Marvel Rivals: Half A Year Later
Release Date: December 5h, 2024
Developer: NetEase Games
Platforms: Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, PC
Price: FREE
While I don't like to make too many comparisons to other games while I'm writing reviews or impressions, it's inevitable that the Overwatch comparison will be made here with Marvel Rivals, but I think that this works to its benefit as ever since Overwatch became Overwatch 2, it's been an unfortunate yet continuous self-sabotage of a property that was otherwise heralded and beloved around the world, paving the way as well as changing the genre for shooters, and subsequently hero shooters, forever. Marvel Rivals feels like a phoenix-from-the-ashes situation taking what made Overwatch so great when it initially released in 2016 and everything it did thereon for years that repeatedly kept players coming back or staying onboard.
We've had Overwatch clones in the past and games that try to replicate it to also get in on the success, but I think it's safe to say that Marvel Rivals is the true "second coming" that we've been needing for years. Too many titles, F2P or not, insist on egregious monetization tactics that unfortunately get in the way of the actual game itself, bombarding with pay-to-win methods and no sense of reward unless a CVC is provided. These "rewards" are transactions in disguise, giving no merit or feeling of achievement as a player or hero level goes up. It's all nonsensical digits where the growth in the numbers is the reward for selfish gain with nothing else to show for it.
If you're an ex-Overwatch player like myself who has spent thousands of hours and playing since the open beta until its demise when the number two got added, Marvel Rivals feels like coming home in more ways than I can explain. Yes, you have your plethora of heroes - Marvel IPs that are both popular and deep-cut - with skillsets that are meant to diversify into the usual tanks, DPS, tactical, and healer categories, but it's the feeling—the rush—that Marvel Rivals gives that harkens back to the glory days of Overwatch, where an exceptional art direction and tight intuitive level design are complemented by flexible, eclectic playstyles in a fair-play environment. It feels great for everyone playing, old or new, and is more concerned about you having fun rather than getting sweaty in ranked and swiping the VISA.
With a plethora of heroes to choose from and a randomized selection of maps that all feel unique and appropriate to the gameplay, Marvel Rivals has a seat for everyone. Anyone that plays Marve Rivals - regardless of any prior history to shooters - will find themselves comfortably picking a hero they enjoy that will attune to their playstyle. Whether it's a fan favorite they end up going with or someone new they want to try that they may not have heard of before, Marvel Rivals has a roster in every field of your traditional tank, DPS, and healer rotation that is bound to click with someone. I find myself frequently surprised that now over hundreds of hours of gameplay, I've played a healer-class hero more than any other selection. Throughout my gaming history and career, I typically stay away from those classes due to the want (and strategical mindset) or wanting to be more frontline, and whether I've played an MMO, hero shooter, RPG, choose your own adventure, or whatever, that's always been a build I've leaned towards and rarely consider anything else. Marvel Rivals is the first time where the healer class has made me feel the most welcomed (not to mention appreciated), and it does so with grace as everyone is capable of handling themselves, and is a testament to the feeling of a super hero that Netease has done so well. A hero of which is just that - a person or thing of immense power meant to fight, protect, and overcome. Not one character on the roster ever feels like they're reliant on another or a specific team. Once you grow accustomed to how one plays, you're basically capable of anything, though that doesn't mean there won't be a natural repellant of strengths and weaknesses in which certain matchups may benefit some more than others.
Through a multitude of continuous updates, every aspect of the game continues to grow to its benefit in ways that polish the overall gameplay experience while also ensuring that the service to the fans is ramped up well past 100. Netease does a consistently great job here with providing monthly, seasonal, semi-seasonal, and bi-weekly updates that finetune the overall product and keep Marvel Rivals fresh every time you log back in. Whether it's brand new skins - a staple now for any free-to-play title - or the inclusion of new maps, emotes, characters, battle passes, limited time events, or Twitch Drops to name just a few, Marvel Rivals is consistently providing content to its player base at a steady balance of both free and premium charges for more than reasonable prices of entry that make the support from both developers and players feel organic and passionate. Any money spent feels, for the most part, justified, which is a far cry from what 3/4ths of F2P titles can say for themselves. Anything you give into Marvel Rivals feels like an investment that's given back into the community from the developers, and it makes for a perfect cycle of content and reimbursement that goes beyond paying X amount of dollars for a palette swap like some other games would attempt to shove down a player's throat.
On a gameplay perspective outside of heroes, controls are tight, responsive, and constantly feel like they're working alongside you rather than against you. Optimization has been worked on tenfold since its initial release, and while there is still room for improvement (some would argue a LOT of improvement), it's nowhere near as egregious as it once was. It's not even so that Marvel Rivals was unplayable by any means, but even on a beefed up PC, playing on anything above medium (and even that's pushing it) would cause for an insane amount of stutters, screen tears, and fragmentation that would hinder the experience and make for a not-so-enjoyable time going through matches, even on the winning team. Thankfully this has been rectified in a lot of ways, and though there are still the dreaded shaders you're greeted with upon just about every bootup, they've even added an experimental feature that minimizes the shaders, though it's not without its issues as Netease has gone on to put a disclaimer that this feature, while optional, does decrease overall load, it can cause textures to pop-in and look muddy as a tradeoff.
Even so, more options is never a bad thing, and given that PC gaming - especially COMPETITIVE PC gaming - sees a player base that rarely uses the same build, it makes for Marvel Rivals being accessible and playable for almost anyone with a half-decent gaming PC now, increasing retained players and an overall content fanbase. Speaking of retained players, this is made immediately known as its concurrent player count continues to stay in the hundreds of thousands, and queue times are virtually non-existent. The moment you queue up for match, you're instantly greeted with a 'MATCH FOUND' graphic that flies across the screen.
Overall, between its growth of heroes, dedicated fanbase, and passionate developers, it's clear that the DNA of Marvel Rivals - while clearly inspired by others - is built off of pure appreciation for the lore and universe of Marvel's illustrious history in the realm of comic books and all of its heroes and villains that helped propel the brand to the superstardom and pop culture phenomenon it's at today. Marvel Rivals continues to evolve in the best of ways, and though it still has a ways to go to really unify an experience across the board (like introducing cross-save and streamlining its cross-play process), the future is immensely bright (and has stayed as such) for Marvel Rivals. I'm excited to see where we'll stand years from now or even another six months from now, but one thing is for certain - this is a game for the fans clearly made by fans, and the appreciation of the intellectual properties shows. Netease, I truly believe, has hit a gold mine here, and it's not just because they're working with established Marvel IP, but because there is a genuine excitement that is palpable and exudes from the game itself.
