Marvel Rivals from NetEase Games may be free-to-play, but everyone knows that the developers make plenty money off of exclusive skins and cosmetics.
When the game first launched, it was relatively easy to just add mods (or ‘modifications’) that gave players all kinds of special skins—even for non-Marvel characters; but with the Season 1 update, that developers easily removed. Now the mods are back, but they come with a catch.
Mods are Back in Marvel Rivals
According to Dexerto, the new method of installing mods in Marvel Rivals has changed, and rather than making use of a mod manager—which was how mods were able to do it previously—modders will now have to gain direct access to the game’s .pak files.
It certainly needs more steps compared to mods of other games, but some tutorials will help anyone interested.
Another huge catch worth mentioning is that using this method to install mods in the game could get a player banned. So, fans can still access mods with the other method, but if NetEase catches you trying to turn Moon Knight into Batman, your account may just end up getting suspended, and you’ll have no choice but to go crawling back to Overwatch 2.
It Was Inevitable
Though mods are generally commonplace in games and sometimes even encouraged by creators, many players saw the eventual ban of mods for a game like Marvel Rivals. After all, the game’s main source of revenue will be cosmetics, and if players make their own original skins in the game, they would have less incentive to buy the ones that the in-game store is providing.
It’s all pretty anti-consumer, but just because Marvel Rivals is free-to-play doesn’t mean players can do what they please with the characters. Maybe this would have flown if there were other ways for Rivals to make money, but as it stands, mods make the only profit avenue for the game obsolete.
Here to Stay
It is generally a bummer for modders that Marvel Rivals would block them. Still, if it’s any consolation, the fact that MR has now provided a worthy opponent for Overwatch could drastically change how the games deal with cosmetics.
Overwatch has long been criticized for its pricy skins since it went free-to-play, but after the launch of Rivals last December, the game provided three Legendary skins free for players that were pretty easy to obtain.
If this back-and-forth continues between Overwatch and Marvel Rivals, the consumers may have something to gain from the studios trying to vie for their attention. Who knows, maybe Overwatch can do a DC collaboration next? They caught everyone by surprise with that Last Airbender collab.
Marvel Rivals is now playable for Xbox Series X|S, PS5, and PC.