Marvel Rivals’ Season 1 has, mostly, gone off without a hitch. Season 1 is only Marvel Rivals’ second season, as it was only preceded by Season 0, and it is, therefore, not yet possible to determine exactly how the game will approach new content in future seasons. However, considering how well-received Season 1 has been by players, it’s quite possible that Marvel Rivals will maintain the season’s approach to character addition.
Season 0 of Marvel Rivals focused on establishing the first-person shooter, and this short season certainly saw its fair share of updates, with new skins hitting Marvel Rivals throughout the season. But Season 0 saw no character additions besides those released at launch.
Related
What Marvel Rivals’ Human Torch Negative Zone Gladiator Skin is Based On
Johnny Storm’s first individual comic book-based skin took a lot of fire power to earn, both in Marvel Comics and in Marvel Rivals
Why Marvel Rivals’ Season 1 Approach Worked
Kicked off at the beginning of January, Season 1 introduced Mr. Fantastic and Invisible Woman to the Marvel Rivals character roster, along with a new battle pass and map. The remaining half of the Fantastic Four, the Thing and the Human Torch, and another map dropped on February 21 in what has been dubbed Season 1.5. All four members of the Fantastic Four have also received two comic book-based skins. This approach to character additions could benefit Marvel Rivals‘ character roster down the line. After all, many characters from Marvel Comics are a part of the company’s many iconic superhero teams. Not every single superhero team has an even number of members, but taking two moments during the season to drop characters could make a long season feel jam-packed with content.
Additionally, picking a superhero team for a season automatically gives the season a theme. As mentioned, not only did the Fantastic Four join Marvel Rivals in Season 1, two new maps also hit the game. These maps were themed to the overarching plot of Season 1, with the first map, Midtown, establishing the Fantastic Four’s Baxter Building, the Fantasticar, and H.E.R.B.I.E. The second half then introduced Dracula’s castle in the Central Park map, with Dracula already having been established as the villain of the season via the Season 1 trailer and promotional material that was released throughout the first half of the season.
Season 1’s story was further established by comic pages players could earn through various events during the season. These comics can be read in the Gallery. The comic pages are undeniably a resource that Marvel Rivals can use to its advantage when choosing which superteam to add to the game next. After all, plenty of characters on the game’s current roster are part of superhero teams that have yet to be completed in Marvel Rivals.
These Superhero Teams Should Join Marvel Rivals Next
The most highly anticipated superteam to join Marvel Rivals is the X-Men. Several key members of the X-Men, and characters associated with the mutant team, are already on Marvel Rivals’ roster, including Wolverine, Storm, Magik, Psylocke, and Magneto. X-Men have also been the most leaked characters thus far. Season 2 has been speculated to revolve around the mutant island of Krakoa and themed to the Hellfire Gala. Marvel Rivals has already established both Krakoa and the Hellfire Gala through voice lines and a costume for the Scarlet Witch.
More than four X-Men have been leaked thus far, with Emma Frost speculated to join Marvel Rivals in the first half of Season 2. Other members of the team that will allegedly join the shooter include Jean Grey (Phoenix), Cyclops, Jubilee, Nightcrawler, Rogue, Colossus, and, of course, Professor X. With other members of the X-Men in the game, it seems likely that Marvel Rivals could use the same approach it took with the Fantastic Four and add more X-Men over the course of Season 2.
The possibilities for superteams that would suit this kind of debut are endless. Ultimately, the hardest challenge for Marvel Rivals is deciding which characters will introduce these teams to the game. Perhaps other supergroups, like the X-Force, the Runaways, the Inhumans, the Defenders, and the Young Avengers, will receive the same warm welcome in Marvel Rivals as the Fantastic Four.
Third-Person Shooter
Action
Multiplayer
- Released
-
December 6, 2024
- ESRB
-
T For Teen // Violence
- Developer(s)
-
NetEase Games
- Publisher(s)
-
NetEase Games