Marvel Rivals fully embraces the multiverse concept, allowing the game to feature characters from different timelines and locations.
With the recent reveal of the map of the Intergalactic Empire of Wakanda, NetEase has also revealed four major timelines from which characters in the game will be drawn.
Four Main Timelines of Season One
In a recently released video, Marvel Rivals creative director Guangguang revealed that there will be four timelines explored in the first season of the game, namely:
- 2099: Techno-Dystopia
- Present Day
- Mosaic Timeline: Unstable Space-Time
- Collapsing: Even the Gods Die
So far, there have only been five maps revealed for the game, including:
- Yggsgard: Royal Palaca
- Yggsgard: Yggdrasill Path
- Tokyo 2099: Shin-Shibuya
- Tokyo 2099: Spider-Islands
- Wakanda Birnin T’Challa (Intergalactic Empire of Wakanda)
From the maps currently available, it is easy to surmise that Tokyo 2099 takes place in the Techno-Dystopia timeline, and maybe Yggsgard—a mash-up of Asgard and the World Tree Yggdrasil—takes place in the collapsing one.
It seems like the Present Day timeline could be the closest to the widely established Marvel universe, but anything can go in the Mosaic timeline—which is possibly where the Wakandan Intergalactic Empire takes place; after all, Wakanda is best known as a secret society, not an intergalactic empire.
8 Maps, 33 Characters
Based on the developer update, fans should expect 8 maps come launch day in December, so there are still three more maps yet to be revealed. It’s unclear if NetEase wants to keep everything a secret until the actual launch day, but the game is also promising 33 playable characters on launch, and so far, only 27 have been showcased. We will see if the studio has enough time to cover these unannounced maps and heroes.
We don’t know exactly what’s coming yet, but some speculate that they’re holding out for major X-Men characters like Wolverine or Cyclops. Several Marvel locations would be great themes for maps, like the X-Men's infamous Danger Room, the Guardians of the Galaxy HQ Knowhere, or maybe something as plain as Spider-Man's normal neighborhood of Queens.
A Long-Awaited Hit
With Marvel spending years playing catch-up with WB Games, Marvel Rivals feels like a much-awaited title. After years of Spider-Man being the only successful game franchise, fans are hoping that Rivals will deliver a Game of the Year experience worthy of the Marvel brand.
It’s perfect timing, too, since DC had just seen a major stumble with the recently released Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League. After the bomb that was Marvel's Avengers, the release of Marvel Rivals feels like the game-changer that Marvel desperately needs.
So far, reviews from the beta test for Rivals have been positive, and the developers at NetEase can learn from other Overwatch clones like Paladins and Valorant.
Marvel Rivals launches for PC, Xbox Series X|S, and PS5 on Dec. 6.