MARVEL RIVALS HYPE!!
 

Well fellow Aliens, it has been a few days since the release of Marvel Rivals and dang are we seeing some numbers! According to SteamDB, 24hr peak is still sitting at 480K+ concurrent players on Steam alone – with recent reports noting that the game altogether has topped 10M players in just 72 hours! I can only imagine that that number is going to increase as more and more people give into the hype! The ‘Overwatch 2 is Dead’ memes are hilarious, but more interestingly, I have seen calls on social for a Role Queue because of the lack of healer/tanks being played – shame on you Spoderman mains! Let’s dive into the hero shooter genre and talk shop!  

As always, we remain unbiased and look at both sides of the coin in any gaming debacle (or at least try to). Right now, we’re seeing players argue about the lack of role queue in the game currently. Some hilarious videos on TikTok and X (Twitter forever) calling out gamers for the mismatch team comps and resonating comments saying: "Overwatch Fans: this isn't new."  Players are saying that the addition of a role queue would help balance team compositions and alleviate issues caused by terrible team comps during matches, which is of course what role queues do, creates structure where relying on people playing a healer doesn’t work. Some fans believe this feature will eventually be added, considering it has become a staple in other hero-based games like OW, which is probably likely, though I could see it happening sooner for a ranked gameplay as balanced teams are actually needed and we can keep it sweaty.  
 

On the other hand, surprisingly not everyone agrees. Some players appreciate the freedom to experiment with characters and team dynamics, likening the game to a more "flexible" shooter experience. They argue that the current mechanics, like self-healing and hybrid roles, already differentiate Marvel Rivals from traditional team-based games, suggesting a role queue might compromise this uniqueness. This seems like a casual take at the end of the day, if I am being honest. Some gamers for sure are stoked at the chance to pretend to be your friendly neighborhood Spiderman! In my truly unbiased opinion on this perspective, this take doesn't line up well with a game that is so reliant on team comps -- if you don't have a healer on your team, you're going to lose that fight 9 times out of 10, unless you're Seagull. 

While this notion of hero uniqueness in Marvel Rivals is obviously important for the game to gain players and retain those players - which it clearly is doing so far - the uniqueness still feels familiar on multiple levels. In comparison to Overwatch 2, Marvel Rivals has been praised for its innovative hero designs, which seem to blend the classic Marvel character abilities with mechanics similar to those in Overwatch/OW2. For example, Iron Man’s gameplay has been seen as a mix of Pharah and Echo, while Black Panther shares similarities with Doomfist. These parallels make Marvel Rivals feel familiar yet fresh for players transitioning from Blizzard's shooter. And on top of all that, the Marvel affinity is at its peak! Potentially even breaching a player base that wouldn’t have played a hero shooter previously. Which ultimately brings us back to the understanding that some players might be new here and don't know that team comps are uber important for these competitive games! 
 

I want to know though, have you played? What are your thoughts? Who is your favorite hero, how do you feel about the cutest shark ever, Jeff? Let’s chat about all things Marvel and rival in the comments!