Marvel Rivals’ Season 3 Characters Are Fine, But Miss Another Golden Opportunity

Marvel Rivals has officially revealed the next two heroes to be added to the game in its upcoming third season, and players can’t wait to get their hands on them. However, while the two fan favorites are clearly welcome, Marvel Rivals has fallen victim to a common mistake.

The latest trailer for Marvel Rivals revealed the theme for the game’s third season: The Abyss Awakens. Key moments in the trailer involved a transformation for Hela, as well as the introduction of Blade and Jean Grey using her Phoenix powers. While leaks for Marvel Rivals characters have speculated these two were on the way, the news is finally official. It seems that the story of the season will see Hela assisting Knull, the creator of the symbiotes, with his devastating new plan, and Jean and Blade arrive just in time to take her down. Fans have been requesting these two characters for some time now, and are generally very excited to step into their shoes, but unfortunately, they do feel slightly out of place in a season devoted to a story about symbiotes.

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Blade and Phoenix Arrive Late to the Party

Blade has been teased for Marvel Rivals as early as the game’s vampire-themed first season, and players have been expecting him to pop up ever since. As a vampire hunter, he fit perfectly into that season’s narrative, but, even though he played an important role in the season’s story, he never joined the playable roster. Now, two seasons later, the game has finally made good on its promise. The news of his upcoming inclusion has been met with praise, even though the season that should have introduced him has already come and gone. Leaks of Blade’s abilities suggest that he will still have vampire-inspired moves, something which would have fit perfectly in Season 1. As the saying goes, his debut is better late than never, but an earlier reveal could have taken fans by surprise, rather than left them waiting.

Jean Grey is another character that fans have long been expecting, in part due to frequent leaks suggesting she was in development. With her natural telekinetic abilities, as well as the powerful moves granted to her by the Phoenix Force, Jean Grey could become one of the most unique characters on the roster. It should prove an exciting experience to take control of her powers, especially with Jean Grey’s rumored team-up with Wolverine, but it still feels like all of this should have happened in the previous season. Season 2’s Hellfire Gala was used to introduce Emma Frost, another mutant character with ties to the X-Men. In fact, Jean Grey famously joins the Hellfire Club while under control of the Phoenix, again leaving some to wonder why this character wasn’t introduced in a more appropriate story.

Marvel Rivals’ Character Choices Continue a Disappointing Trend

Season 3 of Marvel Rivals is set to tell a story about Knull trying to strengthen a new wave of evil symbiotes. While this story is original and compelling, it doesn’t seem like the best narrative to involve a vampire hunter or introduce one of the most powerful X-Men. Similarly, season 1’s vampire storyline was when the Fantastic 4 joined the roster, and the recent Hellfire Gala season brought Emma Frost and Ultron to the game. Most of these characters didn’t fit the background narrative either. Marvel Rivals has a bad habit of bringing in characters that, while exciting, don’t thematically fit the game’s current narrative. For example, it would create a more cohesive story if Marvel Rivals introduced Carnage, Anti-Venom, or even Knull himself as playable characters during this season, just as Blade and Phoenix should have joined the game in previous appropriate seasons.

By no means are Jean Grey and Blade poor choices for Marvel Rivals. On the contrary, they seem to have excellent powers and abilities to add to the game. However, it is a mistake to introduce characters at the wrong time, and Marvel Rivals continues to make that mistake. Still, players can enjoy new characters each season as the game grows, with Season 3 beginning on July 11.