond the new heroes and Hideout, this update brings significant visual improvements to the main battlefield. The map has received various lighting changes and visual enhancements that improve both clarity and atmosphere. While these changes may seem subtle, they represent ongoing efforts to polish the visual experience.

Character Select Screen Overhaul

The character selection experience has been completely rebuilt from the ground up. The new interface not only accommodates our expanded roster but also provides better hero information and a more intuitive selection process. Existing heroes have also received visual updates as part of this ongoing refinement process.

A Note on Hero Labs

While developing this new set of heroes, we temporarily paused work on Hero Labs to focus our efforts on these polished, release-ready fighters. However, we understand that some Hero Labs concepts resonated with players, and we may revisit certain elements in future development cycles.

A New Chapter Begins

Today's update represents a massive leap forward for Deadlock. Six new heroes, The Hideout, visual improvements, and a redesigned character select screen all work together to create a richer, more engaging experience. As Mina stalks the streets and players begin exploring The Hideout, we're excited to see how the community adapts to these new additions.

Jump into The Hideout, cast your vote for the next hero, and experience Mina's vampiric prowess firsthand. The Cursed Apple has never been more dangerous—or more exciting.