Unless you haven’t been following gaming news into the new year, you probably know how successful Marvel Rivals has become. The 6v6 hero shooter based on Marvel superheroes and villains was released early last December, and Season 0: Doom’s Rise (the season released with the game) has come to a close. According to the developers, this new “two-in-one season features double the playable content of a regular season,” including new heroes, maps, balance changes, and more summarized here!
If you’re wondering what the statement “two-in-one season” means, the content in Season 1: Eternal Night Falls will be released separately, some is available right now while others will arrive in the second half of the season. The balance changes are in effect; alongside two new maps, the Sanctum Sanctorum and Midtown; and 2 new heroes, the duelist Mr. Fantastic and strategist Invisible Woman!
As much as I love the game, it’s undeniable that some characters aren’t where they should be in terms of balance, so some nerfs/buffs were expected. While some were mentioned in Dev Visions Vol. 3, the full list with specifics can be found on their website. While characters like Hawkeye or Hela didn’t get huge nerfs, many got well-needed buffs, and it’s better to test the waters with small changes rather than gut/overpower characters like Overwatch is notorious for.
A new battle pass has been released, named Darkhold, arriving with many new cosmetics to enjoy. This vampire-themed season gives medieval skins to some like Magneto and Iron Man, steampunk skins to Rocket and Wolverine, comic looks for Scarlet Witch and Namor, and many others. As Season 0 was out for very little time, Season 1 has around double the rewards to obtain, including skins, sprays, Units, and Lattice.
3 new maps will be released in the coming months, with two available on release day. The Sanctum Sanctorum, Dr. Strange’s mansion, is the map for the new game mode Doom Match; Marvel Rivals’ answer to the classic deathmatch. Midtown, meanwhile, is a Convoy map like Yggsgard’s Yggdrasill Path or Tokyo 99’s Spider-Islands. If you want to guarantee you’ll play on the map, mainly for the season’s quests, you can select Quickplay to only queue into Midtown, guaranteeing you’ll play the new map.
The most exciting part of the update is undoubtedly the Fantastic 4, with Reed Richards (aka Mr. Fantastic) and Sue Storm (aka Invisible Woman) already out and loved by fans. For fans of the Thing and the Human Torch, don’t worry, you’ll be blazing on and enjoying clobbering time later in the season. All of them seem to share a team-up with Sue Storm, which is worded like each character will get a unique effect (Reed Richards getting damage reduction and bonus health).
Reed Richards is a Duelist, although he plays more like a tank than your normal damage dealer, which is why many consider him a hybrid hero. His basic attack provides good close-to-mid-range damage with a unique area of effect, hitting anyone that you swing your arms into. His abilities, however, focus more on protecting himself and his team like shielding teammates or reflecting damage to enemies; all of which lead to him inflating with massive protective capabilities for a few seconds. His ultimate will bounce him up and down, dealing damage with each bounce, and continuing as long as you hit opponents (to a limit of 6 bounces).
Sue Storm, meanwhile, is the sole Strategist of the Fantastic 4, shielding teammates and utilizing her invisibility. She can go invisible passively until you start using moves, allowing her to go undetected through enemy lines or on points. You’ll focus on controlling who goes where in the match; pushing and pulling enemies; blocking paths with her damaging sphere; or shielding teammates. Once you get her ultimate, your entire team will be invisible to the opposing team inside a large cylinder, healing them similar to Cloak & Dagger or Luna Snow’s ultimate.
