Part of the beauty of Marvel Rivals, NetEase’s hero shooter starring characters from the comic book company’s biggest properties, has been that it doesn’t feel like a super-polished, esports-aspiring competitive game, instead opting for dumb fun and overpowered kits. It’s refreshing after seeing Overwatch 2 sand off all its edges in pursuit of being the main esports hero shooter on the market. However, the hope that the wonkiness would last felt like a pipe dream for Marvel Rivals, as NetEase was eventually going to have to put out some balance changes that would tone down some of the shenanigans. However, now we have the details on the first balance patch launching alongside the game’s Fantastic Four-focused season and it contains just the right amount of tweaks, offering some encouragement for the game’s future.
NetEase released the full patch notes after teasing them earlier this week as it rolled out information about Season 1. Some of the previously announced hero changes are here, such as the nerfs for Hela and Hawkeye and the buffs for Venom and Captain America, but there’s also a handful of smaller tweaks to a large swath of the roster. I’d still argue Cap needs a bit more damage to his kit if he’s going to be a brawler and that Hela’s minimal health reduction is not enough, but it’s probably the right approach to make some light changes here and there instead of turning the dial too far in either direction.
Individual heroes got rebalanced, but several Team-Up abilities also got some buffs. Almost all of the ones affected received perks of some kind, whether that be in shorter cooldowns or increased damage output. The full notes patch read as follows:
Captain America
Steve will receive some enhanced survivability, allowing more frequent entering and exiting of the combat.
Doctor Strange
We’ll be reducing the threat range and increasing the defense window of the Sorcerer Supreme.
Thor
The God of Thunder could use some slightly increased survivability and improved the success rate to his ultimate ability.
Hulk
Dr. Banner has been dominant, but some decreased sustained combat capability upon entering the battlefield will bring him more in line with other Vanguards.
Venom
With increased survivability and the threat of his ultimate ability, the symbiote menace will strike fear into the backlines of all enemy teams.
Black Panther
We’re slightly decreasing T’Challa’s combat survivability.
Black Widow
Natasha was very much in need of optimization when evaluating the release experience of her abilities as well as a slightly increase to the threat of her ultimate ability,
Hawkeye
We’ll be decreasing the medium-long range damage capability, reducing the threatening combat radius, and slightly improving the close combat resistance for the avenging archer.
Hela
The Goddess of Death has been a menace and we’ll slightly decreasing her combat strength.
Magik
The Queen of Limbo needed an Increase to her threat after unleashing her ultimate ability.
Moon Knight
The Hand of Khonshu will receive a slight increase to the threat of his ultimate ability.
Namor
We’re optimizing the throwing feel of Namor’s eggs!
Psylocke
We’ll be providing more options for other heroes to counter the demon slayer’s ultimate.
The Punisher
We’re slightly increasing the damage capability of Frank’s weapons.
Scarlet Witch
We’re Increasing Wanda’s combat strength when she’s facing Duelists or Strategists.
Storm
The Weather Witch needed an overall increase to her damage capability; We’re also optimizing the feel of her left-click projectile and the release experience of her ultimate ability.
Squirrel Girl
We’re increasing the threat of Doreen and her furry friends in their ultimate ability.
Winter Soldier
We’ll be adjusting Bucky by decreasing his long-range combat strength and increasing his survivability in medium-close range combat.
Wolverine
Logan will receive an increase to basic combat strength, but a slight decrease to the additional survivability after activating Undying Animal.
Cloak & Dagger
Ty and Tandy will receive an increase to their healing capability as well as an expansion to the coverage area of their ultimate ability.
Jeff the Land Shark
We’ll be adjusting the range for his ultimate ability so it now better fits the warning marker. In addition, we’ll also be increasing his healing capability.
Luna Snow
While we’ve enjoyed her dropping the bass, we’ve made adjustments to Luna’s ultimate ability to prevent players from abusing its healing capabilities.
Mantis
We’ll be making Mantis a bit less fleet-footed, reducing her roaming support capability.
Rocket Raccoon
Rocket could use an enhancement to his healing capability.
Hawkeye – Black Widow
To further tone down Hawkeye’s oppression, we’ ll be reducing his seasonal buff.
Hela – Thor – Loki
Much like Hawkeye, Hela’s overwhelming power will be receiving a slight reduction.
Luna Snow- Namor
We’ll be increasing the threat of Namor’s Frozen Spawn.
Rocket Raccoon – The Punisher – Winter Soldier
One of Rocket’s best tools will be available more often!
Scarlet Witch – Magneto
A bit underwhelming, the damage capability of this father-daughter Team-Up ability will be enhanced.
Thor – Storm – Captain America
We’ll be enhancing the damage capability of Storm’s side of this Team-Up ability.