Marvel Rivals Producer Calls 2025 “A Warm Up” as NetEase Plans Bigger Modes and “The Biggest Game Possible” Push

Marvel Rivals launched near the end of 2024 and entered 2025 with immediate momentum, quickly establishing itself as one of the most visible free to play shooters in the market. While the game’s peak launch period set a high bar, its ability to remain consistently strong on Steam throughout the year has reinforced that Marvel Rivals is not a short term spike, but a platform NetEase is actively building into a long running live service contender.

In an interview with Den of Geek, producer Danny Koo framed 2025 as only the starting line, calling it “more of a warm up period” and signaling that the team has already planned more than a year ahead. Koo said the studio is not slowing down and that bigger plans are coming next year, positioning Marvel Rivals for a more aggressive second phase of growth rather than a typical post launch stabilization cycle.

NetEase publishing and marketing lead Yachen Bian echoed that direction in the same interview, stating that the next year’s strategy includes delivering more game modes and expanding player choice beyond the core PvP loop. Bian specifically referenced prototypes already in the game, including PvE and 18v18 concepts, and emphasized that different modes can fundamentally change the player experience. The comparison was direct: fighting zombies is a very different experience than fighting other players, and NetEase wants Marvel Rivals to support a wider range of play styles and engagement patterns.

Koo also highlighted a key operational detail that explains why the team is confident about sustaining momentum: Marvel Rivals is releasing new content every week. He described an internal culture where even the development team shows up daily asking what is new, and he emphasized that the broader mission is to keep that cadence alive while pushing toward the largest possible version of the game. The messaging here is clear: NetEase is treating Marvel Rivals as a continuously evolving content engine, not a boxed product with occasional seasonal updates.

This strategy is ambitious, especially in a genre where live service fatigue is real and player attention is constantly contested. However, it is also a logical growth lever. More modes can broaden the funnel, reduce burnout, and give lapsed players reasons to return, while weekly content creates a persistent rhythm that keeps the game in the conversation and supports creator driven discoverability.

The biggest execution challenge will be maintaining quality while scaling variety. New modes are only a win if matchmaking remains healthy, balance remains stable, and content cadence does not compromise polish. If NetEase can hold those pillars, Marvel Rivals has a realistic path to sustain its current engagement and potentially expand into an even larger multi mode ecosystem.

Do you want Marvel Rivals to stay focused on competitive PvP, or do you want NetEase to push harder into PvE and large scale modes like 18v18?