3 big ways Marvel Rivals is the real Overwatch successor

1 month ago 2

Overwatch was a pioneer game that helped make the term hero shooter a household phrase. Offering a variety of characters with different play styles that people could experiment with, Overwatch became a mega-popular multiplayer game that changed how everyone viewed competitive online shooters. Its sequel, Overwatch 2, only mildly took the concept further with new game modes and additional characters that continued to diversify the kinds of players who could join in. But while Overwatch eventually hit a peak of player interest and excitement, it was inevitable that another game would come along and grab everyone's attention. That game just happens to be Marvel Rivals from NetEase Games.

What makes Marvel Rivals such a big deal to the same crowd that play Overwatch is just how much it does everything better in catering to the audience. The game not only has a similar approach to competitive multiplayer, but has the benefit of a major license behind it that many are familiar with. For most FPS players now, Marvel Rivals is the hot game that everyone is playing as many are deciding to leave Overwatch behind. Here are three big reasons why Marvel Rivals is becoming a real successor to what Overwatch first established.

An official image of Giant Size Brain Blast mode for Marvel Rivals with Loki

Giant-Size Brain Blast event mode announced for Marvel Rivals

Marvel Rivals' next limited-time event is Giant-Size Brain Blast, a game mode that enlarges a hero's head to comical proportions

3 The Marvel license is powerful

The hottest thing right now

Overwatch has garnered a lot of attention by being the start of an original idea, which continued into the sequel. The heroes in the game were original creations that had a ton of personality to go along with their play styles. And for a while, this was a great thing that gave people new characters to connect with. But as time went on and Marvel Rivals arrived on the scene, much of that was lost among players who decided to jump over. Many Overwatch characters had detailed backstories related to the universe of the games, but they paled in comparison to the decades of history and familiarity of Marvel Comics characters. There's just no way that Overwatch could compete with that. Fan-favorite characters from comics, movies, and more have a chance to appear in the game and often make a big splash when revealed, which is something Overwatch could never take advantage of.

To further drive that home, Marvel Rivals has unique designs for the characters that people know and love from the comics. The way characters are presented looks interesting and oozes the same level of personality that Overwatch characters had before. But that doesn't mean the looks and style of Marvel characters from throughout their history are off limits for the game. Already in the short time that Marvel Rivals has been out, the entire roster of characters has received multiple costumes based on previous comic designs, movie-based looks, and special event costumes available to players. Overwatch did have many unique looks for every character on the roster between both of its games, but it still pales in comparison to the near-limitless offerings and possibilities that the Marvel license can utilize. If a brand-new Marvel Studios movie was coming out, chances are there would eventually be a tie-in with the game, which many players love to see.

Marvel Rivals

Released December 6, 2024

ESRB T For Teen // Violence

Developer(s) NetEase Games

Publisher(s) NetEase Games

Engine Unreal Engine 5

Multiplayer Online Multiplayer, Online Co-Op

2 Giving players everything from the start

The whole roster is playable

Source: NetEase Games

When Overwatch and Overwatch 2 released, there were multiple ways to gain access to the game. People could buy the game for one price and play normally, or they could play for free with limited heroes available that were in rotation. It took advantage of the free-to-play model while still maintaining a premium release that offered the full amount of content. For a time, this worked, but it eventually wore out its welcome for many players, especially those who grew tired of incremental updates between releases. At the same time, new heroes were often locked behind a season pass at first or given other criteria to take advantage of their arrival, with character rotations also becoming a nuisance for many. This was not the case with Marvel Rivals from the very beginning.

To the delight of everyone, Marvel Rivals was a free-to-play game at the start that opened up the entire roster. Every character was playable, with no restrictions at all. The only parts of the game locked behind a paywall were alternate outfits and other cosmetics that were available for purchase. Even if someone never wanted to spend a lot of money on Marvel Rivals, they could still enjoy the full experience of the game. This opened up the player base for Marvel Rivals and was very newcomer-friendly, something that many could not say about Overwatch or Overwatch 2. On top of that, new characters that were released for the game were also available without much hassle.

1 The handling of updates

Paying attention to the feedback

As Overwatch became more popular, many opinions about the balancing and updates to the game were rampant. Although updates and changes to different characters happened frequently, they often came with a lot of criticism from players who were constantly engaging with online play. A large portion of players felt that updates were done to often favor specific characters over others at various times, with some heroes being left to work harder in matches over others. At the same time, many Overwatch players became disenfranchised when promises of new content and specific updates were never delivered, the biggest example being the canceled PVE content that was planned for Overwatch 2. Players felt that the developers didn't take into account the feedback from players who had continuously supported the game since the beginning.

On the other hand, Marvel Rivals has been assertive about how updates and new content are delivered. Frequent balancing and changes between different heroes have kept people coming back to the game, even after unpopular changes were made to certain characters. Special events tied to cosmetics and constant rewards for those who play often have also been a highlight to many, with a lot of praise for the amount of optional content that doesn't get in the way of one's enjoyment of playing. Although some updates made certain aspects of the game tilted in one way or another, many players still feel that the game is incredibly fun. The entire roster of characters seems to be viable for both casual and competitive players who hop online.

Passing of the torch

While Overwatch was a pioneer for the kinds of multiplayer games we know now, it's clear that many people are moving on to play Marvel Rivals more often. Both games share a lot of similar aspects in how they play and the kind of audience they attract to them. But with so many similar games being released in proximity to each other, the time that players have is constantly being split. And eventually, most players are going to choose one title over the other. For now, Overwatch 2 will still be around for anyone that still loves to play the game online. But the spotlight is shifting to focus on Marvel Rivals going forward, and it doesn't appear it will be moving away from it anytime soon.