Phoenix is the latest hero to get added to Marvel Rivals as part of the new season. While this character seems as powerful as is to be expected, I’m far more interested in what she has to say.
The addition of Phoenix brings a bunch of new voice lines and interactions with the rest of the heroes, which you can see for yourself in this compilation video. She has lengthy conversations with Storm, Hela, and Groot, discussing old friendships, the cosmic cycle, and tapping into Groot’s psyche so we can actually hear what he’s saying. But it’s during a conversation with Star Lord that another fan-favourite X-Men character is mentioned.
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It’s here that Peter asks Jean whether she’s “talked to Kitty Pryde recently?” and whether she remembered him. Jean just responds that while she has been by herself lately, Peter is a pretty unforgettable character, so there’s no need to worry. The conversation lasted mere seconds, but it managed to grab my attention in the pre-game lobby.
There’s been a decent amount of chatter around whether Kitty Pryde should be added to Marvel Rivals. On one hand, she’s a well-loved character who seems to fit with the wacky/care-free vibe of the game, but on the other hand, her powers would potentially be one of the hardest features to implement.
Kitty’s primary power is the ability to phase through solid objects and can give things she touches that same power also. So, for Marvel Rivals, that would likely mean being able to phase through the map or helping a teammate pull off the same trick. But there are a couple of issues with this.
First off, Marvel Rivals already has destructible environments, so all players need to do to get through a wall is shoot it or destroy it by themselves, making Kitty’s power a bit redundant. Secondly, I can’t imagine how complicated it would be to ensure Kitty can phase through the map but still be kept out of no go areas so she wouldn’t fall off the edge of the map or get a ridiculously unfair advantage like being able to camp in a spot where no one else can get to.
A potential workaround for this could be to restrain Kitty’s powers so that she can only briefly phase through enemy attacks, but even that would likely be monstrously annoying. Imagine finally being able to pin down the enemy team’s Kitty Pryde, only for her to suddenly phase out as you solo ult her—I’d probably quit there and then.
The fact that Marvel Rivals has access to thousands of Marvel superheroes is a bit of a blessing and a curse. As more heroes join the ranks, a spider’s web of connections forms. For every new hero added, comes the possibility of several new additions as Marvel’s characters are all linked somehow. This begs the question: where does NetEase even begin when it comes to picking the next heroes to join the roster?
So far, it seems like NetEase has been guided on movie promotions, as with The Fantastic Four, or themed seasons like Emma Frost and the Hellfire Gala. The possibility of fan voting has also been floated around by director Guangyun Chen. But I think Marvel Rivals will just continue to take a holistic approach to adding new characters, and with the promise to do so every month we’ll likely get through all our favourite picks in no time at all.