"Better than Overwatch": Internet strikes Marvel Rivals vs Overwatch debate as former crosses 10M player count

Marvel Rivals has achieved the 10 million player count mark in just 72 hours on all the supported platforms. NetEase Games released this hero-shooter as a completely free-to-play title, and the community seems to be directly comparing it with Blizzard’s Overwatch 2. u/crazydavy commented on a Reddit post that highlighted the massive player base and supported the new game, stating:

“I legit like it better than Overwatch.. the characters are great and some have really cool double up abilities. Give it a try.”

Players discuss about the success of NetEase's new shooter title (Image via Reddit)

u/crazydavy highlighted the simple yet fun character designs in Marvel Rivals which came with a whole new ability combination. The user points to the Team Up abilities that the heroes have and can make use of while fighting against opponents in an online multiplayer lobby.

This adds a lot of new gameplay content by making the character's powers dynamic and dependent on what heroes the team picks.

Players compare the new NetEase game with Blizzard's Overwatch 2 (Image via Reddit)

u/expunks commented, agreeing that NetEase’s game might be a more worthy sequel to the original Overwatch game, which skyrocketed in popularity in the genre. Others also supported this perspective and discussed some potential reasons for Overwatch 2’s downfall - like the integration of too many paid skins and collaborations to increase microtransactions.

Reddit user compares the success of XDefiant with NetEase's hero shooter. (Image via Reddit)

u/Vahallen pointed out that a percentage of the community may still doubt the success of Marvel Rivals since it is a new game in an established genre. They compared it with XDefiant reaching around a million player count but still failing. However, NetEase has managed to secure a massive player base and will likely maintain a steady pace.

Players express satisfaction with NetEase's new game and its monetization. (Image via Reddit)

Another Reddit user, u/Flottrooster, elaborated on their love for the game and stated that even when the game does feature a battle pass and paid skins, it does not force players to purchase it with pop-ups. Moreover, all Marvel Rivals characters are fun to play and have been made completely free so enthusiasts can simply pick and play different heroes.

Players discuss the possible hero balance updates for the game. (Image via Reddit)

u/No-Pollution1149 commented that the game is fun, but the characters might need some balanced changes in future updates. Since it is a new multiplayer title, Marvel Rivals is expected to have a few quirks in the gameplay experience. The developers will potentially deploy new patches to balance the playing field and improve the current state of Marvel Rivals.

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How does Marvel Rivals player count compare to Overwatch 2 on Steam?

Marvel Rivals reportedly had a peak player count of around 480,900 on Steam. At the time of writing this article, approximately 192,600 players are active in-game. On the other hand, Overwatch 2 had a peak player count of around 75,600 on Steam with about 16,800 players online. It is important to note that these are live stats and can change with time.

Although NetEase’s game is new and has a lot of hype around it, Marvel Rivals has managed to create a whole new player base throughout different platforms. Overwatch 2’s numbers might look quite low but this is because the game was released on Steam later and the majority of the community likely plays the game through Blizzard’s official client.

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