If you’re one of the lucky players who got access to Deadlock’s closed playtest, you’ve probably wondered how to invite to playtest Deadlock with the friends you’ve been hyping the game up to for months. The process isn’t as obvious as it is for fully released games, since Valve rolls out invite permissions in waves based on playtime, feedback history, and test phase goals. I’ve gone through three separate playtest phases myself, so I’ve sorted out exactly what works, what doesn’t, and what you can do if you don’t see the invite option right away. You don’t need any special status to unlock invite access, just a willingness to engage with the test process as intended.
First Steps Before You Learn How to Invite to Playtest Deadlock
Not every player with playtest access can send invites right off the bat, and that’s intentional. Valve limits invite permissions to players who have already shown they’re actively participating in the test, to reduce the number of inactive or bot accounts getting access to the closed build. If you’re still not sure whether you qualify to learn how to invite to playtest Deadlock, you can check your status on the official Deadlock playtest hub in your Steam library.
The core eligibility requirements are pretty straightforward, and most active players will unlock them within a few days of access. You need to have logged at least 5 hours of playtime in the current test phase first, to prove you’re not just logging in once to hoard invites. Your account must be in good standing with no recent VAC or Steam community bans, to reduce the risk of toxic players or cheaters getting invited to the test. You also need to have submitted at least one piece of formal feedback, whether that’s a bug report, balance suggestion, or response to an in-game survey.
Invite slots are limited per user, usually 2 to 5 per phase depending on how much feedback you’ve submitted and how long you’ve been part of the test program. I got my first invite unlock 6 hours into the first closed test, after I submitted 3 bug reports through the in-game feedback tool, and I got 3 extra slots in the most recent phase after I completed 2 long-form player surveys. If you don’t see the invite option right away, don’t panic—just keep playing and submitting feedback, and it will usually unlock within 24 hours of meeting the requirements.
How to Send Playtest Invites Through the Steam Client
Once you have invite permissions unlocked, sending invites to people on your Steam friend list is the fastest and most reliable method. This is the fastest and most reliable way how to invite to playtest Deadlock, since invites sent through Steam are processed within minutes, and your friend will get multiple notifications to let them know they’ve been granted access. You don’t need any external tools or links, everything is handled directly through the Steam interface you already use.
First, open your Steam desktop client and navigate to your Library. Find Deadlock in your list of installed games, right click the title, and select the “Manage Playtest Invites” option from the dropdown menu. If you don’t see this option, double check that you meet all the eligibility requirements we covered earlier, and restart your Steam client to refresh your account status. The page that opens will show you how many unused invite slots you have left, plus a history of all invites you’ve sent in the current phase.
To send an invite, type in your friend’s exact Steam display name or 64-bit Steam ID in the search bar, and select the correct account from the results. Double check that you’ve selected the right person, because invites can’t be revoked once sent, even if you send it to the wrong account by mistake. Click the “Send Invite” button, and your friend will get a Steam pop-up notification, a Steam message, and an email with instructions to download the playtest build. If your friend already applied for playtest access through the Deadlock Steam store page, the invite will automatically approve their application, so they won’t have to wait for a random access rollout.
Keep in mind that the friend you’re inviting doesn’t need to own any other Valve games to qualify for access, but their Steam account does need to be at least 30 days old, and in good standing with no permanent bans. This rule is in place to block bot accounts from getting access to the closed build, so if your friend has a brand new account, they’ll need to wait a few weeks before they can accept an invite.
Alternate Ways to Invite Community Members to Deadlock Playtests
If you have extra invite slots left after inviting all your friends, you can share them with other members of the Deadlock community to help grow the test pool and get more diverse feedback to the dev team. There are a few safe, allowed ways to share invites with people outside your friend list, as long as you follow the official test rules around invite trading, which is strictly banned. You can’t sell invites, trade them for in-game items or other games, or demand anything in return for an invite, or you risk losing your own playtest access permanently.
Some of the best ways to share extra invites include:
- Join the official Deadlock Discord server, and post in the dedicated invite sharing channel if you have extra slots. Make sure you follow server rules around invite sharing, and avoid sending invites to people who are offering to pay or trade for access, as that’s a violation of test terms.
- Reach out to small content creators who cover MOBA or hero shooter games, if you have extra invites and want to help grow the game’s community. Most small creators will tag you in their first Deadlock playthrough if you send them an invite, which is a fun bonus if you want to see someone else react to the game for the first time.
- Invite players you’ve matched with in public games who you had a good experience playing with. The in-game feedback tool lets you flag positive teammates after matches, and if you have extra invites, you can send one directly through the post-match screen without adding them on Steam first.
You don’t have to share extra invites if you don’t want to, but it’s a nice way to support the game’s development if you have slots you won’t use. Valve tracks all invite senders and recipients, so if someone you invite gets banned for cheating or toxic behavior, you won’t lose access unless you’re found to be intentionally inviting rule breakers. I’ve sent 7 invites total across three test phases, and all of them went to people I played with in random matches, and I never had any issues with my access being restricted.
Common Issues When Sending Deadlock Playtest Invites (And Fixes)
Even if you follow all the steps correctly, you might run into a few common issues when trying to send invites, most of which have simple fixes. I’ve run into all of these issues myself at some point, so I’ve tested every fix I’m sharing here to make sure it works. You don’t need to contact Steam support for most of these issues, since they’re usually related to temporary account glitches or missing eligibility requirements.
The most common issue is the “Manage Playtest Invites” option not showing up in your Steam menu, even if you think you meet the eligibility requirements. First, double check your playtime in the current phase—playtime from past phases doesn’t count, so if you’re joining a new test phase, you’ll need to log 5 hours of playtime in that specific phase to unlock invites again. If you meet the playtime requirement, make sure you’ve submitted at least one piece of feedback in the current phase, and restart your Steam client. The option will usually show up within 24 hours of meeting all requirements, no extra steps needed.
Another common issue is invites not reaching the intended recipient, even after you send them successfully from your end. First, ask your friend to check their Steam message spam folder, since invites from non-friends often get filtered there. You can also ask them to adjust their Steam privacy settings to allow invites from everyone, if they have invites restricted to friends only. If that still doesn’t work, you can copy the direct invite link from your invite management page and send it to them directly through another platform like Discord, since clicking the link will automatically grant them access as long as they’re logged into the correct Steam account.
If you get an “Invite limit reached” error when trying to send an invite, that means you’ve used all your allocated slots for the current test phase. You can’t request extra slots from support, even if you’ve submitted a lot of feedback, so make sure you save your slots for people you know will actually play and submit feedback, instead of sending them to people who will only log on once and never touch the game again. Invite limits reset at the start of every new playtest phase, so if you run out, you’ll get more slots when the next test goes live.
At the end of the day, figuring out how to invite to playtest Deadlock is pretty straightforward once you know the eligibility rules and where to find the invite tools in Steam. Don’t stress if you don’t have invite access right away, focus on playing the game and submitting useful feedback, and you’ll unlock the feature before you know it. If you do have extra slots, consider sharing them with players who will contribute to a positive test environment, since that helps make the final game better for everyone when it launches.