Marvel Rivals is hard at work with its first season. Although technically second only, NetEase likes to be different. Four new heroes will arrive later this week when the Fantastic Four debut. Reed Richards, Sue & Johnny Storm, and The Thing will soon be added to the roster, making them playable heroes to join the already stacked slate. It looks fun to play, but I have concerns about how NetEase will handle the game's balance.
I've already covered how Marvel Rivals' roster is stacked, and how having so many heroes at launch made it incredibly difficult to learn them all or figure out what kind of role they're best suited for. There are so many options to choose from, as games of the genre like Overwatch have shown time and time again that there are better ways to do these things. Yes, I'm comparing it to Blizzard's hero shooter again. Because it's such a clear reskin that you don't have much of a choice. In fact, I wish the heroes were introduced the same way.
The Fantastic Four will cause trouble for Marvel's rivals
I've been a regular Overwatch player for five years, and I still find myself immersed in it for a bit every time a new season comes out to see exactly what's been changed and added. Regardless of its current popularity, there's no denying the impact it's had not only on the hero shooter genre, but on the live service experience as a whole.
Before battle passes or seasons were a thing, there was a tendency to introduce a few new heroes a year and make each of them their own main event, so we took the time to find out who they were, where they came from, and how they developed. They want to play. Circumstances can also change, and the abilities your hero possesses upon release may change before release, and even after, as circumstances are potentially reworked.
Marvel Rivals isn't giving itself that opportunity, believing that being part of a universe full of established characters means it can fill out its roster accordingly. This creates unreasonable expectations and risks not giving the development team the time needed to make each hero truly fun and satisfying to play.
The last thing I want is a roster defined by filler where everyone is trying to deal with the same few heroes forever.
I wish there was enough time to learn and balance each new hero.
NetEase is still in the process of revealing The Fantastic Four's classes and abilities. Reed Richards is revealed as a duelist with 350 health and a standard attack that can be combined into a satisfying three-hit combo. We see The Thing joining as a Vanguard, Sue as a strategist, and Johnny Storm joining Reed as a capable DPS. I hope I get a chance to play them in the first few days without the matches being overrun with awkward role mismatches that make winning them a nightmare. Unfortunately, that's almost inevitably going to happen because it happens in Overwatch.
Conversely, it would be quite awkward not to introduce the Fantastic Four as a unit. It would be amazing if NetEase introduced each hero each week as part of a season.
As Ana, Sombra, Doomfist, Brigitte, Venture, and many more were introduced, Overwatch players were quick to point out over- or under-playing, inconsistent communication with other heroes, and counters or lack of counters that needed to be introduced. . Fantastic Four is a roster many in the community are already trying to wrap their heads around, multiplying that number by four.
Unless you've devoted an absurd amount of time to Marvel Rivals, it'll be impossible to learn each hero, keep up with the changes, or figure out how the game evolves moving forward if each season proves too taxing.
You can worry about nothing. This initial season is just the opening salvo of the four heroes that were supposed to be released as a package deal, and everything that follows will be a slower, more moderated stream of content that doesn't overwhelm the player base. . Or maybe this will be a statement of intent and Rivals will never match the more curated gameplay than what's come before. Either way, the Fantastic Four have a lot to prove.
