While Deadlock no longer has a Ranked Mode, it still features ranks and their accompanying badges, though they’re somewhat hidden. The “Skill Rating” system, introduced as a replacement for Ranked mode in November 2024, serves as a subtle way to measure a players’ progression and overall capabilities.
What is a Skill Rating and How Does It Work?
Every player begins as an “Obscurus,” which is essentially unranked. New and returning players must complete enough matches to calculate their rank. As you improve, the game will match you with stronger opponents on average and increase your rank. The game features 11 ranked tiers, each divided into 6 sub-levels. For instance, Initiate 1 is the lowest, while Initiate ⭐ (6) is just below the next tier, Seeker.
Check out our Rank Distribution page to find out how your rank compares to the rest of the playerbase.
Core & Hero Skill Ratings
The game will eventually assign you a “Core Skill Rating” based on your performance. This rank is visible on your profile, but only to you. When matchmaking, the game also takes into consideration the amount of time/skill you have on a hero. Unplayed heroes are automatically rated the lowest, giving you easier games until you improve with them. Each hero gets a rating, showing whether your performance with that hero is above or below your Core Skill Rating average.
You can enable settings to view when your skill rating changes or check the average rank for each team at the end of a match.
What Changed and How Does It Affect You?
Before the change:
Your Rank badge was based on hidden skill ranges set by Valve. Your actual Skill Rating (SR) was and still is an unseen number, with the badges serving as a visual representation. As your SR would increase and decrease into a different skill range, your rank badge visual would update. As more players joined Deadlock, the badges started clumping “in negative ways”, since the ranges were fixed in place while the playerbase expanded.
After 10/10:
Rank badges now use percentiles, providing a more accurate way to show your standing compared to the playerbase. The SR system itself remains the same, and Valve’s algorithm continues to decide how much you win or lose per match. The difference now is the visible badge: instead of fixed skill ranges, badges now reflect your standing relative to the playerbase. Matchmaking and your in-game experience. should be largely the same because the only thing changing was the rank badge visual.
