Superhero games haven’t been doing well for some time, with fans completely losing their interest in the genre since Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League and Marvel’s Avengers. While a couple of Marvel games are currently in development, there is one particular game that shows promise and has caught the eye of many Marvel and superhero genre fans, i.e., Marvel Rivals!
Marvel Rivals is a team-based superhero shooter PvP video game that NetEase Games is developing in collaboration with Marvel Games. The upcoming competitive video game features excellent comic book-inspired gameplay. This gameplay, where you fight to save the Multiverse, paired with some epic art direction, makes the game one of the most exciting ones to come out.
Are you ready to bring the Marvel squad together, come up with lethal strategies by combining powers with other superheroes, battle enemies, and travel through the evolving Marvel Universe? If this sounds interesting to you and you’d like to know more about it. Then, keep reading this article as it discusses Marvel Rivals’ release date, gameplay, platforms, and more!
Marvel Rivals Release Date
Unfortunately, neither Marvel nor NetEase has revealed the game’s release date. Since it is still early in development, as they revealed on their Discord. Marvel Rivals will be a free-to-play game once it officially comes out. In addition, Marvel also teased that updates like new content, brand-new superheroes, and seasonal drops will be revealed after the game is out worldwide.
However, players who are eagerly waiting for the game to drop can wishlist it on both Steam and the Epic Games Store. In May 2024, the developers held an alpha test for Marvel Rivals, which was wildly successful. The NetEase team was “absolutely blown away by the incredible passion the Marvel Rivals community showed during the Closed Alpha testing phase.”
Since the alpha phase was such a huge success. Now, everyone was waiting for the results of the beta test to come out. However, if everything goes according to plan with these tests, then Marvel Rivals just might come out during Q1 2025. The developers are now focused on balancing and straightening up the game. So, let’s sit tight as we wait for our beloved heroes!
Marvel Rivals Platforms
Unfortunately for console players, Marvel Rivals has officially been announced for PC only. This announcement was surprising since a game of this magnitude would do quite well on consoles. However, console owners shouldn’t worry much since the developers launched a “console announcement trailer” two months ago, confirming that the game will arrive on consoles.
In addition to this, the team also revealed in the official Marvel Rivals Discord that they are continuously “exploring potential releases on other platforms.” They also clarified that Steam will eventually be the game’s “first stop” when the game launches. While the game is set to launch on PC at first. Marvel Rivals will now also come out to PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S.
Marvel Rivals Trailer
NetEase and Marvel Games have launched only one trailer for Marvel Rivals so far, i.e., the game’s announcement trailer. In the announcement trailer only, the developers decided to showcase some striking visuals of the game. You will also see character reveals, some gameplay mechanics, and a whole lot more. You read that right; there are nearly two full minutes of gameplay alone!
Trailers Breakdown
The trailer also features a massive roster of characters along with some of their abilities. So players get an idea of what’s in store for them. We see some of our favorites out there battling each other. It includes Spider-Man, Hulk, Iron Man, Doctor Strange, Loki, Thor, and more! You can watch the trailer below, but prepare yourself for an amazing ride with the superheroes!
Nearly two months ago, NetEase Games launched another “console announce trailer”. It is to officially reveal to the players that Marvel Rivals will arrive on consoles. This trailer features some more gameplay footage. It features Venom and Adam Warlock unleashing their powers and leading their teams into an exciting face-off.
Watch the trailer below:
When players were tired of waiting to get another glimpse at the game, the developers revealed a “Cinematic Trailer” for Marvel Rivals. This trailer features a wide range of heroes from across time who unleash everything they have within them to go up against the most deadly and dangerous Super Villains they have ever come across. You can watch the epic trailer below:
In addition to these trailers, Marvel Rivals drops some other videos quite often on the official Marvel RIvals YouTube channel. However, these videos lean more toward the game’s maps and further explore the roster of characters like Hela, Venom, and Loki.
Marvel Rivals Characters
The crucial part of a team-based shooter game is its hero-based character selection. To pick out the perfect hero from a massive roster is truly a challenging aspect, with each one being more fierce than the last, especially when they’re the beloved Marvel heroes. Therefore, a total of 21 superheroes will be arriving on the Marvel Rivals character roster with many popular ones.
These characters’ designs have been greatly influenced by comic books, with NetEase Games adding their own unique touch to them with their unique colors. Not only this, but the developers are quite popular for introducing alternate costumes in their games that players can unlock as they progress through the game, so let’s hope that this feature ends up here as well.
The list features a wide range of heroes who have appeared in the latest Marvel movies, as well as the more concealed ones who have been featured in comic books. Here is a list of all the characters confirmed for Marvel Rivals based on the developers’ word, as well as the ones we saw in the game’s announcement trailer:
Playable Characters
- Iron Man
- Bruce Banner or Hulk
- Loki
- Black Panther
- Spider-Man
- Doctor Strange
- Magneto
- Star-Lord
- Rocket Racoon
- Galactus
- Peni Parker
- Groot
- Punisher
- Scarlet Witch
- Storm
- Luna Snow
- Mantis
- Magik
- Namor
Non-playable characters
- Dr. Doom
- Doom 2099
- Galacta
Marvel Rivals Lore
Doctor Doom, the popular Fantastic Four evil supervillain, has partnered up with his successor in 2099 to cause some changes to the timestream. This, in turn, causes a catastrophic event that’s also known as the Timestream Entanglement. For this reason, players are required to come together, go up against their parallel selves, and put a halt to the Dooms and their plans.
The heroes and villains collide with each other from different realities and go up against each other. These matches are set to take place across several comic book locations, such as Asgard and Tokyo 2099. These maps feature destructible elements like statues. So that players can blast them to pieces to prevent the enemies from hiding behind them or taking cover.
Marvel Rivals Gameplay
The Marvel Rivals beta gave a pretty good idea of what is waiting in store for the fans once the game launches. Everyone who got the chance to play and has watched the trailers has been reminded of Blizzard Entertainment’s Overwatch, another popular 6v6 PVP team-based shooter. Both the games are quite similar when it comes to their gameplay features and mechanics.
However, there still are some differences that make Marvel Rivals interesting and unique. For example, the upcoming game is designed to be a third-person shooter instead of a first-person shooter, as in Overwatch. What further adds spice to the gravy is that Marvel Rivals features partially destructible environments, which completely shake up the flow of battle.
Team-Up Abilities
This means that every map in the game plays out differently in every match that you end up playing. Marvel Rivals competitive play allows players to utilize their character’s unique power and team-up abilities with heroes on the same team. The team-up feature further enhances the abilities of the characters in a way that they end up unleashing extremely powerful attacks.
For instance, Hulk can send some of his gamma radiation over to Iron Man so that he can charge his armor, or Rocket can jump on Groot’s back and join in on the fun of wreaking havoc on the enemies or their areas. Marvel Rivals features 6v6 battles, which matches Overwatch’s original team composition before Blizzard introduced the 5v5 gameplay in Overwatch 2.
Environmental Destruction
With the Environmental Destruction feature, players can coarse through classic Marvel worlds through destructible environments. You can use your superpowers to change the environment, reshape the land, and plan a strategic advantage on the battleground. Make sure to choose a spot that provides cover from attacks or simply eliminate enemies with makeshift weapons.
There are numerous ways through which you can make use of the environment around you in order to emerge victorious in a match. The post-launch seasonal updates will bring brand-new superheroes to the battleground, as well as some dangerous and challenging maps. New content will also become available for you to utilize across a wide range of gameplay strategies.
Marvel Rivals Rank System & Leaderboard
To climb the Marvel Rivals leaderboard and show off your skills in the game, the developer introduced a rank system similar to the way it used to be in Overwatch. Players get a special reward for getting the highest rank. Level 5 unlocks the Marvel Rivals beta Competitive ranked mode, featuring fast-paced, multiple-round matches where players who win can get rank points.
The game features eight unique ranks, but except for the first two, all of the other ranks have three sub-divisions. This means that there are 20 levels players need to climb to get to the top. With every 100 points you gain, you’ll get your hands on a rank promotion. It’s worth noting that wins will get you rank points, whereas losses mean that you’ll be losing some of your points.
This will eventually lead to a rank demotion if you find yourself in a slump and constantly losing matches. You can avoid dropping down a rank by simply utilizing a Chrono Shield. However, you only get a handful of these, so use them wisely to protect yourself from demotions. The higher ranks have some special rules that one must know, including rank decay and hero band.
Players partnering up with friends should keep in mind that players in adjacent ranks can play together in a match. When it comes to Marvel Rivals’ competitive rewards, the beta test allowed players to unlock the Tooth and Hammer spray (features Thor and Jeff the Land Shark) once they reach the Gold rank. Moreover, the rank in Competitive doesn’t provide special rewards.
Marvel Rivals Behind The Voice Actors
The game features an exciting and incredibly talented cast of voice actors who voice some of the most brilliant superheroes and supervillains. In Marvel Rivals, Venom is voiced by Steve Blum, whereas Travis Willingham voices the vicious supervillain Doctor Doom. The title of the famous Marvel Rivals Magneto voice actor belongs to the one and only James Arnold Taylor.
Furthermore, Loki Marvel Rivals character, has been voiced by Troy Baker. Moreover, Josh Keaton voices Iron Man, Peni Parker is voiced by Sally Amaki, Hulk is voiced by Fred Tatasciore, Doctor Strange is voiced by Liam O’Brien, Yuri Lowenthal voices Spider-Man, Judy Alice Lee voices Luna Snow, AbbyTrott voices Magik, and Adam Harrington voices Groot.
Moreover, Daniel Marin voices Namor, Nolan North voices Rocket Raccoon, James C Mathis III voices Black Panther, Cassandra Lee Morris voices Galacta, and a whole lot more. This cast might have you wondering how to play Marvel Rivals early, but unfortunately, that ship has long sailed since both the alpha and beta tests have now officially ended.