Who here is playing “Marvel Rivals”? I imagine quite a few people have tried out the newest Marvel game. For those who have no idea what I’m talking about, “Marvel Rivals” is a hero shooter created by Chinese game studio, NetEase Games in collaboration with Marvel. 

The game was released on Dec. 6, 2024 and immediately became a smash hit. The premise of the game is simple. Team up with five other players to capture and either push or defend the objective, and make sure the enemy team can’t do the same. If you want success, creating the perfect team is integral, but how? 

***Just so you know, there are no spoilers ahead.***

Back to the question at hand. What’s the perfect team? There is no one answer, and that’s a hero shooter’s greatest strength. Every team has six players, and there are three roles to choose from: duelist, strategist, and vanguard. Duelists are your quick and lethal characters that ambush the enemy team and cut down their supports. Speaking of support, strategists take on this role.

Strategists are healers that provide the much needed healing that keeps every team afloat. They are easily slain if ambushed, so they must be defended. That is where the vanguards come in. Vanguards are the tanks and utility of the game. They lead the charge, they defend the healers, and they provide much needed backup for the duelists sneaking behind the enemy team.

By doing the math, it’s clear to see that having two of each role is the most logical, right? If you said yes, you’re correct. The best team composition is commonly referred to as “2-2-2”.

With two healers, you lighten the load and reduce the chances of your vanguards and duelists being melted because they didn’t get enough healing. Two vanguards means the ever-burdened tanks aren’t forced to push alone, and two duelists increases the chances the enemy team’s healers won’t survive the battle.

Of course, this isn’t the only good team composition. While not ideal, a good team can make other team compositions work. For example, going either three duelists and three vanguards can lead to some interesting plays. Having three tanky characters or three hyper lethal ambushers can make it hard for the enemy team to get a foothold, as either their healers keep dying, or your team is unkillable.

You could also try going to three strategists to guarantee your teammates are always getting healed. This reduces the amount of damage your team can do, but there are ways to combat that. Despite the simplicity of having three roles, not every character fits their mold perfectly. For example, Thor and Cap are both vanguards, but are functionally similar to duelists.

Though they have a lot of health, they are bruisers that smash up the enemy team with quick and heavy strikes. While they’re not as fast and powerful as duelists, they can cause some serious damage, especially together thanks to the wonderful Team-Up mechanic. Certain characters, when paired together, get benefits that improve their capabilities in battle.

These boosts can lead to some interesting plays and can add an additional fun factor to every match. They are in no way mandatory, but they are nice to have. Focusing back on roles, certain characters are more of hybrids. Duelists like Wolverine and Mr. Fantastic are pseudo tanks, while healers like Adam Warlock and Mantis can do major damage that can rival duelists.

These are known as “off-roles”, which essentially means they’re better in team compositions where there are two others who can play the role more traditionally. The fun thing about “Marvel Rivals” is though the roster is large, there are certain consistencies. If you enjoy getting up close and bashing heads, there are plenty of vanguards and duelists that fit the glove.

Are you more of a sniper? There are three duelists (and two strategists) that fit the bill. Every character is unique, but they have similar enough playstyles that once you get one down, it’s not hard to learn another. On that note, some players tend to get anchored into one role (duelist), and that’s just boring.

“Marvel Rivals” has so much variety with its cast, it’s counterintuitive to only play one role, especially if you stick to only one character in said role. Being flexible makes the game more fun for not only yourself, but for others as well. If you get stuck in a match where four players went duelist, switch to a vanguard or strategist. Don’t be stubborn and bring the team down.

Of course, don’t be afraid to make your wants known. If you want to play duelist, you can say so! The game has a chat system, and people use it all the time. While toxicity is in every game, there are plenty of chill people too. Most people are willing to change roles if you’re polite and logical about it.

“Marvel Rivals” isn’t a particularly unique game, as “Overwatch”, “Paladins”, “Valorant”, and many other hero shooters have existed before it, but it does a good job of standing out. Rivals is a great game, and I hope it maintains its momentum. I highly recommend trying it out if you’re interested.