How to beat Deadlocked: Tutorial

 Everyone knows Deadlocked, the 20th level and 3rd demon, added to Geometry Dash in update 2.0. Deadlocked is well renowned for it's fast-paced, memory-focused gameplay. However, being a demon difficulty level, most players starting out won't have even a clue as to how to complete it, even in practice mode.

 That's why we here at Helping Corp™ have decided to write this comprehensive tutorial on how to complete it, so you too can complete the hardest demon in Geometry Dash!

Unlocking Deadlocked

First of all, most important is to know how to unlock the level in the first place!

 While most people will figure out Clubstep and Theory of Everything 2 on their own, Deadlocked has stumped many aspiring players due to it's complex and confusing unlock conditions.

 Scrolling to the 20th page on the Level Select menu will reveal an extremely cryptic puzzle, which is about as far as most players will get on their own. 

 While most players would look to the large golden lock, located as the centerpiece, it's not actually as relevent to the puzzle as it would seem at first glance. Instead, you should look to the lower right; there you will find what seems to be a counter, showing 0/30 followed by a strange symbol. This is a very vague hint, so it's no wonder so few players figured it out. 

 The solution is not here, but instead in the "Map Packs" menu, located near the bottom of the screen after clicking on the button to the right of the "Play" button.

 Once in the Map Packs, you must complete at least 30 "Packs", each with 3 "Maps" in order to unlock Deadlocked. This will likely take you quite a while, since most of these levels aren't made by the developer, RobTop, however they are all of exceeding quality, far surpassing the Main Levels in both enjoyment and decoration.

 After completing all 30 Map Packs, you may go back to the Play Menu, and once scrolling back to the 20th page, you will find Deadlocked is now ready for you to play!

Playing the Level

 Unlocking the level is one thing, but actually playing it is something else entirely. Even those who manage to unlock the level rarely make it to the end of this absolute beast of a level!

 This guide will take you through the level, with each part being it's own section in this article, so you can skip to wherever you get stuck, in case you want to try as much of it as you can without help!

 Starting off:

The First Cube

 The level starts completely empty, giving a peaceful, easy first impression, but you should not be fooled! After a few seconds, you will be met with several strange mechanics, never before seen anywhere else in the game.

New Mechanics

 The first of these new mechanics is the "Blue Orb". Clicking whilst inside of the Blue Orb, instead of launching the player upwards like one would expect, flips gravity for the player, causing them to fly upwards at great speed, requiring them to react quickly, or hope that whatever is above them is safe to land on.

 The next new mechanic is the "Yellow Pad". Instead of requiring the player to click to activate it, it instead activates immediately as soon as the player touches it. What it does is also unique, launching the player much higher than what would normally be possible with only a jump.

The First Cube, Continued

 While the start of the level looks deceptively difficult, you have nothing to worry about quite yet; the worst is yet to come.

 To start, you must first wait for the Cube to walk across the screen to the first set of obstacles. here, you must make the first daring jump into the level. but you aren't safe yet! On it's own, the Cube's jump is not enough to make it to the Yellow Pad. Instead, you must hit the Blue orb that's in reach in order to save yourself from certain doom.

 Still, there is more to do before you can take a well-earned rest. At the moment, all you have achieved is launching yourself into the ceiling.

 To save yourself, you must react incredibly quickly to your sudden disorientation and click again in order to hit the second Blue Orb, reverting your gravity back to normal. This will cause you to fly downwards instead, directly into the much less deadly Yellow Pad, which will launch you safely to the far away platforms.

 After sliding off of the first platform and jumping off of the second, you will be met with a very dangerous sight: the infamous First Wave, known for being an extremely difficult chokepoint in the level.

The First Wave

 While you likely have heard about the sheer difficulty of this Wave part on various forums, the wave itself is fairly simple. First, it's important to pay no heed to the arrows pointing upwards and to the left, as you are incapable of moving in that direction, so try to ignore them so as to not get distracted in this difficult section.

 After clicking once to move the wave upwards, you are faced with the most difficult part of this deadly corridor: your next move must be very careful, as these inputs are incredibly precise. You must release the key or mouse at the perfect time, ideally near the middle of the corridor, in order to not hit your Wave on the spikes lining the ceiling.

 After successfully surviving the first half of the Wave part, you must react very quickly; you have very little time to react. You must now click very briefly, as the ceiling in this next gap is much lower than the previous.

 If you managed to successfully release in time to dodge the ceiling, you need not click any longer until the end of the part, as this is the end of this section! Give yourself a pat of the back and take a well-deserved break.

The Second Cube

 Unlike the first 2 parts, this part is incredibly long and mainly focused on memory instead of raw skill.

Stay tuned, this article will be updated with more tips and tricks on a future date!