When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. The leadup to Marvel Rivals season 1 is well underway. We already know that the entire Fantastic 4 squad is coming in a Dracula-themed season called Eternal Night, but in a video published today, NetEase shared something arguably more significant: the details of its very first balancing patch.
How NetEase plans to balance its popular new shooter has been an open question in its first monthβits first handful of patches have consisted entirely of store updates and bug fixes, no hero adjustments. That changes in season 1. Indeed, the "stand behind a shield and shoot the other team" strategies of Overwatch 1 are alive and well in Rivals.
The specifics of the nerfs will have to wait for official patch notes, but NetEase says the idea is "ensuring all ranged heroes have a chance to shine. Interestingly, the other balance changes NetEase talked about are almost all buffs. I haven't played Wolverine or Storm or seen them all that often in matches , so I'm not sure what to take away from NetEase's vagueness yet.
Cloak and Dagger are getting an equally unclear buff to boost their effectiveness in "diverse" team comps. Maybe the most personally heartbreaking nerf, though easily the most necessary, is a nerf to Jeff the Land Shark's team-swallowing ultimate:. OK, that's at least approaching straightforward: It'll be easier to avoid Jeff ults in the future, so we can probably expect fewer "giga gulp" team wipes. Hopefully the change isn't so harsh that Jeff's most unique ability suddenly feels useless.
The Thing and Human Torch are arriving later in a mid-season update. Season 1 has three new maps, including one escort map. The season 1 battle pass will cost Lattice and be double the size of the season 0 pass. NetEase wrapped the video by setting some important expectations for future seasons. Don't expect four new heroes every three monthsβapparently, this is a special "double-sized" season for the Fantastic 4, and the usual cadence will eventually settle to two heroes per season which still sounds like a lot.
