NetEase has dropped all of the details on Marvel Rivals season 2.5, releasing on May 30. The midseason update will add Ultron as a playable hero, a new map, plenty of balance changes, and new team-ups. It’s also retiring some old team-ups.
As detailed in the above video, Ultron is the latest hero to be added to the Marvel Rivals roster. The new strategist will be the first of his kind with the ability to fly, and he’ll come packing a suite of damage and support abilities, including the burning energy beam Encephalo-Ray, drone summons that heal allies, and his Rage of Ultron ultimate that summons drones that can heal allies and damage enemies.
The new map is Arakko, a separate, sister island to the mutant nation of Krakoa which has been taken over by Ultron who has turned it into a machine stronghold with no organic life.
Also part of the 2.5 update are six new team-ups, including the community-requested Jeffnado, which, you guessed it, sees Jeff and Storm unite for a tornado move that sweeps up enemies and feeds them to the sharks. The downside is that four team-ups are being removed as part of the update, including the extremely popular Venom-Peni-Spidey team-up Symbiote Bond.
By far the weirdest and least expected part of the 2.5 update is the “new limited-time experimental mode” called Ultron’s Battle Matrix Protocol, in which players assemble a team of six heroes and villains, choose from a variety of cards that enhance their lineup’s build, and then position their minions on a chessboard-like playing field before auto-battling with other players.
“This mode is an experiment for how the development team can attempt to fulfill players’ fantasies of Marvel Super Heroes and Super Villains,” NetEase said of the new mode. “Players can take control of a wider array of characters and amplify their stats and abilities.”
As a reminder, Marvel Rivals season 2 is the last season to run for three months, with season 3 ushering in a new two-month long schedule. That means season 2 should end somewhere around mid-July.
