Marvel Rivals Loses Majority of Players Less Than a Year After Launch

Marvel Rivals, a hero shooter created by NetEase Games in collaboration with Marvel Games, launched on December 6, 2024, for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and Windows. A PlayStation 4 version followed on September 12.

The free-to-play game features 43 characters from Marvel Comics and supports cross-play across all platforms. By February 2025, it had reached over 40 million players worldwide.

The game’s story begins with a confrontation between Doctor Doom and his heroic 2099 counterpart. Their clash triggers a “timestream entanglement,” creating new worlds where heroes and villains from different universes fight to determine which Doom variant will dominate.

Gameplay is built around 6v6 third-person battles, and players can use destructible environments to their advantage. By April, Marvel Rivals offered 13 unique maps for players to compete on.

Despite its early success, the game has seen a steep decline in players. Forbes and Tracking on Steam show that concurrent players fell from a peak of 644,000 in January 2025 to just 98,000 in less than a year.

While 98,000 is still a solid number, the rapid loss raises concerns about the game’s ability to maintain long-term popularity.

Forbes notes that the combination of high production costs and the fast pace of new character releases could make it hard for the game to keep players engaged.

Many critics caution against relying solely on Steam charts to judge a game’s health. However, for live-service games like Marvel Rivals, keeping a steady or growing player base is essential. Forbes said, “An 85% drop in under a year is not something you can spin positively.”

Reviews for the game have been mixed. The PC version received “mixed or average” feedback, while the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X versions earned “generally favorable” reviews on Metacritic.

The game has been praised for its fair monetization model, with all heroes available for free and battle passes limited by time rather than pay-to-win mechanics.

A recent “vote to surrender” feature caused debate among players. Game Rant reported that supporters see it as a way to end frustrating matches early, especially during unbalanced games or connectivity problems. Critics, however, worry it could encourage a defeatist attitude and disrupt team dynamics.

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