Marvel Rivals debuts with one of the biggest free-to-play launches in Steam history after the year-long live service bloodbath that claimed XDefiant and Concord
Dec. 6, 2024Marvel Rivals has had an impressive debut
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
There are some caveats to that stat, as several games which debuted on Steam as paid titles and later went free-to-play enjoyed bigger numbers the first day they stopped costing money. Such was the case with Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and PUBG. Relaunches like Counter-Strike 2 and Warzone 2.0 also attracted bigger concurrent player numbers. But considering we’re talking about a handful of the most successful free-to-play games ever made here, it’s safe to say Marvel Rivals is in good company.
Marvel Rivals has launched in a good position to outdo all of those games, but whether it can maintain those early players remains to be seen. OurMarvel Rivals reviewargues that it’s “so preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths,” but the early response inSteam user reviewshas been tentatively good, with 74% positive ratings.After Redfall and Suicide Squad, Concord’s failure must be the nail in the coffin for the industry’s failed live-service gold rush.
Comic deals, prizes and latest news
Get the best comic news, insights, opinions, analysis and more!
Everybody loves Jeff the Land Shark, Marvel Rivals' standout star, except the people who have to play against him
Marvel Rivals gets its first post-launch patch, taking aim at bugs that were making players get stuck in various places and an overpowered Doctor Strange strategy
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 first reactions are in, and they’re glowing: “It’s the closest Hollywood has made to a Dragon Ball movie”
