Deadlock icon Celeste survives her first round of nerfs, with fans hoping Valve's mere "slap on the wrist" isn't the last for the dazzling hero

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"She is still the strongest hero in the game by a mile"

Deadlock Celeste
(Image credit: Valve)

It feels like Deadlock literally just welcomed dazzling new unicorn-horned hero Celeste, but Valve is already cracking down with some nerfs for the apparently all too powerful character – nerfs that, according to fans, still aren't quite enough.

Celeste nerfs come as no surprise, really, as fans quickly dubbed the bunnyhopping hero as "overpowered" upon her introduction to Deadlock a few days back.

As per a new post from developer 'Yoshi' on the shooter's official online forums, the unicorn lady will play a bit differently now, with a base -6% bullet resistance, base damage reduction from 29 to 25, and changes to pretty much all of her kit. In other words, she's a lot less powerful.

What is surprising, however, is the fact that players don't think she is – or at least, not by nearly enough. A Reddit thread on the new Deadlock update highlights as much, with folks pointing out that other heroes have faced far worse nerfs.

"Celeste is given a slap on the wrist; meanwhile, Graves has been nerfed four straight times with very little to compensate," as one fan writes. Another "can't believe they didn't nerf Celeste at least a bit more."

They explain how "the Celeste changes are really nothing burger" – and they're not alone in thinking so. One player jokes, "Celeste finally nuked off the face of the earth??" Then, they add, "Edit: nope. I'm pretty sure she is still the strongest hero in the game by a mile." Further down, somebody else echoes the whole "slap on the wrist" sentiment from earlier, simply stating, "Celeste with that slap on the wrist."

YOSHI IS LISTENING from r/DeadlockTheGame

A separate meme seemingly celebrating Celeste's nerfs is making rounds, but fans are fast to point out that the tweaks aren't as good as they seem. "I feel like people are seeing how many words are on the screen and not actually reading anything," as one person puts it. Someone replies, "Right? This isn't that bad of a nerf," describing how Valve hasn't addressed the things that make the new hero so OP – like her stamina.

What will be the fate of Celeste in the end? Only time will tell, but it does seem like Valve is listening to complaints – even if they're ironing things out more slowly than the community would like. Here's hoping the devs manage to please the majority in the end… somehow.

Deadlock matchmaking is so broken, even Valve devs are getting put in the wrong lobby: "Can you imagine playing a game and having no one to blame except yourself?"

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Anna Koselke
Anna Koselke
Staff Writer

After spending years with her head in various fantastical realms' clouds, Anna studied English Literature and then Medieval History at the University of Edinburgh, going on to specialize in narrative design and video game journalism as a writer. She has written for various publications since her postgraduate studies, including Dexerto, Fanbyte, GameSpot, IGN, PCGamesN, and more. When she's not frantically trying to form words into coherent sentences, she's probably daydreaming about becoming a fairy druid and befriending every animal or she's spending a thousand (more) hours traversing the Underdark in Baldur's Gate 3. If you spot her away from her PC, you'll always find Anna with a fantasy book, a handheld video game console of some sort, and a Tamagotchi or two on hand.

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