In the Marvel Rivals Season 3.5 update, Blade joins the roster as a new Duelist; there is a new map and game mode, along with other balancing changes. Here are all of the Marvel Rivals Season 3.5 early patch notes
Marvel Rivals Season 3 officially started on July 11. The update rebalanced the current meta with a long list of buffs and nerfs, introduced two new Team-Up abilities, added a new Battle Pass, two Domination Maps, and Phoenix joined the roster.
NetEase also revealed a roadmap outlining what fans can expect next, including Season 3.5, which is set to start on August 8. Ahead of the mid-season update going live, NetEase previewed what fans can expect.
Blade Joins as New Hero
The iconic anti-hero Blade joins the Marvel Rivals roster in Season 3.5 as a Duelist.
NetEase creative director Guangguang explained what fans can expect from the latest character.
“Blade is a true duelist. His unique bloodline gives him incredible strength, and his mastery of combat puts it to full use.”
“Pressure foes at mid-to-close range with his shotgun, and reduce their healing at just the right moment. Then, unleash his ravenous Ancestral Sword, awaken the Dhampir bloodline, and slice through every last enemy. And, when the time is right, draw the legendary Sword of Dracula, dashing through foes, leaving a deadly trail in your wake.”
Season 3.5 Team-Up Ability Changes
Guardian Revival and Atlas Bond are being removed in Season 3.5, and Loki will no longer be included in Ragnarok Rebirth. Meanwhile, Duality Dance and Vibrant Vitality are new Team-Up Abilities.
For Guardian Revival, Adam Warlock grants Mantis and Star-Lord his Regenerative Cocoon ability, turning them into a soul after death, which they can use to regenerate from, letting them get back to the fight quickly. As with Adam Warlock, this ability has a long cooldown, so it won’t necessarily activate after every death.
As for Atlas Bond, Iron Fist imbues Luna Snow with Chi, granting her a new ability. When activated, she creates a powerful blast around her that pushes back enemies with damage and applies a slowing effect, while also healing her allies.
Based on the preview, it appears that Duality Dance allows Adam Warlock to boost Luna Snow’s attack capabilities. Vibrant Vitality allows Loki to boost ally damage, and Groot’s walls become stronger, thanks to Mantis.
Iron Fist joins Chilling Assault, Star-Lord is added to Rocket Network, and Blade launches in Lunar Force.
New Game Mode and Map
Resource Rumble is a new game mode in the mid-season update, and Throne of Kull is a new map. Both additions launch with the August 22 update. The map is launching in Quick Match first, so the devs can collect feedback on it and make changes before adding it to Ranked.
The devs did not share any more information about Resource Rumble.
Season 3.5 In-Game Voice Changes Explained
In an Internal update that went live on July 24, all in-game voice chat will now be automatically screened by the system with human review. As a result, more players will be penalized for toxic behavior.
Season 3.5 also introduces a text chat filter that removes muted words, as selected by players. NetEase will review popular muted words and will add them to the official banned list.
Stricter Competitive Quitting Penalties
NetEase creative director Guangguang admitted, “We know how frustrating it is when a teammate leaves a competitive match. This creates an unfair situation where the team with fewer players has a much harder time winning. And, if they stick it out to the end, they still face losing competitive points.”
To combat this issue in Season 3.5, players get longer bans from competitive play for leaving early and bigger point deductions. Players who stick it out after a teammate leaves will receive point compensation, and surrender votes will require one fewer than the number of players remaining.
How do you feel about this update? Let us know on the Insider Gaming Forum.
For more on Marvel Rivals, check out the Ignite Mid-Season Finals and all of the Summer Party Swimsuit costumes, ranked.
