Loading in for my fifth Marvel Rivals session of the night, I have accepted that Rocket Raccoon will have to be my main. No one else seems willing to play support roles – aka Strategists – I note, as my lobby fills up with Hulks, Storms, and Iron Hands aplenty. My brief Marvel Rivals preview session at Gamescom did not prepare me for its finer points of tension, from the rush to claim favored heroes in the pre-game menu to, failing that, having to flick through the remaining Marvel Rivals characters on the hunt for one that sounds even remotely intuitive. Cue a cycle of experimentation and swift, graceless humbling at the hands of my suspiciously talented enemies, and I found myself completely hooked.
I'm still getting the hang of NetEase's Overwatch-like hero shooter, so yes, the meta totally escapes me. But with my equally inexperienced friend chatting to me over comms, laughing at the mayhem before us, I've discovered that Rivals can actually be pretty chill if you roll your eyes, lean into its absurdity, and try to be the kind of player you'd hope to play with.
