Marvel Rivals Update Unveils Legendary Beginnings

The zero season has come to an end, marking the exciting debut of the first season in *Marvel Rivals*. This season brings a fresh wave of content and crucial balance changes that are set to shake up the gameplay experience. Let's dive into the highlights of this thrilling update.

What’s New in the First Season?

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The theme for this season is an epic undead invasion led by the iconic Dracula. To counter this dark force, the Fantastic Four have stepped into the arena. Two members of this legendary team are already available, with the remaining heroes set to join as the season unfolds.

New Heroes

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**Mister Fantastic**: A versatile duelist who excels at medium-range combat. His unique abilities enable him to swiftly navigate between foes and allies, unleash area damage, and even temporarily absorb incoming damage.

**Invisible Woman**: A strategic mastermind whose attacks not only deal damage but also heal allies upon impact. She can create protective shields, manipulate enemy positions with push and pull mechanics, and, of course, turn invisible—adding an element of surprise to her gameplay.

New Maps and Mode

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Explore the new "Empire of Eternal Night: Midtown" map, where superheroes clash in the iconic ruins of New York City, including battles at Grand Central Terminal. Additionally, the new "Doom Match" game mode is designed for 8–12 players, aiming to crown the top 50% as winners after a set number of knockouts.

Battle Pass

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The first season's Battle Pass is double the size of its predecessor, with future seasons extending to three months and offering even more content. Out of the 10 skins available, 8 are exclusive to the premium version, with most being highly appealing. However, the Blue Tarantula skin for Peni Parker only features a color swap of the default outfit, missing out on significant visual changes. As always, the free portion of the Battle Pass offers ample rewards, including Units and Lattice, for completing various tasks.

Celestial Rank

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A new "Celestial" rank has been introduced, nestled between "Grandmaster" and "Eternity," and divided into three tiers. While this rank might be out of reach for most players stuck in the "Bronze" division, it could potentially ease the climb up the ranks in the future. As with many online games, Marvel Rivals resets ratings at the end of each season. Your starting rank in the first season will be seven levels below your final rank in the zero season. For instance, if you ended at Platinum I, you'll start at Silver II.

What Are the Balance Adjustments for Heroes?

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Balancing a diverse roster with unique abilities is always a challenge, and *Marvel Rivals* has made several adjustments to ensure a fair playing field in the first season.

Vanguard

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**Captain America**, previously one of the weaker tanks, has received significant buffs:

• The cooldown for his Shield has been reduced from 3 seconds to 2 seconds, although a complete removal would have been ideal.
• His mobility has been enhanced with the cooldown for his Rush ability dropping from 12 to 10 seconds.
• His health has been increased from 650 to 675 points, addressing his previous vulnerability despite his speed and shield.
• The cost of his Ultimate ability has been reduced from 3,400 to 3,100, but it now grants 100 extra health instead of 110 points.

**Doctor Strange** has seen reasonable adjustments:

• Damage from Maelstrom of Madness and Gamma-version decreases by 70% at a range of 8 meters (previously 5 meters).
• Shield recovery speed reduced from 80/s to 70/s.

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**Thor** has been improved:

• His health increased by 25 points.
• He gains crowd-control immunity while using his ultimate ability, reducing vulnerability during its activation.

**Hulk** faced a slight nerf:

• Gamma Shield now grants 200 health instead of 250.

**Venom**, already a strong character, received a buff:

• Gains more armor based on lost health, with the coefficient increased from 1 to 1.2.
• Base damage of his ultimate ability increased by 10 points.

Duelist

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**Black Panther** has seen adjustments:

• Extra health from upgrading marks with Spirit Rend reduced from 40 to 30.
• Maximum additional health decreased from 120 to 75.

**Black Widow** has been improved:

• Radius for the first effect of Edge Dancer increased from 3 to 5 meters.
• Recovery time for Fleet Foot reduced from 12 to 4 seconds.
• Time to reach maximum power for her ultimate ability shortened from 1 second to 0.6 seconds.

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**Hawkeye** faced a slight nerf:

• The spread angle between explosive arrows was narrowed.
• Passive ability Archer’s Focus activation distance reduced from 60 meters to 40 meters.
• Maximum bonus damage from his passive skill decreased from 80 to 70.

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**Hela** had her health reduced from 275 to 250, yet remains a top DPS pick. New Twitch Drops include a skin and other rewards for Hela, obtainable by watching live streams with Twitch Drops enabled.

**Magik** now deals more damage in Darkchild form, increasing from 115 to 135.

**Moon Knight**, already strong, has been further enhanced:

• Number of talons generated by his ultimate increased from 10 to 14.
• Blast radius of each claw increased from 4 meters to 5 meters.

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**Namor** saw adjustments to the accuracy of his throws.

**Psylocke** had a bug fix, ensuring her ultimate skill checks for barriers against opponents.

**The Punisher** has slightly reduced the spread for Deliverance and Adjudication.

**Scarlet Witch** has been enhanced:

• Damage of Chaos Control increased from 50/s to 60/s.
• Damage-over-time percentage reduced from 5% to 3%.
• Damage of Chthonian Burst increased from 30 to 35.

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**Storm** has been significantly strengthened:

• Normal attacks release faster projectiles with increased damage.
• Damage from right-clicking the mouse button has increased.
• Bonus health granted after using her ultimate increased from 350 to 450, decaying at 100 per second instead of disappearing instantly.

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**Squirrel Girl** changes:

• Squirrels now target the nearest enemy after bouncing, adding predictability.
• Health of squirrel tsunami reduced by half, making them easier to destroy.

**Winter Soldier** has been enhanced:

• Health provided by right-click and E abilities increased from 30 to 40.
• Damage from main attacks increased from 70 to 75.
• Area damage reduced from 70 to 65, with damage falloff at 40 meters reduced from 65% to 60%.
• Base health increased from 250 to 275 points.

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**Wolverine**, a top tank, received a boost:

• Health increased from 300 to 350, despite being high for a damage dealer.
• Damage reduction coefficient for Undying Animal decreased from 50% to 40%.

Strategist

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**Cloak & Dagger** adjustments:

• Cooldown of Dagger Storm reduced from 15s to 12s.
• Number of dashes during ultimate increased from 3 to 4, enhancing mobility.

**Jeff the Land Shark** changes:

• Ultimate range adjusted from a 10-meter sphere to a 10-meter cylindrical field with a height of 5 meters.
• Healing from Joyful Splash increased from 140/s to 150/s.

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**Luna Snow** faced a minor nerf:

• During the dance, the mode change has a break of 0.5s instead of 0.1s.

**Mantis** was also weakened:

• Acceleration from Nature's Favor reduced from 2.5m/s to 1.5m/s.

**Rocket Raccoon** received an increase:

• Healing speed in recovery mode increased from 60 to 70 units per second.

Team-Up

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The following changes relate to the benefits heroes receive from Team-Up:

• **Hawkeye** and **Hela** have their season bonus reduced by 5%.
• **Namor**, **Rocket Raccoon**, **Magneto**, and **Storm** have been enhanced. Namor's monsters deal more damage, Rocket Raccoon heals better, Magneto's projectile damage increased, and Storm's charged storm hits more often and harder.

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Overall, these balance adjustments are relatively minor. While a few characters may see an uptick in popularity, Hela remains a constant ban at higher ranks. The introduction of new heroes is poised to shake up the meta, and only time will tell how these power dynamics evolve.