Marvel Rivals Developers Say They’re “Licensed” to Use 85 Years of Marvel Characters and Plan to Get Weird

Marvel Rivals, made by NetEase, is adding new heroes fast. Season 3 will bring popular characters like Blade and Phoenix into the game. Since the developers want to add new heroes every month, some people wonder if they might run out of Marvel characters to use.

The answer is no, says Guangyun Chen, the game director. In an interview with VideoGamer, Chen shared that the team has permission to use any Marvel character from the past 85 years. That means they have a huge selection of heroes and villains to pick from. “We are licensed to explore the full Marvel universe,” Chen said.

NetEase doesn’t plan to just use the most famous Marvel characters. Chen explained that they want to highlight lesser-known heroes too. He pointed out how proud they are to include unusual characters like Jeff the Land Shark and Squirrel Girl. These might not be the biggest names, but they bring something different and fun to the game.

Right now, Jeff the Land Shark is the oddest character in Marvel Rivals. Chen said the team wants players to see Marvel from new angles. “We want to offer a chance to discover new aspects of Marvel,” he added.

With so many characters to choose from, there’s a lot of room for weird and wild picks. Imagine Spider-Man’s villain Big Wheel driving around or Bill the Lobster joining the fight. Chen even joked about adding the Contemplator to the game.

NetEase hasn’t shared much about future plans, but Chen hinted that there will be some really strange characters coming soon. For now, he’s happy with how players are reacting to the current heroes. “The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive,” he said. “It’s incredibly rewarding to see players connect with our choices so far.”

So fans of Marvel Rivals can expect to see a steady flow of new heroes, from well-known legends to some truly weird ones, as the game grows.