It appears that despite the genre being on what appears to be its last legs – and that’s to say nothing of the currently abysmal state of the game’s main source of inspiration, Overwatch/2 – Marvel has teamed with developer NetEase for Marvel Rivals, a brand-new hero shooter based on the titular publisher’s wide roster of superpowered characters.
Word of Marvel Rivals‘ existence was first raised in March 2024 when images leaked online, as eventually shared to the /r/Marvel subreddit, depicting the game’s UI and its initial roster of heroes.
Per the leaked images, it appears the game’s roster will initially feature roughly 18 characters divided into three ‘classes’ (as their official names have yet to be revealed, the terms used to refer to them below are inferred from the individual used to represent each class):
Tanks, whose membership includes The Hulk, Groot, Doctor Strange, and – in a surprise that at least this article’s author appreciates – Peni Parker.
Attackers, who offensive play style will be represented by The Punisher, Storm, Black Panther, Magik, Iron Man, Spider-Man, Scarlet Witch, Star-Lord, and Namor.
And Healers, a support class whose roles will be filled by Loki, Mantis, Rocket Raccoon, and Luna Snow, an original Korean heroine first introduced in Netmarble’s 2018 Marvel Future Fight mobile game.
Ostensibly in light of his history as one of the many individuals who leaked information regarding Crystal Dynamics’ Marvel’s Avengers far ahead of its release date, video game industry insider Miller Ross was soon approached by Twitter user @Pizzalord456 for confirmation as to whether or not the above images were real [as seen in the screenshots above], to which he affirmatively replied, “Yes, this is real.”
Asked by user @DeeCeeGrayson for a rundown on the game in a now-deleted post, Ross further revealed not only the game’s official title, Marvel Rivals, but also the fact that it would be a “6v6 ‘hero shooter’ in the same vein as Overwatch,” was being “developed by NetEase,” would be “multiplatform (PC, consoles, and mobile)”, and was allegedly being “announced [on March 27th]”.
In a smattering of follow-up tweets, Ross would additionally assert that the game would be “third person, and it’s not a shooter“, filled with “lots of skins“, and likely be free-to-play.
As far as gameplay concerned, rather than try to adapt each respective hero and villain to a stereotypical ‘esports archetype’, the scooper assured his followers that each character in Marvel Rivals would have “their own kit with their own powers faithful to their respective character”.
As noted by Ross above, while Marvel Rivals has yet to be officially revealed, it is apparently on track to make its public debut tomorrow, March 27th.
NEXT: In Response To Sequel’s Lack Of Profits, Blizzard Completely Scraps ‘Overwatch 2’ PvE Plans