Marvel Rivals Dev Faces Social Media Pressure, Announces Major Season 3 Changes

NetEase Games is making significant changes to the post-launch roadmap of Marvel Rivals to enhance its live service momentum. The company plans to shorten the duration of its seasons and introduce at least one new hero every month, aiming to keep players engaged and excited.

This major update to the content release schedule was previewed in the Marvel Rivals Season 2 Dev Vision Vol. 5 video. Season 2, launching on April 11, will introduce Emma Frost as the new Vanguard, with Ultron joining mid-season. Both characters will bring fresh abilities to the game, but the real transformation in hero impact on matches will start with Season 3.

In Marvel Rivals Season 3, which does not yet have a confirmed release date, NetEase will reduce season lengths from three months to two. This adjustment will accelerate major content updates while maintaining the promise of introducing at least one new hero every half-season. This means players will see new heroes more frequently, starting from the hero following Ultron.

Guangyun Chen, the creative director of Marvel Rivals, shared in the Dev Vision video that the team has been reflecting on how to keep the game engaging since Season 1's launch. Social media feedback has added pressure to keep the game thrilling, and Chen acknowledges the need to maintain the excitement from the opening months. NetEase aims to fulfill players' fantasies about Marvel Super Heroes by exploring new modes and introducing a diverse roster of characters. After extensive internal discussions and evaluations, the company will adjust its systems to accommodate the increased content flow, with more details to be shared before Season 3's launch.

Just hours ago, NetEase unveiled details about Marvel Rivals Season 2, which will transition from a vampire takeover theme to a new storyline centered around the Hellfire Gala. This shift will bring new outfits, maps, and characters, with more information to be disclosed in the coming weeks.

Marvel Rivals launched to great success in December, amassing 10 million players in just three days. Available on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X and S, the game saw a massive launch on Steam with 480,990 concurrent players. Season 1 in January further boosted its popularity, reaching 644,269 concurrent players and ranking as the 15th most-played game on Valve's platform. However, concurrent player numbers have been declining, prompting the roadmap changes from NetEase. Despite this, Marvel Rivals remains highly popular and among Steam's top-played games. The upcoming Season 2 and Season 3 are expected to reinvigorate player interest.

For more insights on Marvel Rivals, check out the patch notes for update version 20250327 as well as why Disney decided to scrap an idea for a Marvel Gaming Universe.