There are moments when discussing whether something qualifies as news brings a deep sense of foreboding dread. This morning, a colleague informed me that Joe Rogan—the American podcaster and historic advocate for Donald Trump—hosted a guest who attempted to explain Deadlock.

As someone with 285 hours in the game, I knew I would eventually have to watch this six-minute clip and, inevitably, write about it. While pitching Valve's still-in-testing MOBA to one of the biggest podcasters on the planet is certainly news, I will skip my opinions on the political landscape and focus on the gameplay. The real question was whether Rogan could grasp the fundamentals of lanes and combat.

A Brutally Honest Summary of the MOBA Experience

Stand-up comedian and apparent player Brian Simpson spends about six minutes in the clip attempting to explain this complex genre to Rogan. He opens with a crystal-clear encapsulation of what it feels like to play Deadlock: "This sht cooler than a motherfcker, but it will also make you mad as sh*t."

Simpson then moves into the most vital part of any MOBA: the economy. While the game features heavy gunplay, it is primarily a game about efficiency and resource management. This is exactly how I have started explaining the game to my friends.

The Importance of Economy in Deadlock

Simpson summarizes the core loop of the game with blunt simplicity. He notes: "Since this b*tch got the most money, she's bought the most stuff, which makes her stronger." While it might not be the most polished phrasing, he is fundamentally correct.

The clip highlights several key pillars of the genre:

  • Resource Management: The necessity of gold accumulation.
  • Complexity: The steep learning curve for new players.
  • Intensity: The high-stress nature of competitive play.

Rogan’s Take on Complexity and Time Commitment

By the end of the segment, Rogan makes two observations that are surprisingly accurate. His first is a simple acknowledgment of the difficulty: "This seems super complicated."

His second observation addresses the massive time investment required to master the game. When Simpson asserts that it takes about 200 hours to vaguely understand what is happening, Rogan remarks, "This is the kind of thing that people without kids say."

Deadlock is an exercise in how high you can get your blood pressure, much like any other MOBA. As someone who has put close to 300 hours into it, I have to admit that the explanation hit the mark. Perhaps if I add another 1,000 hours, I will finally be ready to explain air strafing to Rogan myself.