Disasters hurt the innocent the most. That's why we need heroes. No matter where they're from, or what their mission may be, when warriors cross paths, sparks fly. Chaos leads to confusion, But those who answer the call will choose what's right no matter how many foes they face, heroes will always rise above.
Heroes are the playable characters in NetEase Games' 2024 hero-shooter title, Marvel Rivals, and players are tasked with creating a team from a lineup of iconic heroes, anti-heroes, and villains from the Marvel universe. As of the release of Season 5, there are currently a total of 44 Heroes in the game.
Overview[]
The game's hero roster during release.
Lore[]
The merciless clash between tyrannical dictator Doctor Doom and his future counterpart from the year 2099 has forced countless universes to collide in the Timestream Entanglement, creating new worlds and crises unknown.
Now, Super Heroes and Villains from across the multiverse must fight together and against one another as disparate groups each seek to best both Dooms before one achieves domination of these realities. Familiar faces become newfound foes while former enemies become the greatest of allies in Marvel Rivals!
Health[]
Every hero has a health, sometimes known as "HP" or "hit points," which indicates how much damage they can take before being killed. When it reaches zero, you die. Most characters have between 250 and 300 health, which is a rather modest amount; Vanguards have considerably larger (and more diverse) health pools, ranging from 500 to 800, which fits their nature as "tank" characters. Some heroes also have a bonus health feature, often known as "Shield," which appeared as a blue bar to the right of the usual health bar. Bonus Health is an additional healing resource provided by various abilities. Damage delivered to someone with Bonus Health first removes the Bonus Health, which serves as a "shield" for their regular health. Bonus Health only provides a short boost and quickly depletes after a few seconds, with the exception of Rocket Raccoon's armor pack.
Attacks[]
Every hero has a primary attack, whether melee or ranged; in the latter case, most ranged attacks rely on an ammo pool that must be replenished on a regular basis. Most Melee/brawl heroes have infinite ammo pool because they use a static weapon or their fists. Apart from that, each has a distinct set of abilities; some provide extra kinds of attack or healing and some boost mobility. Most abilities have a timed cooldown, but there are several exceptions. Further, every hero has their own Quick Melee attack by pressing the V / 
/ 
. Examples such as Doctor Strange's Eldritch Whip, The Punisher's combat knife, or Dagger's acrobatic flashkick.
Mobility[]
Almost all heroes in the game have the same base movement speed, which most believe to be fairly slow, as well as a miserably short leap, making it impossible to travel around the field effectively. Many characters, however, have "mobility" powers that can significantly boost their horizontal and/or vertical mobility, such as faster movement, double-jumping, and sprinting on walls. Some heroes can even achieve a state of free-flight, which gives them complete control over their positions. All heroes in the game have the same base movement speed of 6m/s, with the exception of Black Panther and Wolverine, who travel at a faster 7m/s. However, certain heroes have abilities that allow them to momentarily improve their mobility speed such as Luna Snow and Captain America. Further, only five heroes, Angela, Human Torch, Iron Man, Storm, and Ultron possess the ability to fly indefinitely, however several heroes can gain flight temporarily through abilities like Doctor Strange and Star-Lord. The most agile and highest mobility character in the game currently is Spider-Man.
Roles[]
Heroes are organized into three roles. These are Vanguards, Duelists, and Strategists. However, each role provides vastly distinct play styles for its characters, and each hero has specific abilities capable of causing damage, disabling enemies or assisting that can provide significant utility for the team. As of Season 5.0, there are 11 Vanguards, 23 Duelists, and 10 Strategists.
| Role | Summary of Role |
|---|---|
 Vanguard
|
Vanguards are heroes designed to be at the frontline thanks to their large health pools and crowd control abilities, allowing them to create space for your team, take down fortified positions, endure longer and absorb damage from the opposing team without dying. To increase their survivability, each Vanguard has access to at least one method of blocking or mitigating damage. The specifics of how they protect their team vary greatly from each hero; some may create barriers to protect others from harm and block incoming damage, whereas others rely on generating large amounts of bonus health to absorb damage. Most Vanguards can also break down close-up grouped adversaries using their abilities, and some can set up a crowd control play against their opponents to weaken their positions and defenses. Vanguards fit the archetype of "tanks" seen in other similar games. |
 Duelist
|
Duelists are heroes designed to deal high damage and secure takedowns. They are responsible for finding, engaging, and eliminating the opponents with their heavily offensive abilities. They often possess abilities that exclusively benefit themselves, and often have versatile mobility options. Their role in the team vary: some are tailored to deal damage from long distances, while others are designed to directly dive into the enemy backline and pick off targets out of position. Duelist fit the archetype of "DPS" seen in other similar games. This role has the highest number of heroes by far, containing 23 out of the 44 heroes. |
 Strategist
|
Strategists are heroes who primarily assist and support their teammates by healing damage inflicted by the enemy team, although many also provide other forms of utility or grant unique buffs, such as increasing damage dealt, granting bonus health, and extra movement speed. Despite being characters who aid and heal, several of them have offensive abilities to hold their own ground and others have high mobility to keep themselves safe. They are usually positioned behind as they are the backbone of their team. Strategists fit the archetype of "supports" seen in other similar games. |
Hero Roster[]
Hero Release Dates & Voice Actors[]
With the announcement of Marvel Rivals, 18 heroes were introduced. About a month and a half later, the first 19 heroes became playable in the Closed Alpha. During the Closed Beta, 4 additional heroes were added. It is set to launch with all Heroes are unlocked and free to play. The game was then released on December 6, 2024, with a total of 33 heroes.
In Dev Vision Vol. 1, Creative Director Guangguang announced that each season, starting with Season 1, will bring new content, including new heroes. Recently after the release of Season 1, Marvel Rivals game director Guangyun Chen confirmed during an interview with the Metro that new heroes will be published on a regular basis in the game. With "fresh seasonal stories, new maps, and new heroes" in each season, the developer will distribute mid-season updates throughout. The length of one season is three months. And for each half of the season, will introduce a new hero.[1] Initially, each season was planned to last around three months and be divided into two halves, with new content released with each half season, including at least one new hero. From Season 3 onward, NetEase revealed that each update will span two months rather than three, resulting in a new hero each month.[2]
| No. | Hero | Role | Reveal Date | Release Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 |  |
Doctor Strange | Vanguard |
27 March 2024 (Rivalsā First Stand - Game Announcement Trailer) | 10 May 2024 (Closed Alpha Test) |
| 02 |  |
Hulk | Vanguard | ||
| 03 |  |
Iron Man | Duelist | ||
| 04 |  |
Spider-Man | Duelist | ||
| 05 |  |
Luna Snow | Strategist | ||
| 06 |  |
Namor | Duelist | ||
| 07 |  |
Loki | Strategist | ||
| 08 |  |
Black Panther | Duelist | ||
| 09 |  |
Magik | Duelist | ||
| 10 |  |
Rocket Raccoon | Strategist | ||
| 11 |  |
Groot | Vanguard | ||
| 12 |  |
Peni Parker | Vanguard | ||
| 13 |  |
Storm | Duelist | ||
| 14 |  |
Magneto | Vanguard | ||
| 15 |  |
Star-Lord | Duelist | ||
| 16 |  |
Mantis | Strategist | ||
| 17 |  |
The Punisher | Duelist | ||
| 18 |  |
Scarlet Witch | Duelist | ||
| 19 |  |
Hela | Duelist |
8 May 2024 (Hela Character Reveal) | |
| 20 |  |
Venom | Vanguard |
30 May 2024 ("Alpha Test Concludes!" Post) | 23 July 2024 (Closed Beta Test) |
| 21 |  |
Adam Warlock | Strategist | ||
| 22 |  |
Thor | Vanguard |
26 July 2024 (No One Rivals Doom trailer) | 27 July 2024 (Added to the Closed Beta Test) |
| 23 |  |
Jeff the Land Shark | Strategist |
26 July 2024 (Jeff the Land Shark Character Reveal) | 27 July 2024 (Added to the Closed Beta Test) |
| 24 |  |
Winter Soldier | Duelist |
20 August 2024 (Stars Aligned - Launch Date Announcement Trailer) | 6 December 2024 (Season 0: Dooms' Rise) |
| 25 |  |
Captain America | Vanguard | ||
| 26 |  |
Psylocke | Duelist |
24 September 2024 (Psylocke Character Reveal) | |
| 27 |  |
Moon Knight | Duelist |
9 November 2024 (Moon Knight Character Reveal) | |
| 28 |  |
Hawkeye | Duelist |
21 November 2024 (Hawkeye Character Reveal) | |
| 29 |  |
Squirrel Girl | Duelist |
30 November 2024 (Rivals 'Til the End - Launch Trailer) | |
| 30 |  |
Iron Fist | Duelist | ||
| 31 |  |
Black Widow | Duelist | ||
| 32 |  |
Cloak & Dagger | Strategist | ||
| 33 |  |
Wolverine | Duelist | ||
| 34 |  |
Mister Fantastic | Duelist |
2 January 2025 (Season 1 Trailer Announcement) | 10 January 2025 (First Half of Season 1: Eternal Night Falls) |
| 35 |  |
Invisible Woman | Strategist | ||
| 36 |  |
Human Torch | Duelist |
21 February 2025 (Second Half of Season 1: Eternal Night Falls) | |
| 37 |  |
The Thing | Vanguard | ||
| 38 |  |
Emma Frost | Vanguard |
3 April 2025 (Season 2 Official Trailer) | 11 April 2025 (First Half of Season 2: Hellfire Gala) |
| 39 |  |
Ultron | Strategist |
30 May 2025 (Second Half of Season 2: Hellfire Gala) | |
| 40 |  |
Phoenix | Duelist |
1 July 2025 (Season 3 Official Trailer) | 11 July 2025 (First Half of Season 3: The Abyss Awakens) |
| 41 |  |
Blade | Duelist |
8 August 2025 (Second Half of Season 3: The Abyss Awakens) | |
| 42 |  |
Angela | Vanguard |
3 September 2025 (Season 4 Official Trailer) | 12 September 2025 (First Half of Season 4: Heart of the Dragon) |
| 43 |  |
Daredevil | Duelist |
10 October 2025 (Second Half of Season 4: Heart of the Dragon) | |
| 44 |  |
Gambit | Strategist |
11 November 2025 (Season 5 Teaser) | 14 November 2025 (Season 5: Love is a Battlefield) |
| 45 |  |
Rogue | Strategist |
December 2025 (Season 5: Love is a Battlefield) | |
Team-Up Abilities[]
The Team-Ups page in game (season 0)
Team-Up Abilities are specialized synergies in Marvel Rivals that allow two or more heroes to team up and grant those characters boosts and new abilities. Team-up abilities center around an activator, who receives a boosted stat, and beneficiaries who gain a bonus ability. Every Hero in Marvel Rivals has at least one team-up accessible to them, and no character will ever be released without one. Currently, there are presently 20 Team-Ups available, with some requiring only two characters and others allowing for more.
For the full list of Team-Up abilities: See here
Proficiency[]
The hero proficiency Lord Badge.
Proficiency in Marvel Rivals is a unique improvement system that tracks your competence with each hero. Players earn Proficiency Points by completing specific in-game objectives for the respective character. These objectives are repeatable, and allow the character to advance in rank and gain access to exclusive rewards.
For more information about Proficiency: See here
Creation & Development[]
In an interview with PC Gamer at GDC 2025, Marvel Rivals Executive Director Danny Koo explained how characters are created in the game. He went on to explain the complete character development process, beginning with selection and progressing to conceptualization, design, and presentation.
The initial step is to decide which character will be released next. NetEase Games' developers are eager to explore each and every character in the Marvel Comics universe. The most important aspect that they evaluate when selecting a new hero is that the new character stands out from the other heroes in the game. After selecting on a new hero, the following stage is to look into the character's background, references, and information from Marvel Comics. Once completed, they will hand it over to the design team.
The design team will then analyze the character's background and begin working on various design iterations for that character. Once the team has agreed on its baseline, they will proceed to the presentation. The final step in creating a new hero in Marvel Rivals is to determine how to promote and market the newly created hero to the game's players. This frequently necessitates significant discussion among the production crew, and they even hired a comic historian to assist with their hero development to present to the new players who are not familiar with the Marvel universe. [3]
Trivia[]
- In Dev Vision Vol. 1, Creative Director Guangguang confirmed that Hulk was the first Hero developed for the game.[4]
- In Art Vision Vol. 1, we can see what Heroes were planned in earlier design stages. These included Hulk, Black Widow, Rocket Raccoon, The Punisher, Doctor Strange, Storm, Winter Soldier, and Red Hulk.[5]
- Each Hero in Marvel Rivals has a unique signature in their lore profile, and each one is a great representation of their personality and background.