Over the years, Marvel Comics have caught our hearts with gripping, intriguing characters that held their own stories in so many ways. From the web-slinging Spiderman, to the shield-clad Captain America, Marvel has become a large part of modern media in many aspects. It has crafted generations with its stories, built worlds many of us could get lost in. While many video games have been based on this worldwide phenomenon, Marvel Rivals is by far the most sensational to date.

Marvel Rivals came out in December of 2024, a time where the market was saturated with other games such as Overwatch 2, Valorant, and Apex Legends. Two things stuck out about Marvel Rivals: the obvious Marvel branding and name—giving us characters that have been seen in few games over the years—as well as the new format of 6v6. Most other games within the genre are 5v5, meaning that each team only had 5 people. Now with this new 6v6 format, it has allowed for both bigger teams and shorter games. 

As well as the games themselves being shorter, so are the general team fights and battles within the game itself. Each character is unique, fitting into one of three categories—Duelist, Strategist, and Vanguard. Duelists tend to be your typical Damage Per Second, or DPS, champion who deals high damage in exchange for low base health. Examples of duelist characters within the game include Star Lord, Iron Man, and Spider-Man. Strategists are more supportive heroes, focusing on healing or buffing their allies. These include Jeff the Land Shark, Loki, and Rocket Raccoon. The final class, the Vanguard class, consists of tanks or bruisers. These are larger characters with huge health bars that typically assist in locking down the enemy. Characters in this class include Penni Parker, Hulk, and Groot. 

The gameplay itself tends to be much more fast-paced. The community as a whole has agreed that the game is more fun overall because of this, the main reason being that the characters are not overly balanced to each other. The characters themselves can also team up with each other, leading to new and innovative abilities and interactions. A large part of the game’s success comes in part from how characters and the environment interact with each other. It makes the world feel more alive, leaning into the idea of comics coming to life more and more. Paired with the incredible art style—combining harsh shapes and old-style comic book techniques—the entire game feels like a nicely wrapped package.

Marvel Rivals, though still fresh in the gaming world, has made nothing but waves across the industry as a whole. From the new format to highly stylized visuals, this new hero shooter is sure to capture the hearts of all of those who pick it up on platforms such as Steam and Epic Games.