Deadlock's Rat King Is Playable as City Never Sleeps Rolls Out
A playable arrival is only one part of Valve's wider update to the Cursed Apple.
Deadlock: City Never Sleeps
Rat King became playable in Deadlock on October 2, giving players a concrete first stop in the City Never Sleeps rollout. His arrival follows Valve's September 29 announcement of a broader update spanning new heroes, a visual refresh and interface improvements.
The distinction matters: an update can introduce a roster of upcoming characters without making all of them available on the same day. Rat King's release announcement is the confirmation for this hero, not blanket confirmation for the whole set.
What Valve Has Revealed About Rat King
The announcement names Scrap Grenade, Swarm of Rats, Royal Pestments and Banner of Rattania. Its description emphasizes explosive pressure, an attacking swarm, protection while advancing and a banner used in combat. That gives a sense of his theme without establishing an optimal build or a competitive tier-list position.
Deadlock Hero Release Timeline
New-hero recommendations are especially easy to overstate before players have had time to learn the interactions. For now, treat the official ability description as a starting point and check the current in-game tooltips for exact values. We have not conducted a hands-on balance test.
The Update Also Changes the City Around Him
Valve's City Never Sleeps overview describes six new heroes alongside map and neutral visual changes, HUD work, accessibility options and quality-of-life additions. Its accompanying development note frames the game as unfinished, with several areas being developed in parallel.
That context is more useful than treating every visible change as the final version. An evolving interface, map presentation and hero roster can alter what returning players recognize, even when they are not learning the newest character.
Keep the Rollout Date in View
In the October 2 announcement, Valve asked players to keep voting and set the next hero arrival for Tuesday at 2 p.m. PDT. That points to October 6. It did not identify the winner in that announcement.
For anyone coming back after a break, a sensible first session is a short orientation: inspect the changed HUD, read the active hero descriptions and get comfortable with the new visual landmarks. Rat King is already an option; the remaining rollout should be checked against Valve's next announcement rather than guessed from the update's headline.