While Team Fortress 2 veterans watch Deadlock with envy and interest, steadfast fans still wait for Valve's attention.

It's not fair to say that Team Fortress 2 is on its last legs. Steam Workshop content is added regularly and recent bot banwaves prove Valve has at least a finger on the wheel. But it has been quite a while since there was any meaningful content for the game. It's been seven years since Valve supported TF2 by releasing the Jungle Inferno Update that added new maps, items and Pyro balance. Valve said the Heavy would also get the same treatment, but every update since has had the same caveat - manage your expectations.

It's arguably impressive that Team Fortress 2 has been supported with more substantial updates since its launch in 2007. But despite its age and size, TF2 has a massive playerbase who wonders why Valve left them out in the cold. The removal of those bots was a major, months-long effort by players on social media. And the Heavy update has become more of a joke among fans than something they are looking forward to. Valve is busy cultivating the massive playerbase for Deadlock, its new MOBA/shooter hybrid.

It's hard to tell if Deadlock will last, but the game is off to a great start. Valve has only just acknowledged its existence and access to it is still limited to an invite-only beta. Deadlock, though not Team Fortress 3 is causing a stir despite its similarities.

Some TF2 players are upset that Deadlock is so close to TF2 in terms of a new Valve shooter. Weezy, a TF2 YouTuber, polled the community on Twitter to find out which game they thought would have the largest audience in the long run. Unsurprisingly, the overwhelming majority of respondents voted against Deadlock. Weezy criticized this prediction.

This poll was specifically done as a sniff test to see how delusional TF2 players are. Weezy, in a quote-retweet, said that the answer was Deadlock and it wouldn't be close. "Yes, most TF2bers hate the game. It doesn't matter. Normies and compoids love it. This demographic is much larger than the TF2 hardcore base.

TF2 players have a wide range of opinions about whether or not "compoids" and normies are to blame for Deadlock. Reddit users are discovering that Deadlock, despite its stylized character and over-the top guns, is not a shooter.

"It has absolutely nothing to do with TF2 lol. Maybe just some abilities and character designs. Reddit user Zhabishe said, "Then it's like a mix between Dota 2 and TF2".

Some were more generous than others, despite the differences in the games.

"I've played 30 matches, and as someone who has 4k hours of Dota experience and 3k hours of TF2 experience, it's been a refreshing experience in an Overwatch-clone market," commented commenter MothBabe. "Really fun, and lots of interesting technology and mechanics to use. This game will have a very high skill ceiling. "Like Dota, every time you play you learn something new."

Hard feelings

You can understand why Deadlock is such a thorn in the side of fans who have waited for years to see a sequel. It's everything TF2 players have been waiting for: a new, stylized Valve shooter built on the latest Source 2 Engine, brimming over with new ideas and personalities.

Most fans seem to agree that Deadlock doesn't really appeal to the TF2 crowd and Valve has largely stayed on the MOBA path it's been following for years. Some are pointing out that Deadlock is the newest thing. The TF2 community has shown its passion for the game, and it's a sign that Deadlock will be able to pass the test of time.

It hurts to see TF2 struggle to stay on Valve’s radar. The game's persistent playerbase is more important to its success than Valve's acknowledgement. Community servers and player-made competition formats are evergreen draws that no modern game can match. I think TF2 will do just fine, Deadlock or not.

Reddit user StardustJess expressed the same sentiment in a thread dated a few months back, when "Deadlock Panic" was first settling in.

"I don't really care if there is no update to the game, because the game lives on in the community. We can make new models, weapon mods, maps and shit. We can make anything. "Most of the content in the game was created by the community," they said. "I'll give Deadlock a try. I'll have a great time. I'll still play TF2. I'll still be having a good time."