Marvel Rivals is currently in alpha, proving that yes, it more or less is a complete Overwatch clone, but no, that doesn’t really matter because it’s still fun and playing as excellently stylized Mavel heroes and villains is great.
Marvel Rivals is supposed to launch with 19 characters, but now that the alpha is online, more are showing up in the files through datamining. I suppose you could consider this “spoilers,” which is a weird term for a hero shooter, but I figured I’d give a warning anyway.
These are from superhero game dataminer Miller, whose work I’ve been following since Marvel’s Avengers. He was datamining things from Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, but the game broke so badly for him he couldn’t even log in (sigh), so he moved on to Marvel Rivals, which is destined to be a bigger hit, no doubt.
Here are the 20 leaked characters that have been found in the files, doubling the size of the roster eventually:
- Human Torch
- Hawkeye
- Captain America
- Cloak and Dagger
- Ultron
- Moon Knight
- Squirrel Girl
- Black Widow
- Venom
- Thor
- Mr. Fantastic
- Winter Soldier
- Blade
- Adam Warlock
- Jeff the Landshark
- Psylocke
- Wolverine
- Invisible Woman
- The Thing
- Iron Fist (Lin Lie)
Then, as a reminder, here is the roster that the game should be launching with:
- Spider-Man
- Hulk
- Iron Man
- Doctor Strange
- Black Panther
- Loki
- Star-Lord
- Rocket Raccoon
- Groot
- Mantis
- Namor
- Peni Parker
- Magik
- Luna Snow
- Storm
- Magneto
- The Punisher
- Scarlet Witch
- Hela
Miller says the unannounced characters even mostly have skills you can see as well already. This many characters already being listed imply that not only is NetEase in this for the long haul, but it’s possible we might see heroes be released much faster than other games in the genre, but we’ll see. Miller says he believes that Hawkeye, Moon Knight, Cloak and Dagger, Ultron, Thor and Johnny Storm are the ones that seem closest to release compared to the other ones.
There are also new locations he’s found in the files, and each of these have a set of maps, Hydra Erebus Base, The Intergalactic Empire of Wakanda, Klyntar, Empire of Eternal Night, Krakoa. Strangely, he says, there is a distinct lack of cosmetic skins in the files, which will no doubt be the primary money-making vehicle for Marvel Rivals.
At least initially, Rivals seems like it’s set up for success, and may prove to be a solid entry in the genre. It’s still early, but it’s off to a good start, and with a deluge of new characters coming, that will certainly help.
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