Marvel Rivals has been one of Netease’s biggest games. With consistent new characters marking their seasons, there are no signs that the game is running out of any content, be that lore, new heroes, or all of the side stories that have allowed the hit multiplayer hero-shooter to maintain its own story within the larger Marvel universe.
During GDC, we spoke with NetEase developers ahead of Season 7’s push towards Doomsday. That said, this interview wasn’t about sneaking out any spoilers on what is to come; instead, we spoke with Danny Koo, (Executive Producer, Marvel Games), and Yachen Bian (Publishing and Marketing Lead, NetEase Games) about the process of bringing in beloved characters like Gambit and Rogue while giving them unique stories, maintaining balance across the class systems, Ultimates, and more.
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One of the reasons for Marvel Rivals‘ success is how easy it is for new players to jump into a match, and of course, the driving force of Marvel IP. This also means Marvel Rivals could be a gateway game for audiences. But to keep that gateway open, the developers at Marvel Games and NetEase are reimagining historic characters, and with that comes a responsibility.
Marvel Rivals’ dedication to adapting new characters stems from honoring 86 years of history and building new lore.
When speaking about that, Danny Koo said, “Marvel is now over 86 years [old]. There are a lot of old Marvel fans, but there are also a lot of new Marvel fans. When we created Marvel Rivals, we always consciously assumed that this was [a player’s] first foray into the Marvel Universe. So when we put our characters, we want to ensure that the characters are authentic and they represent who they are in the Marvel Universe, but with the Marvel Rivals lore behind them.”
That last bit is what matters most: how Marvel Rivals makes characters their own. This allows both old and new fans of the characters to meet in one place: this game. Executive Producer Koo continued, “If you come in as a new person who knows nothing about Marvel, and this is your first time, if you like the character that you play, you see, and you want to learn more about it.
“There is not only lore in the game, but we also have Marvel Unlimited, where you can read more about them. And every season, when we update new characters, there will be a reading list as a companion to the characters outside of the game as well. Hopefully, with that, they build up their love for Marvel and start onboarding other new Marvel fans to come into the Marvel Universe,” he said.
Publishing and Marketing Lead, Yachen Bian added, “I think we do bring new audiences to the Marvel Universe generally, right? I think the team, because Marvel Rivals, has its own iconic style, yes, and, as Dan said, for us, we always have our very comprehensive introduction, or the information about the character itself, in Marvel Rivals. As a game, we introduce all of those characters in our own way.”
Marvel Rivals has done an exemplary job at adapting classic characters into something new. The one that stood out to me the most was Gambit. Known for his Cajun twang and his kinetic explosions, when Gambit entered the game in Season 5, it was surprising to see that he is a solid Support character as a Strategist, with one foot in offense, but also in heels. With a more complex kit, the adaptation of the character made an impact, and with more characters on the way, depth matters.
Koo explained what goes into creating the unique adaptation of any character, with Gambit as the example, of course. He said:
“Baseline, when we have so many heroes, we put them side by side, and they have to be uniquely distinctive against each other. And you like, if you put them all in black and white, you should be able to point out, oh, that’s Gambit. So that’s first and foremost. Secondly, Gambit is in a lot of media, and we want to make sure that we preserve Gambit’s DNA and have the chance of his stuff. Take those elements as a must-have hit list. Then we work with the dev team [and review the] hit lists: these are his iconic powers, and those are his skills.
“We have multiple iterations of a character, and while you’re designing, you want to put it alongside other male heroes [in Marvel Rivals] and go, ‘Okay, does he stand on his own?’ And making sure we preserve the [game’s] aggressive, dynamic style. Then there is his [kinetic ability], which looks like static. I’m pretty sure you’ve seen it in a lot of [animated series] or even movies. We want to ensure that we capture his motion correctly.
“And then there are his cards, which are a very tricky thing because that’s not his real power. People know Gambit with his cards. We add that little throwback, just to make sure that we draw focus. That way, if you don’t know who that is, he has his cards and his staff, and now you make that connection. There are different layers of connection, and then he’s in a strategist role.”
Ultimately, though, balancing each character across the game’s roles is essential. Because, as Koo joked, all Marvel heroes are “inherently just all Dualists.” And that’s where designing characters is at its most interesting.
“When we created Marvel Rivals, we always consciously assumed that this was [a player’s] first foray into the Marvel Universe.”
He continued to discuss the character design process, “[They are] Superhuman. Now we need to put the human in Super. That’s the storytelling part [of Marvel Rivals]. Part of the storytelling is if we are able to explain why a character does what they do in Marvel Rivals, right? Not only the comics. [For Gambit], it is like, why is kinetic power suddenly able to heal? We have to make sure that the lore is intact.
“It’s a very fluid [process] that we can have, for example, Deadpool can have all three different classes. It’s like, what he does differently, and we should be able to explain it in the game. And then Rogue, of course, she’s a Vanguard. If you look at a comic cover, she’s always the first one to charge in.”
Listening to Danny Koo explain the process, I began to understand the thinking behind Gambit and the power of adapting comic book characters into video game roles. For Gambit, his role as a Strategist allows him to heal, and while Rogue is always the first to charge in, a true Tank, Gambit is the character that consistently takes care of others. He cooks for the X-Mansion, he watches out for Rogue, and he loves more than he fights. As a Strategist, NetEase and Marvel Games have been able to capture those subtle elements of his character.
I shared that with Koo and Bian, and the conversation continued, only this time discussing the complexity that keeps coming up with each new character. Koo responded, “So there is quite a lot of learning when you do so many heroes, and you start seeing amazing combos and complexity in each hero. And that’s on purpose!”
Much like the comment about all heroes being Dualists at their core, many heroes also have similar power sets. So iteration and variation are driving creative adaptation on Marvel Rivals.
Koo continued, “We continue to push the design team and say, ‘This is too simple. Is there any other way to express this skill in a different and fresh way?’ Because at the end of the day, we don’t want the same skill expression with another hero that does the same thing. So we must be able to showcase them uniquely and stand out on their own. That’s a challenge, but the team is always up for the challenge and continues hitting the ball out of the park.”
The growing complexity of new characters isn’t just something to look at, but also where it fits in the meta. For the developers, it’s about what they want to make. Yachan Bian explained, “[Complexity is] more about what we want to make. Every hero’s views are unique, and [we need to] keep that fresh to the audience. ”
Koo added to Bian’s answer, saying, “[Different kits are] also important for team-up changes. So having a different skill combination actually expands the team even further.”
Marvel Rivals has excelled at making people fall in love with unknown characters.
As we discussed throughout our conversation, maintaining the game’s own lore in addition to the character’s history is important for the developers. Building a narrative every season and introducing new characters into it also takes balance.
Koo explained, “Building the lore is a constant upkeep. We want to make sure that we have an overarching arc, and each season has its own place in this timeline, and because it’s a multiverse, four different timelines right now, right? So maintaining these four different timelines and where all the heroes fit and when they encounter each other, how they interact with each other, feels very, very different.”
One of the ways that Marvel Rivals continues to build its lore is by offering banter before, during, and after matches, drawing connections between characters through lines of dialogue that establish history or indicate that they’re meeting for the first time.
For Koo, those small elements were an example of the micro approach to world-building, while the macro is focused on building relationships between the story of a season and its roster. She said, “We want to make sure that when a character comes in, they have a connection to either the past roster that already exists, or a connection to somebody else that is mysterious. It’s also [important that] somebody else comes in with them.”
Bian added his perspective next, “Narratively, we have a saying for every season, right? We give [players] the hint of the connection between the different heroes. To make those kinds of connections, we also take the gameplay, or the whole ecosystem, into consideration. We [take what] is there and what the community is expecting, and the game ecosystem itself, and what kind of story and heroes we need [for the game]? All of this combined to make the connection. And sometimes, we make new stories in Marvel Rivals.”
For those new and longer Marvel Rivals specific stories, players can check out the companion lore, which Bian explained, “We do have an extra companion, Marvel Rivals comics, [that release] with the launch of each season. It’s like what happened outside of the battle, side stories, and background stories for the heroes.”
But side stories aren’t the only way that Marvel Rivals is telling its own story. They also have music. Created by Danny Koo in Marvel Future Fight (a Netmarble and Marvel Games title) and developed further in comics by Greg Pak and Gang Hyuk Lim, Luna Snow is Marvel’s K-pop idol. While she debuted in comics, the Marvel Rivals team hasn’t wasted any time using the game to further develop her, including a Spotify profile with multiple songs.
Danny Koo explained Luna Snow’s impact on narrative, “[The story] being told in the game now, we do have theme songs and Luna Snow songs [too]. If you look at the lyrics, those are connected back [to the narrative of the game]. So, for those who pay attention, they get more from it. For example, “Fate of Both Worlds” is actually about Nemo and Luna, and that’s why they had to team up. The song is her thinking about the fate of both sides, which are Atlantis and Jeju Island.”
Marvel Rivals’ story continuity also uses its marketing to consistently progress the story, while also getting players excited for new seasons and stories. Koo and Bian explained that even the game’s announcements are created with worldbuilding in mind.
But more importantly, Bian pointed to the content creators and cosplayers who invest in expanding the game and its stories through art, fan fiction, and cosplay. Saying, “Maybe that’s not official [side content], but they’re part of it. They’ve latched on to it.” With Koo adding, “[Players] make their own story within the game, and then make content from that.”
That community aspect has taken off quickly for the two-year-old game, with local events happening across the globe and most recently in Los Angeles, CA. When asked what the developer duo was excited about this year, the answer mentioned Doomsday briefly, but their real excitement was meeting the community more.
Bian said, “I’m excited for fans to meet with the dev team more, so that the dev team gets to know them, instead of just sitting behind the desk. [If] they get that feedback and passion from the fans [in-person], it will energize them. It’s like, hey, [players] want to know who is behind this game. Put a face to it, put a human face to have that connection to continue the community growth.”
“I’m excited for fans to meet with the dev team more, so that the dev team gets to know them, instead of just sitting behind the desk.”
That in-person communication between developers and fans seems like something from the past, but in reality, it’s never left. While the fan events are on the smaller side now, only time will tell if they turn into events that match the energy and audience of an event like Final Fantasy XIV FanFest. But from the energy in the room with Koo and Bian, I wouldn’t be surprised if they did.
“It’s a different thing when [developers] see [fans] in person,” Koo said. Adding, “It’s a good thing for us to really experience [a fan liking one of our characters]. As a human being, that connection is important.
For Bian, the impact lay in how many people love Marvel stories. “[We] share the same passion for the Marvel Universe and talk about characters [and] stories in person, because everybody has their own favorite heroes, and they have reasons why. Everyone has a story about [how they came] into the Marvel Universe. It could be Marvel rivals, or it could be from a TV show. It could be from comic book movies, right?”
The breadth of the people who know Marvel Comics now is higher than it ever has been, thanks to its multimedia approach to telling stories. Bian continued, “There are so many people coming from all sorts of various backgrounds. [Community] transcends, because it doesn’t matter where you come from, when you come together and have a common shared passion about Marvel.”
Another element of having an engaged community for any live-service title is community feedback. And for our critic who covers each of the Marvel Rivals seasons, they had a question about the Ultimates, which some in the general community have called “overpowered” or the main focus needed to win any match at the right time.
Koo took the question a bit further, breaking down the purpose of ultimates, and for him, it was about managing resources. “[Ultimate Abilities] is talking about resource management, even in real-life war simulations. Whoever [has] the most resources usually takes the point. If you know you’re gonna have to defend or take control, there are several strategies around it,” he said.
Koo continued to break down the strategy and the reason Ultimates are powerful. “One [strategy] is an attack at all costs. So put out the Ultimate and sustain as long as that’s possible. Second is a flanking option, and the third is cover, so you don’t have to stay at the point. [Cover is] a strategy for making sure [your opponents] never reach a point.
“That’s a lot of different ways to play the point. Of course, we also look at data and perception of [abilities]. So the data is [about] how many people are griefing because Ultimate is too strong. That is a data point. How many people win or lose, is another data point. That’s the back end. And then that’s also perception [by the community]. It’s [a player saying], ‘I can’t beat this guy.’ So we have to consider those things [in development].
“We do make changes, but when we make the change, we have made some changes previously, and we put [the change] into several weeks of testing internally, making sure it doesn’t break anything else. Then, for example, next week, we’ll announce a big balance change as well. So it’s our ongoing stuff, both analytically, which is data, and also emotion,” Koo concluded.
Making updates involves two things: data and the emotion of community feedback.
Understanding the process of making updates and changes to Marvel Rivals is essential to understanding the game’s balance. Our conversation covered the development process, Marvel Rivals’ personal lore, and the value of community. But there was one question left that I had to ask.
With 86 years of Marvel history and a nearly unlimited supply of characters to create, I had to ask if the team had any intention of creating original characters for the game. Or more importantly, doing so to balance out the existing rosters as the game continues moving forward.
Danny Koo answered first, “I have created and co-created characters, including Luna, in previous games. But again, it all depends on what the game needs in terms of skill expression. If we can find anyone from the over 9000 [characters] in the Marvel universe, we can have a talk about it,” Koo said, laughing.
She continued, “For example, who would have taught Jeff the Landshark was going to be such a hit, right? Or [Luna] such a diva in the K-pop with more than 100,000 monthly listeners on Spotify? We’re not afraid of bringing in the deep cuts. The dev team always does a good job of showcasing unknown characters.”
“We’re not ready for original characters because there are so many characters to pull from [for the game]. Even if we have to pick up some unknown and make them popular, we would do that first. If we exhausted those things, say, we needed someone who has XYZ, then we would,” Koo said, stressing the “if” in the statement.
To close out the conversation, we came full circle. Just as I introduced the conversation, describing Marvel Rivals’ chance to be a gateway for players to find love for different Marvel characters they haven’t seen before, and to create new gamers out of fans who have only engaged with Marvel in film, television, or comics.
But to hold the keys of such a storied franchise isn’t something small. When asked about it felt that their game could be making new fans, Koo answered first. “Anything we can do to help someone come in and welcome them with open arms, we do it. We also promise them [that they’re] going to have a good time. We’re going to continue giving [them] content for [them] to continue to further [their] passion about the Marvel universe.”
He continued, “Of course, we are very collaborative with a lot of other divisions within a marvel. It’s like, ‘Hey, if you like Gambit, there is a show called X-Men 97 you could watch.’ We do have illustrators who love to draw new characters, and they were fast! We post a new character and within hours, [they’re like], here is my illustration. Then, there are also some of the creators who make unique things, like the emojis that we also get from the community. We hire them to put their work back into the game. We employ them so that it makes them feel like they’re part of the game.”
The communal spirit that both Yachan Bian and Danny Koo highlighted in our interview spoke not to Marvel Rivals’ success, but its sustainability. And in this case, it is the community and the vastness of the Marvel Universe.
Marvel Rivals is available now on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.
