With many games coming out recently that have focused on a PVP aspect, there will always be problems with how things will be balanced. No matter what, a character or new gun is broken when they first enter the game. In Destiny, that was originally Gjallarhorn; in Overwatch, it was Tracer; in Apex Legends, it was Rampart; and in Valorant, it’s Neon. With all these games, the developers eventually focused on fine-tuning characters to make the ranked players happy, which in turn frustrates the casual player base. In contrast, Marvel Rivals gives their underperforming characters big buffs and leaves their high-performing characters with only little nerfs, not wanting to impact their pick rates.
Balance is often sought because of ranked and esports gaming to make the playing field even. Yet when it comes to games like Overwatch, Apex Legends, and Valorant, they focus too much on making every character equal in power. The issue with this is that casual players are then unable to enjoy an even playing field against ranked players in quick play matches. Everything becomes about the “meta”, with better and worse character choices. With an unenjoyable game, players will often leave and barely pick it up again because of their skill gaps with ranked players.
This is why Marvel Rivals changes the PVP field. With any character having the potential to be broken, such as Luna Snow, Winter Soldier, Hela, Magneto, Sue Storm, or Reed Richards, this then allows for players who plan to never touch competitive games an enjoyable gaming experience. The developers also want the game to be focused on making the heroes shine, so everyone gets to play as their favorite, without regard for some esports-focused meta ruling over character picks.
Marvel Rivals has a bunch of Vanguards available to play, and each has their own use.
With Magneto it is probably best to compare him to Reinhardt. Both have similar builds, yet they are completely different. Magneto focuses on protecting and forcing players away from the point, while Reinhardt focuses on pushing foes away with close combat. Another difference between them is that Magneto puts up a protection bubble around himself and his teammates which when timed correctly can be both deadly and protective, whilst Reinhardt uses a large handheld shield. Ultimately, Magneto feels better to play though, because of his broader protection abilities and his team-up with his daughter Wanda to increase his strength.
Perhaps the most important class in any PvP game is the healers, with Cloak and Dagger being formidable rivals and Moira being their Overwatch alternative counterpart. Both have similar abilities, yet Cloak and Dagger stand out most with their ultimate on taking over an entire point, while Moria focuses on dealing damage and healing with a single beam. With Cloak being able to do the same amount of damage as Dagger’s healing abilities, it is easy to see why they get picked. With Moria she is also able to do damage and healing quickly just by using her other hand. Cloak and Dagger are able to put up barriers that do damage and healing, while Moria has a floating ball of energy that can either heal or damage. Both characters can heal or do damage, but some players focus strictly on damage versus healing teammates. Find the right player who knows how to do both, and you got a strong ally on your team.
Lastly, looking at the DPS heroes, we must look at Squirrel Girl, and I think the closest person to beat her is Octane from Apex. Both focus heavily on mobility with their jumping abilities. With Squirrel Girl, she has the ability to bounce her acorns off walls and do passive damage to enemies with their explosions. Octane speeds off, damaging himself after he heals himself slowly. Squirrel Girl is also able to use her ultimate to do quick damage and push enemies back with her squirrel tsunami, while Octane quickly moves his entire team to a new area with his ultimate. Both characters allow for quick gameplay, yet I feel Squirrel Girl takes the lead. I mean, she did beat the real Thanos by herself after all, so even by comics lore she’s broken.
At the end of the day, these comparisons are important to the gameplay of team shooters. Every PvP game focuses on the aspect of making their games balanced. As players can see, though, maybe the best way to balance games is for them to be broken. If everyone’s overpowered, then nobody’s underpowered. Overwatch has lost players because Blizzard keeps nerfing characters that no longer need it to appease a competitive fanbase. This focus on making the ranked players happy has diminishing returns, given it’s so small compared to casual fans. Marvel Rivals stands apart, wanting their heroes to be comic accurate with how powerful they are. This means some abilities will be more broken than others, and that’s okay.
That is the appeal of Marvel Rivals: the developers are actively wanting quick-play games and ranked games to be evenly matched no matter their experience in third-person shooters. Not only that, but the developers added the MRC as an e-sports tournament for everyone. With so much potential to grow with the entire Marvel universe at their disposal, there are many things to look forward to about this broken game.
