preview Marvel Rivals, Overwatch clone or real nice surprise? I played it and I have an answer!
Marvel Rivals was first revealed a few months ago and has been an intriguing game since its announcement. Developed by NetEase, the title takes the hero shooter format democratized by Overwatch to pair it with the superheroes of the Marvel stable. As part of the Summer Game Fest, I was able to play it and it’s clear that Marvel Rivals has an interesting proposition, but certain things need to be reviewed before release.
Since its announcement, Marvel Rivals has been on quite a rollercoaster ride. In the beginning, The NetEase title intrigued players with its proposal for a third-person multiplayer hero shooter game, but with superheroesEven though the gameplay promised to be effective despite the great similarity to Overwatch 2, the title experienced a really bad reputation when its alpha version was launched.
Content creators who were able to play it revealed that a clause in their agreement prohibited them from speaking negatively about the game, which quickly led to anger among players on social media. Ultimately, NetEase reversed this decision, but the damage had already been done. Despite all the controversy, what is Marvel Rivals really worth? During the Summer Game Fest, I was able to play it for about an hour to try out different characters
Did you say Overwatch?
Well, it’s difficult to talk about Marvel Rivals without mentioning Overwatch, as it is more than largely inspired by it. Without surprise, The games take place in the form of a battle between two teams of six players each, consisting of characters with different roles, namely Tank, DPS and Support/Healer. Each hero has a base shot, sometimes a secondary one, in addition to one or more skills and, of course, an ultimate ability that recharges over time. Each part consists of a sequence of three very short cards, each with a different goal.whether you’re capturing a point or escorting a convoy. And yes, I’m still talking about Marvel Rivals and not Overmatch!
Despite these obvious similarities, the NetEase title still contains some originality to set itself apart from the competition. Firstly, Marvel Rivals features destructible environments so levels evolve as the game progressesbut also prevent an opponent from hiding behind a decorative element, for example. Then we find a team skill system that is triggered based on the heroes present on the fieldand obviously these are characters that have an affinity with the comics. Not surprisingly, Rocket Racoon is entitled to one of these abilities, with Groot, on whose back he can ride. I didn’t have time to experiment with this feature during a game, but I can imagine it adding an extra layer of complexity to the gameplay.
Visually successful, technically complicated
Okay, you get it, but Marvel Rivals is very similar to Overwatch, even in its hero archetypes and some of their abilities : Hulk acts like D.Va, Rocket heals like Zenyatta, Scarlet Witch deals damage like Moira, the Punisher has a tower like Bastion, Groot creates walls like Mai… and the list goes on. But what really sets NetEase’s title apart? Well, first of all, the visual part, because Marvel Rivals offers a great artistic direction that is reminiscent of the comics and goes even further in the stylized page. The superheroes are treated to exclusive outfits and are the subject of super-detailed models and animations, which makes it very enjoyable to observe the experience down to the smallest detail. I was particularly struck by the particularly well-done end-of-fight animations, which always have a small effect.
However, during this play session, some flaws seemed quite obvious to me. If you have been following the title closely, you may have heard two major criticisms leveled at it, and I must admit that I will go in that direction as well. Firstly, Marvel Rivals is currently suffering from performance issues, which is really detrimental in a game that offers a competitive dimension.. Lags, slowdowns or even freezes: all problems are obviously due to the alpha version and can be fixed before the official launch. I hope this also applies to the game balance, because it is quite clear that not all heroes are in the same boat. Personally, I honestly felt that characters who fight at a distance, like the Punisher, had a huge advantage over those who fight in close combat, like Spider-Man, who despite the similarities isn’t as effective as a Genji from Overwatch. I hope that gets fixed by then.
No impressions
Marvel Rivals therefore promises to be an interesting title with its solid gameplay, certainly heavily inspired by Overwatch, but above all with its respect for the base material. The artistic direction and the visual care given to each hero are clearly the great assets of the experience. There are still unanswered questions such as the economic model, the content or even the progression system, but we hope to have answers in the next public or private testing phase of the game.
Editorial opinion
Promising