Marvel Rivals has been teasing players on what Deadpool’s role could be a month before his release. Read on to find out more about the game’s latest update, which also brings holiday-themed cosmetics for the Rivals cast.
Marvel Rivals’ Newest Hero is Already Tricking Players
Deadpool Could Be a Duelist or a Vanguard
Marvel Rivals seems to be the latest victim of Deadpool’s classic fourth wall-breaking humor, with the character changing from a Duelist as a Vanguard on the character select screen. Deadpool has unofficially been in the game since Rogue’s arrival, suddenly appearing as a locked Duelist character on the roster without any prior announcements from NetEase. NetEase seems to be aware of the immense hype surrounding Deadpool’s inclusion in Marvel Rivals and has been displaying a good grasp of the character’s signature fourth-wall-breaking humor.
Deadpool’s appearance as a locked character before his release is already unprecedented, since every other character released for the game post-launch has never been added to the game’s roster in this manner. By changing his role even before his inclusion in the game, NetEase shows that they’re willing to outright break the rules of the game and directly play with fans’ expectations just to stay true to the character’s typical meta antics.
Fans are confused by the recent change in Deadpool’s hero role in Marvel Rivals, sparking speculation that Deadpool could function as a hybrid of the Vanguard and Duelist roles because of the sudden change in his roster icon.
Other heroes, such as Mister Fantastic and Thor, have functioned as soft unofficial hybrids of the two roles in terms of their playstyle, but it is unclear if Deadpool will also take that approach or be in a new role entirely. It is also possible that NetEase, in good old Deadpool fashion, is just trolling the playerbase.
This isn’t the first time Marvel Rivals has used Deadpool’s signature comedic style to its advantage. The animated teaser trailer for Deadpool, showcased at The Game Awards, sees Deadpool as his zany and wacky self, even making direct references to his three theatrical movies: "Deadpool," "Deadpool 2," and "Deadpool and Wolverine".
The character has also made subtle appearances throughout the game’s lifespan, such as being one of Jeff the Land Shark’s accessories or being part of Wolverine’s "I Don’t Play Nice" emote.
Happy Holidays from Marvel Rivals
This change to Deadpool’s hero role comes alongside the recent Winter Update, which sees Marvel Rivals celebrating some holiday cheer. Rivals’ latest update brings back an old favorite game mode, Jeff’s Winter Splash, with some new twists. The holiday-themed game mode, where teams of four all play Jeff the Land Shark and fight to claim territory by painting over the map, now takes place on a carnival-inspired map called Jeff Land.
The newest update also brings over a bunch of new skins for the whole roster, including holiday-themed skins for Daredevil, Peni Parker, and Squirrel Girl. It also introduced Star-Lord’s first Legendary tier skin, which brings exclusive visual and audio changes to the character, including a unique change to his Ultimate ability voice line that goes from his usual "Legendary!" battle cry to a more festive "Happy Holidays!" cheer.
There is also a new event pass called "Gone Nutty for Gifts," which nets a free Black and Gold skin for Magneto and unlocks holiday-themed skins for Squirrel Girl and Winter Soldier. Limited-time event skins, such as Iron Fist’s "Lion’s Gaze" skin from the Chinese New Year event, are also returning to the shop, but will require in-game currency this time to be purchased.
Marvel Rivals is out now for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. For more on Marvel’s multiversal multiplayer hero shooter, read our article here:
Sources:
Marvel Rivals Version 20251218 Patch Notes
