For a long time, the only true entry in the hero shooter genre was Team Fortress 2. Released by Valve, it’s still beloved by many for its brilliant character design, charm, and addicting gameplay. However, when Blizzard released Overwatch in 2016, the hero shooter genre became far too over-saturated. Everyone wanted to make the next Overwatch, but no game could match the immediate intrigue, brilliant game design, and unique characters.
Now, eight years later, some companies are still trying to recapture the magic of the original Overwatch and Team Fortress 2. Even Blizzard themselves, despite making a direct sequel to the game in Overwatch 2, have still been unable to replicate what made those games great. For a while, it seemed that the hero shooter genre had come to an end. That is until NetEase Games and Marvel Entertainment revealed Marvel Rivals.
Marvel Rivals is a third-person hero shooter featuring characters from throughout the Marvel universe. Set to release later this year, the game will be free-to-play and feature a few different maps, modes, and of course, a massive roster of both heroes and villains. I’ve had the opportunity to preview the closed beta for Marvel Rivals and I am immediately impressed on how it has managed to reignite my love for the hero shooter genre and remain separate from games such as Overwatch.
A Love Letter to the Marvel Universe
To begin talking about Marvel Rivals, we have to discuss the obvious: it’s similarities to Overwatch. There are certainly quite a few, even down to similar animations and even similar abilities. For example, Star Lord has an ability similar to Reaper, where they both phase in and out of existence, spraying bullets across the battlefield.
If you’re a die-hard Overwatch fan, these comparisons will feel like a no-brainier, and people may throw around the term “ripoff.” If you look deeper, though, you will realize that every decision from NetEase has Rivals to pay homage to the Marvel Universe rather than ripoff Overwatch.
Upon entering Marvel Rivals, you notice this immediately, as characters like Spider-Man, Loki, Rocket Raccoon, and Storm are center stage. You see quests assigned by Galacta, the obscure daughter of Galactus and when you look through the costumes of each character, you find countless references to the Marvel Comics, Marvel Cinematic Universe, and even Marvel vs Capcom. Even the story, subtle as it may be, feels like an elaborate reference to comics such as Secret Wars and Spider-Verse.
This attention to detail extends to every element of Marvel Rivals. The move sets of characters feel directly inspired by their other incarnations. For example, Scarlet Witch’s ultimate attack unleashes a wave of chaos magic that immediately disintegrates surrounding heroes, a feat similar to her erasing mutants from existence in the House of M comic.
Even the levels have these sorts of details, with one area containing an early build of Sp//dr, a Spider-Man-themed mech piloted by Peni Parker. She is another playable character in this story, and has interactions with Spider-Man, Venom, and other heroes throughout the roster. As a whole, the comparisons to Overwatch are unavoidable. That said, the main thing to take away from Marvel Rivals is its love and reverence for the Marvel universe. That love comes across in the undeniably fun gameplay.
An Addicting Formula
The gameplay of Marvel Rivals is simple yet addicting. It’s a third-person shooter unlike Overwatch‘s first-person perspective. This provides a great look at the broader action and the character you are playing as. It also helps if you purchase one of the game’s many cosmetics, you can actually tell the difference.
The perspective is just a small piece of what makes this game unique. The roster is filled with characters from throughout the Marvel universe. From beloved heroes like Spider-Man, Star Lord, Thor, and Black Panther, to darker characters like Venom, Scarlet Witch, and Loki, to more obscure characters like Jeff the Land Shark and Magik.
Each character feels different from each other. Magik feels very different compared to Spider-Man or Scarlet Witch, same with Thor versus Magneto or Groot, or Luna Snow compared to Mantis or Rocket Raccoon. There’s a lot of room for different play styles to shine, but what makes Rivals fun is that I never found myself forced to pick a character just so I could balance out a team. In reality, the characters I wanted to get good with were characters I liked from the comics and found fun to play.
Take the Punisher, for example. I really like the character in a lot of his appearances throughout both Marvel Comics and the Marvel Netflix shows, so I tried him out fairly early on. His move set feels very different from what you’d expect. Instead of feeling like a stereotypical hero shooter “soldier” character, he can switch from a shotgun to an assault rifle, summon a turret, and unleash a barrage of missiles in his ultimate attack. Like his depiction in the comics, the character feels like an unstoppable monster.
Of course, if you do want to optimize your character based on the rest of the team, that option is still there. There are three classes: Vanguard, Duelist, and Strategist. Essentially, these are your tank, damage-per-second, and support classes, respectively. Originally, my main problem I noticed with Marvel Rivals while working on this preview was that the support class felt very lacking compared to the others.
Vanguard gets Magneto, Venom, and Thor, Duelist gets Spider-Man, Storm, and Black Panther, while Strategist gets mostly Guardians of the Galaxy characters, as well as Loki and original character, Luna Snow. NetEase immediately fixed my problem by adding Jeff the Shark, however, who immediately captivated me by looking adorable, having the ability to traverse below ground, and he can also ride on Groot’s back.
Speaking of riding on Groot’s back, one of the unique mechanics of Marvel Rivals is the team-up abilities. Select characters can team up with each other to create special moves that only exist if those characters are on a team together. For example, both Rocket and Jeff can ride on Groot’s back. Rocket can create a field that gives the Punisher an increased fire rate. Venom can give both Sp//dr and Spider-Man a field that utilizes the symbiote, and so on.
Regardless of whether you’re playing alone or with friends, there is room for so much experimentation that you can take advantage of in the game’s casual or competitive scene. While there are only two modes at the moment (capture point and payload) and only two maps (Yggsgard and Tokyo), the foundation of Marvel Rivals is so strong that the game’s future is already as bright as it can possibly be.
The Possibilities Are Endless, And The Potential Is Infinite
I fell in love with Marvel Rivals during this preview. I’d been looking for something to fill the void left by Team Fortress 2 and Overwatch for a long time, and I had always come up short. There was no point whatsoever where I thought that a Marvel hero shooter would be a good idea. Yet, after a few hours spent in Marvel Rivals, I am fully committed to everything it has to offer in the future.
I’ve already found several characters in Rivals that I fell in love with, such as the Punisher, Spider-Man, Jeff the Land Shark, and Venom. I also appreciate how the seasonal structure seems to focus on purchasing cosmetics through just playing the game rather than spending thirty dollars on an in-game currency. Additionally, while the gameplay takes a bit longer to master than its predecessors, it still feels approachable regardless of whether or not you’re a hero shooter fan.
There is an infinite amount of potential for future Marvel Rivals characters. They could add Ghost Rider, Moon Knight, Daredevil, America Chavez, Hawkeye, the countless different Spider-Heroes, She-Hulk, Susan Storm, the Human Torch, Blade, Gambit, Wolverine, Deadpool, and countless more characters. There is also plenty of room for collaborations with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, comics, and other Marvel games like Spider-Man or Marvel Snap.
With characters like Doctor Doom set to be added to the game when it releases for free on all consoles, Marvel Rivals will undoubtedly become a must-play, regardless if you’re a Marvel fan, hero shooter fan, or are just looking for a fun new game to play with your friends. I personally can’t wait to get my hands on the finished product and continue to master the ins and outs of this fantastic game.
