Gaming

Marvel Rivals July 23 patch notes: Closed beta test heroes added & enhanced abilities

Rishabh Sabarwal
Marvel Rivals new beta test coverNetEase Games

The Marvel Rivals Closed beta test is just hours away and ahead of that, NetEase has released a round of patch notes on July 23 to inform players of adjustments to heroes and gameplay.

The much-awaited Closed Beta for Marvel Rivals kicks off at 6 pm E.T. on July 23, 2024, and ahead of that developers at NetEase Games have made several balance changes and enhanced team-up abilities to make the gameplay experience better for players.

Heeding the feedback from players during the Closed Alpha Test, the July 23 update brings two new heroes to the roster. It also adds more abilities that players requested for their favorite heroes during the CAT.

If you’re looking for all the new content and changes coming to Rivals right before the Closed Beta kicks off, we’ve got a rundown of the full patch notes right here.

Marvel Rivals Closed Beta July 23 full patch notes

Venom and Adam Warlock arrive in Rivals

Prepare to confront chaos as Vanguard hero Venom enters the battle! In designing Venom, we aimed to capture the astonishing essence of the alien character by harnessing the symbiote’s unparalleled shapeshifting abilities and insatiable hunger.

We have crafted Venom to embody the ultimate hunter, symbolizing relentless pursuit as the lethal protector soars through the chaos on symbiote-generated “webs” before charging towards prey and shattering their formations. In close-quarters combat, the symbiote can slash through enemies with melee claws or manifest tentacles to hit his enemies from a small distance, dealing devastating blows.

Then, while in the throes of battle, Venom can bolster his high defenses, emerging as a formidable adversary while disrupting an entire backline of foes.

On the brighter side, Adam Warlock also arrives in Marvel Rivals, entering as a pivotal Strategist hero. Infused with Cosmic Power, Quantum Magic, and Soul Manipulation, we wanted him to skillfully and flexibly employ unbelievable healing abilities to become an indispensable force during team battles.

As such, Adam Warlock has been meticulously designed to bestow powerful restorative and defensive abilities, interweaving Quantum Magic into healing currents, uniting allies’ souls to distribute damage across their bond, and coordinating his own resurrection upon defeat.

You read that right, unyielding in spirit, Adam Warlock defies defeat, seamlessly shedding his soul before embracing physical rebirth within a cocoon, before swiftly returning to the fray.

As a core team member, Adam possesses the extraordinary capacity to reverse the tides of battle, executing a reality-shaping rebirth with his Ultimate Ability, awakening the karma of fallen allies and remaking their bodies through Soul Manipulation and Quantum Magic, achieving remarkable resurrections and invulnerability.

Two new Team-Up abilities

With the inclusion of Venom and Adam Warlock in the CBT, get ready for the unveiling of two new electrifying Team-up Abilities:

  1. Symbiote Bond” (Venom, Spider-Man, and Peni Parker): The epic tale of Venom and the Spider-Family takes center stage, promising a fusion of their extraordinary powers as they unite. Venom shares a part of his symbiotes with Spider-Man and Peni Parker, activating their own symbiote abilities. When in danger, they can convert the symbiote into explosive spikes that inflict harm on nearby enemies and relentlessly knock them back. Simultaneously, the symbiotes’ unyielding defenses ensure enhanced survivability for the two spider-heroes, fortifying their resilience against the looming threats.
  2. Guardian Revival” (Adam Warlock, Star-Lord, and Mantis): Since joining forces with the Guardians of the Galaxy, Adam Warlock has forged an unbreakable bond with Star-Lord and Mantis. Harnessing his Quantum Magic, the golden guardian has sworn to shield his comrades. When in battle together, Adam Warlock enhances the cosmic power of both Star-Lord and Mantis, granting them the power of cocooned revival.

Heroes ability adjustments

Vanguard

  • Doctor Strange: We’ve recalibrated Doctor Strange’s damage capabilities to better resonate with his Vanguard role, enhancing his power on the front lines.
  • Groot: We’ve meticulously balanced Groot’s tree wall abilities and their survivability.
  • Magneto: We’ve overhauled Magneto’s ability logic, empowering him to generate magnetic barriers (Metallic Curtain) more freely, effectively neutralizing enemy assaults. Furthermore, the metal shield (Metal Bulwark) can now be self-applied, granting him greater agency on the battlefield.
  • Peni Parker: We’ve fine-tuned SP//dr’s combat style, notably amplifying the left-click attack speed (Cyber-Web Cluster) to evoke the sensation of unleashing a large weapon. This adjustment will hopefully provide players with a more immersive experience when piloting the mech as Peni.

Duelist

  • Black Panther: We’ve amplified Black Panther’s prowess in wall climbing and sprinting, elevating his potential to unleash breathtaking combos. Moreover, when Black Panther triggers the Team-Up Ability with Magik, he gains the ability to summon the Limbo Disc portal at will.
  • Hela: We’ve adjusted Hela’s mid to long-range capabilities, ensuring a more balanced and compelling combat experience.
  • Iron Man: We’ve enhanced Iron Man’s long-range offensive capabilities, giving him more formidable suppressive power. Furthermore, the Gamma energy upgrade of his Team-Up Ability when using Armor Overdrive has been increased.
  • Namor: To aid in increasing Namor’s mobility, we’ve adjusted the skill [Blessing of the Deep] so that when it is activated, Namor can freely move in the air. Also, we appropriately buffed his damage.
  • The Punisher: We’ve fine-tuned the active use time of his Team-Up Ability with Rocket Raccoon. In this new rendition, each Team-Up Ability window becomes even more precious for the Punisher.

Strategist

  • Loki: We’ve heightened the significance of Loki’s illusions and slightly balanced his primary form’s healing and damage capabilities. In this update, Loki will rely more heavily on his illusions to actively participate in combat, adding depth and strategy to his gameplay.
  • Mantis: We’ve enriched Mantis’s ultimate ability, granting her the ability to offer enhanced survival support for the entire team by providing temporary health to already max health allies.

Balance changes and optimizations

In addition to the above optimizations, we’ve meticulously fine-tuned the balance of each hero, ensuring that players enjoy a more refined and exhilarating combat experience during the CBT.

Moreover, in the CBT, we’ve integrated player feedback from the Alpha test to enhance tactile feedback and overall impact. During this test, heroes will undergo the following experiential optimizations:

  • Ability Actions: We’ve meticulously fine-tuned each hero’s interrupt and action transitions, aiming to minimize constraints on player actions, empowering them to unleash their full potential.
  • Sound and Visual Effects: Significant adjustments have been made to the sound and visual effects for ability use and impact, ensuring players can distinctly perceive the success and effectiveness of their actions during combat.
  • Ability Camera and Vibration: Enhanced the in-game ability camera performance and vibration feedback to intensify the impact sensation during combat and increase immersion.
  • Wall-Climbing and Collisions: We’ve optimized climbing logic and smoothed out wall collision, ensuring seamless and fluid climbing for players within the game environment.
  • Crosshair Feedback and Combat HUD: We’ve optimized crosshair feedback for hits, added health bar indicators for healing and special states, and improved prompts for taking hits and impending defeat, providing players with clearer battlefield information.

Closed beta access and pick/ban system versions

Since our announcement of the Cosmic Selection (Pick/Ban) System, we’ve further refined it and decided to introduce two versions of the system for testing in heightened competitive excitement in ranked matches and tournaments:

  • Competitive Bans: From Diamond III rank and above, matches will feature Cosmic Selection (if all team members meet the requirement). Each team member can vote to Banish one hero to the Ban slot. The more votes a hero has, the higher possibility it will be Banished.  Once a hero is Banished, neither team can select that hero for the match. (Due to the limited roster in this CBT, each team will temporarily only be able to Banish one hero.)
  • Tournament Bans: Cosmic Selection will be implemented in only in Tournaments. Each team will have two Banishes and one Pick, chosen by the team captain. Banished heroes cannot be selected, while Picked heroes are protected from being Banished. The sequence is: Team A Banishes one hero, Team B Banishes one hero and Picks one hero, Team A Picks one hero and then Banishes one hero, and finally, Team B Banishes one last hero.

Please note that neither of these Pick/Ban systems will be implemented in unranked nor low ranking matches. Our primary goal is for players to play their favorite hero or villain when they’re in the mood for having fun!

Also, one more quick note, this CBT will include multiple language options. However, due to the tight timeline, the overall quality may not be perfect. We welcome feedback from our global players and are dedicated to improving this content as we move forward. And don’t worry, we also have plans to add even more languages in the future.

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