Ever since its reveal, Marvel Rivals has drawn inevitable comparisons to Overwatch. At a glance, Marvel Rivals closely mirrors Blizzard’s game. While Marvel Rivals features Marvel heroes and villains as its playable characters, it shares the essence of Overwatch as a competitive multiplayer hero shooter, boasting strikingly similar mechanics and gameplay systems. Both Marvel Rivals and Overwatch 2 are free-to-play, operate as live services, and rely on the introduction of new characters to keep the gameplay engaging and fresh.
Since its explosive launch in December, Marvel Rivals has captured massive attention, possibly at the expense of interest in Overwatch 2. The prevailing narrative suggests that Blizzard’s game is losing ground as NetEase’s Marvel Rivals attracts a growing player base.
In a recent interview with GamesRadar, Aaron Keller, the director of Overwatch 2, addressed the new competitive landscape that Blizzard now faces with Marvel Rivals drawing in tens of millions of players.
Overwatch 2 Perks
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"We're obviously in a new competitive landscape that I think, for Overwatch, we've never really been in before, to this extent where there's another game that's so similar to the one that we've created," Keller remarked. Surprisingly, he described the situation as "exciting" and praised Marvel Rivals for taking Overwatch’s established ideas in a "different direction."
Despite this positive outlook, Keller acknowledged that Marvel Rivals' success has prompted a shift in Blizzard's approach to Overwatch 2, stating, "this is no longer about playing it safe."
In response, Blizzard has unveiled plans for significant changes to Overwatch 2 in 2025. The upcoming roadmap includes expected new content, but also promises a major overhaul of the core gameplay, introducing hero perks and bringing back the much-discussed loot boxes.
The gaming community will be watching closely to see if these changes can reignite interest in Overwatch 2. It's been nearly nine years since Overwatch first debuted in 2016, and two-and-a-half years since Overwatch 2 launched. While Blizzard keeps Overwatch player numbers under wraps, data from Steam shows that concurrent player numbers are at their lowest since Overwatch 2 debuted on the platform in 2023, with a peak of only 37,046 players in the last 24 hours.
In contrast, Marvel Rivals continues to thrive, maintaining its position in the top 10 most-played games on Steam, with a peak of 310,287 concurrent players over the same period.
Marvel Rivals Tier List: Best Heroes
Overwatch 2, however, still struggles with a 'mostly negative' user review rating on Steam. In August 2023, it even became the worst user-reviewed game on the platform, with criticism largely centered around its monetization. This backlash intensified after Blizzard forced its premium predecessor to update into a free-to-play sequel, making the original Overwatch unplayable in 2022. Overwatch 2 has faced further controversies, notably the cancellation of its highly anticipated PvE Hero mode, which many players felt was the sole justification for the sequel's existence.
For more insights on Marvel Rivals, including the developer's stance on datamining and the potential for a Nintendo Switch 2 version, check out IGN's coverage.
