Where do Deadlock invites show up?

As a message from Valve in your Steam chat with whoever invited you, and on your Steam playtest invites page (store.steampowered.com/account/playtestinvites).

I was invited but there is no message. What now?

Look at your Steam playtest invites page: an older invite you never accepted may be waiting there, and then no new message comes. Then check your Steam licenses: if Deadlock is listed, restart Steam.

Deadlock is in my licenses but not my library?

Restart Steam. The game shows up in your library after that.

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Deadlock invite not showing up? Where to find it

A Deadlock invite usually shows up as a message in your Steam chat within minutes. When it doesn't, it's rarely lost: most of the time it's waiting somewhere else. Of about 2,200 invites Invite Frog sent and followed to the end, 96.5% came with Valve's message and 2.2% added the game without one. Here is where to look, in order.

Check these, in this order

Where a Deadlock invite can be, in the order to check.

1
Your Steam chat with whoever invited you. Valve's invite is a message there; accept it.
2
Your Steam playtest invites. An invite waiting there can be accepted with one click, including an old one (see below).
3
Your Steam licenses (Steam > Account details > Licenses and product key activations). If Deadlock is listed, you have it: restart Steam and it shows up in your library.
4
Your Steam library: search it for Deadlock.
5
Still nothing? Your account may be limited. See the section on that below.

The old invite you never accepted

If someone invited you to Deadlock before, maybe months ago, and you never accepted, that invite is still waiting on your playtest invites page. A new invite then doesn't send a new message: Deadlock says the invite went through, and Valve leaves the old one where it is.

A player waiting on Invite Frog's invite in October 2026 found exactly that: an old friend's invite, waiting "for god knows how long". Accepting it there added Deadlock right away.

Tip: If your invite message doesn't come within a few minutes, look at your playtest invites first: an old invite waiting there is easy to miss.

Added without a message

Sometimes Deadlock ends up on your account with no message at all. It shows on your licenses page before it shows in your library. Restart Steam, and it's there.

A limited Steam account

Deadlock refuses to invite limited Steam accounts: ones that haven't spent $5 on Steam. Then no invite comes at all. Invite Frog tells you in its chat when that happens; a friend inviting you may not see it. How to lift it: limited accounts and Deadlock.

Waited more than 15 minutes

Almost every invite arrives within 3.5 minutes. If you've checked the pages above and waited longer, ask for the invite again. Invite Frog sends it a second time by itself and tells you where to look.

Questions

Where do Deadlock invites show up?: As a message from Valve in your Steam chat with whoever invited you, and on your Steam playtest invites page (store.steampowered.com/account/playtestinvites).
I was invited but there is no message. What now?: Look at your Steam playtest invites page: an older invite you never accepted may be waiting there, and then no new message comes. Then check your Steam licenses: if Deadlock is listed, restart Steam.
Deadlock is in my licenses but not my library?: Restart Steam. The game shows up in your library after that.

Get a Deadlock invite How to get an invite Limited accounts