From playing fun characters like Captain America to Jeff the Land Shark, Marvel Rivals is an exciting multiplayer shooter game that has taken the world by storm.

Marvel Rivals was released on Dec. 6, 2024. It is free and available to play on devices such as Windows PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S.

The game is a third-person shooter where players face off against other players in a six versus six matchup. The game offers a crossplay quick match and a non-crossplay ranked match. In both types of matches, there are three different modes in which teams have to win an objective. Those modes are convergence, convoy and domination.

In convoy, the offensive team must escort a moving object towards the end of the map. In convergence, the offensive team must capture three checkpoints. In domination, two teams will battle to secure a single checkpoint in three different maps, where it is a best-out-of-three scenario.

Personally, I like the domination mode the most, because of map versatility and the chance to improve if your team has lost the first round. It is a high-stakes game which gets me motivated to win more.

Marvel Rivals features arcade-styled modes as well, such as conquest and doom match where the game focuses more on the highest scores than a focused objective.

The game has seasons that last three months and introduces new characters to play with each season, such as Mister Fantastic and Invisible Woman, who joined in Season 1. The creators of Marvel Rivals have said they would add on more characters as the game develops.

A big part of what makes Marvel Rivals fun for players is that it is in the third person. There are different skin variants offered for heroes, most notably Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) versions of skins for heroes. The skins are purchased with Chrono Tokens, which can be bought in the game.

During each season, players can level up their characters and ranks by playing in ranked matches. Ranked matches can only be played with people who have the same console. Players have the chance to go from the lowest rank of Bronze III to the highest rank of Grandmaster I. The game features the top 500 global players as well.

I like the ranking system, but it is hard when crossplay is banned on ranked. Most of the people I play with on Marvel Rivals use a PC while I play on a PlayStation 5, so it is hard for me to rank up when my friends and I only do quick play.

What makes Marvel Rivals fun to gamers is that there is a wide selection of heroes you can play as. Those heroes are divided into three categories: vanguards, duelists and strategists.

The vanguard category features heroes like Thor, Hulk, Captain America, Venom and Groot. These players’ roles are to protect allies while also doing damage to the opposing team.

The duelist category has the most heroes. It features famous heroes such as Iron Man, Spider-Man, Scarlet Witch and Moon Knight. The primary role of the duelist is to deal damage to the opposing team.

The last category is the strategists. Strategists are the core of the team and are responsible for healing teammates. This category is the smallest and features heroes like Invisible Woman, Luna Snow, Mantis and Jeff the Land Shark.

I only play strategist characters because I believe they are the most important players on the team. A character I always play is Invisible Woman, because she has quick heals with her shield powers, can turn invisible and can fight opposing players with her psionic vortex and force physics powers.

However, Marvel Rivals is said to be a “copy” or “replacement” to a similar multiplayer shooter game, “Overwatch.”

Benjamin Yang, who is part of Fresno State’s Esports program and “Overwatch” Club Treasurer, shared his thoughts on “Marvel Rivals” and how it compares to “Overwatch.”

“I’ve been a Marvel fan for as long as I can remember…so when I found out they were doing a hero shooter, I knew I had to give it a try,” Yang said. “Compared to Overwatch, it does feel a bit clunky, but Overwatch was also like that when it was first released.”

According to Beebom, “Marvel Rivals” has around 454,000 daily active users. This is a stark contrast to “Overwatch 2,” which has an average of 24,000 daily active users, according to Dexerto.

Marvel Rivals is said to be “killing” “Overwatch” due to the constant decline of “Overwatch” players.

Yang shares his thoughts on the decline of “Overwatch.”

“​​Overwatch as of now feels like it’s lost any sense of direction,” Yang said. “They made a whole new game so they can change things, but are yet desperately trying to revert to everything they did in the first game, making it feel like all these changes were a waste of time.”

Zander Townsend, a former Fresno State E-Sports director and former “Overwatch” team member, explains how Marvel Rivals has interested him.

“What interested me the most was the familiar characters present in the game. I recognized a couple of my favorites from the MCU and the comics, like the Scarlet Witch and Iron Man,” Townsend said. “The mechanics of each character are also interesting. Some are like a hybrid of multiple Overwatch characters; some have unique new abilities and play styles.”

I recommend Marvel Rivals to anyone who likes multiplayer shooter games.The game gives you a rewarding experience when winning MVP or leveling up in ranked matches. Overall, it is an exciting game that brings people together through teamwork.

Correction: an adjustment was made on Jan. 27, 2025 to accurately Zander Townsend’s role.