In recent years, cosmetics have gradually become an integral part of the gaming world, especially in the live service multiplayer genre. Cosmetics are often the best compromise between maintaining a constant stream of income for the developers without affecting the actual mechanics or balancing of a game, and are therefore entirely optional purchases. Marvel Rivals has more than its fair share of optional, paid cosmetics at launch.
Developer NetEase completely agrees with this Marvel Rivals” premise, especially when it comes to the multiplayer game's multitude of alternative costumes. On launch day, players can discover a wealth of cosmetics inspired by all corners of the Marvel multimedia universe, from popular comic series to MCU film appearances. It's a really great start, but it's going to be difficult Marvel Rivals to make all his fans happy when it comes to cosmetics, something that Overwatch 2 has been learning over the last two years.

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Marvel Rivals cosmetic products need to stay on the right track
The Marvel Rivals roster gets equal treatment when it comes to cosmetics
At startup, every single one of Marvel Rivals' 33 playable heroes have at least two alternate skins (excluding Moon Knight), which players can unlock either through the Season 0 Battle Pass, the in-game store, or by completing certain achievements. While each character has an alternate outfit that is a fairly simple color palette swap, day one cosmetics are much more distinct and often inspired by a specific Marvel comic appearance or MCU design.
Of course, some characters have one or two additional outfits, such as Spider-Man, Hela and Hawkeye, but by and large all members of the roster are treated equally on launch day. This approach is great to see because when it comes to Marvel characters, every fan has their favorite. By ensuring that everyone on the roster has at least a handful of skins each, every fan's favorite character is catered for and every player is incentivized to continue working towards unlocking their alternate outfits.
Marvel Rivals can't fall into Overwatch 2's cosmetic trap
But Marvel Rivals'The squad may not stay the same for long if they fall into the same trap Overwatch 2 has often found itself in it. Since Overwatch 2Since its release in October 2022, it has become apparent that Blizzard appears to prefer to develop cosmetics for a specific handful of heroes. This becomes particularly clear when you look at it Overwatch 2The last few crossovers.
Reinhardt was one of the most obvious examples of Blizzard's favoritism. Reinhardt was front and center Transformers, World of WarcraftAnd My Hero Academia Collaborations. Kiriko is often mentioned as another major offender, having recently received several new skins. In the recently leaked Overwatch 2 X Avatar: The Last Airbender In the crossover, Kiriko is set to receive another skin, which is already drawing criticism for potentially appearing in place of a Katara-inspired outfit.
While heroes like Kiriko, Reinhardt, Mercy, Widowmaker, Ashe, and Genji regularly receive new high-rarity skins, much of the roster remains in the dust. Of course, if a player's favorite character is one of the unlucky ones left behind, that won't provide any incentive for them to continue playing since they've probably already unlocked all the outfits available to them. Marvel Rivals needs to make sure it doesn't favor the same handful of heroes every season.