The Games as a Service (or Live Services… or GAAS… or really any other term you prefer) landscape has been facing something of an existential threat this year. Once a wide open market with endless possibilities to flourish, it has now found itself quickly oversaturated with content, and firmly entrenched mainstays like Fortnite, Overwatch, Minecraft, Destiny, Genshin Impact, Call of Duty and Roblox.
With considerable attention being driven towards what analysts are calling “Black Hole games”, new game releases of all types – from single-player blockbusters to niche independent titles, are gasping for air. However, this issue is perhaps most apparent in the introduction of new multiplayer titles.
Let’s not mince words, 2024 has been nothing short of a bloodbath for aspiring multiplayer titles. While our friends on the PlayStation side of things saw well-earned success with Helldivers II (and the continued success of the MLB The Show subseries), their latest release Concord saw quite possibly the worst results in company history, with losses well in the 9-figure range and the developer Firewalk being shuttered.
In our corner, last year’s lacking success of GAAS-hopeful Redfall lead to the shuttering of storied immersive sim developer Arkane Austin. The third-party market speaks for itself – Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, XDefiant, Skull & Bones, the list goes on and on. Even previous success can see a drastic fall in player numbers.
So, what does all of this have to do with Marvel Rivals, the new hero shooter? slasher? brawler? from developer NetEase Games, based on a laundry list of Marvel Characters. Well, like some of the greatest Marvel heroes, it provides something I think we all need: a little bit of hope.
While the market has been hard to enter, Marvel Rivals has found considerable success right out of the gate reaching millions of players and garnering positive player feedback. And all of this is, I’d argue, for one particular reason: the game is damn good.
On its surface, Marvel Rivals might appear like a third-person Overwatch clone with a Marvel coat of paint on it. While there is a degree of truth in this concept, there is much more to the game than appearances alone.
Taking the basic 6v6 hero shooter structure we are all pretty familiar with, Marvel Rivals’ modes and core gameplay loop falls within pretty familiar territory. Capture enemy zones, extract or prevent extraction of a vehicle, etc., etc. But where the game immediately becomes special is within the members of the teams themselves. Marvel heroes have an incredibly diverse set of powers – a Wolverine will not play like a Spider-Man who will certainly not play like a Punisher or an Iron Man. Yet, oftentimes, games based on the license I’d argue have tried to fit these square pegs into round holes, leaving characters playing far too similar than desired.
Marvel Rivals immediately bucks this trend with some of the best-designed and balanced heroes in the business. Squirrel Girl plays like Squirrel Girl, Spider-Man plays like Spider-Man, Bruce Banner/The Hulk and Cloak and Dagger have combined skill sets allowing switching between the two. The characters are all designed with considerable love and care for what makes them iconic, but are carefully balanced to be viable within the hero shooter genre. It is a deft and careful approach that sets the game apart from its peers – pretty much every character feels viable, allowing players the freedom to take webs – or claws – or giant acorns – or oversized demonic swords, to a gunfight.
For my part, I initially chose to main two characters – Magik (a personal favourite character of mine) and Punisher (one most aligned with my personal playstyle). My friend, who I played with, opted to master the webs of Spidey. The game then suggested, when I teamed up with my friend, to try out Squirrel Girl (a character I had not yet played). When his Spidey met with my Squirrel Girl, I was able to unlock brand new powers (a web grenade acorn) I wouldn’t otherwise dream of playing with.
Marvel Rivals, through these team-up abilities, helps encourage diverse team formation and encourages players to try out characters they otherwise might not. I also discovered a new favourite in Squirrel Girl, whose powerful AOE attacks and more than sufficient health and traversal abilities made her a great choice for area control matches.
Marvel Rivals’ love for these characters, and encouragement for experimentation, stretches beyond just the gameplay. The game itself looks stellar, with love and care placed in every character (there are 33 and counting!) and map (eight with considerable environmental destruction). The voice lines are also a hoot, with spot-on takes on each of these characters and unique lines depending on team composition. Really, Rivals is from top to bottom a love letter to the Marvel Universe.
With all of this being said, the game is not without flaws. I encountered several camera glitches throughout matches, with the camera itself spinning around my character. The price of cosmetics as well is very high, which can be a turnoff for collectors and people with a love for certain looks. However, I feel the sheer amount of free heroes, with a launch F2P game, makes up for these prices, but personal mileage may vary (I don’t value cosmetics highly myself, but some friends find them paramount to their enjoyment).
All in all, Marvel Rivals is a blast. A well-designed game with love for its characters, settings and universe. Yet, even if these characters mean nothing to you, it still more than satisfies as an incredibly diversified hero shooter experience where you CAN bring a demonic sword to a gunfight!
Overall, I believe Marvel Rivals has a bright future ahead of it and I can’t wait to play more!
Marvel Rivals Assembles on Xbox, PlayStation, and PC: A Free-to-Play Superhero Showdown – https://www.thexboxhub.com/marvel-rivals-assembles-on-xbox-playstation-and-pc-a-free-to-play-superhero-showdown/
Marvel Rivals is coming to Xbox – closed beta fast approaching! – https://www.thexboxhub.com/marvel-rivals-is-coming-to-xbox-closed-beta-fast-approaching/
Download Marvel Rivals for free – https://www.xbox.com/en-GB/games/store/marvel-rivals/9N8PMW7QMD3D
