A Parent’s Guide to Marvel Rivals

Marvel Rivals is a team-based combat game in which players take on the role of famed franchise heroes as they fight one another in a variety of colorful arenas. Currently, there are dozens of playable characters including Black Panther, Captain America, Hulk, Iron Man, Scarlet Witch, and Thor, all of whom have their own attacks and defenses. Marvel Rivals was released in December 2024, and is free-to-play, with optional extra purchases. But is this fast-paced multiplayer fighting game appropriate for your family?

Is Marvel Rivals Appropriate for Kids?

Marvel Rivals is rated T for Teen by the ESRB, meaning the content is generally suitable for ages 13 and up. The game includes Content Descriptors for cartoon violence and suggestive themes. This means that the content in Marvel Rivals will often be similar to Marvel’s other media, like (most of) the movies, TV shows and comic books. There is a comic book-ish flavor to the visuals and gameplay that makes the altercations in the game colorful and unrealistic. Of course, if your kids are sensitive to fisticuffs of all kinds it may be helpful to look up some additional videos or reviews to make sure it’s a good fit for your family.

Source: Marvel Rivals

The ESRB rating for Marvel Rivals also includes Interactive Elements for In-Game Purchases (Includes Random Items) and Users Interact. This means that players can communicate with one another, and the game offers optional in-game purchases but you may not know exactly what digital item you’re getting at the time of purchase.

Marvel Rivals is a digital only game, so you can find the rating information prior to downloading on your platform (or platforms) of choice. These include:

• Epic Games Store (Windows PC)
• Xbox Store
• PlayStation Store

Where Can I Play Marvel Rivals and How Much Does It Cost?

Marvel Rivals is available digitally on PlayStation 5, Epic Games Store(Windows PC), and Xbox Series X|S. It is free to download with optional in-game purchases. These include cosmetic skins for characters that can be earned by completing in-game challenges and earning in-game currency or through purchases that include season pass packages that include extra content.

The in-game currency – Lattice – can be both earned during gameplay, or purchased separately:

• 100 Lattice – $.99
• 500 Lattice – $4.99
• 1,000 Lattice – $9.99
• 2,180 Lattice – $19.99
• 5,680 Lattice – $49.99
• 11,680 Lattice – $99.99

Remember: Purchasing Lattice is entirely optional and can be exchanged only for in-game cosmetic items. While it can be fun to customize your hero, it does not impact the gameplay.

What is Marvel Rivals About?

Chaos reigns in the world of Marvel after supervillain Doctor Doom tangles with his future self, causing a catastrophic time-warp that spawns multiple timelines. This unleashes misfortunes, including vampiric invasions of Earth. Topsy-turvy outcomes plague the multiverse, such as the trickster Loki becoming King of Asgar. To restore order, heroes are summoned from far and wide, but they don’t always agree on a resolution, resulting in fights among themselves.

Remember: Purchasing Lattice is entirely optional.

How Does Marvel Rivals Play?

Marvel Rivals is a 6v6 player-versus-player, third-person action game. Players choose their superhero player-characters, which are each designed to complement co-players’ strengths and weaknesses, and which draw heavily on their comic-book origins.

An ideal team will be a mix of characters that are able to absorb large amounts of damage while doling out powerful melee attacks (Vanguards, like The Thing, with his massive bodily strength) with those that can inflict high levels of damage against enemies, often using range weapons (Duelists like Black Widow, with her elite sniper rifle skills) plus some with special powers, such as the ability to heal teammates (Strategists, like Adam Warlock, whose healing powers can make the difference between victory and defeat).

Each character has a unique and useful power: Invisible Woman can shimmer out of sight during fights, as well as conjuring a shield that protects teammates. Special abilities have a cooldown period and must be used tactically.

Source: Marvel Rivals

As usual in multiplayer combat games, cooperation between players is key to success. Certain characters unlock special moves when they are teamed together – Rocket Racoon can jump on his friend Groot’s back, firing off salvos from his elevated position, while taking less damage than when he’s fighting solo.

Combat takes place in a variety of detailed, colorful maps inspired by the Marvel universe, including a fantastical version of Central Park in New York City, following a vampire invasion, as well as the majestic Yggsgard: Royal Palace in the realm of Asgard. Maps feature destructible environments, allowing players to knock down structures to expose enemy hiding spots or reveal useful sniping positions.

Players can choose from a variety of game modes that require different tactical approaches. In Convoy, teams are randomly tasked with either defending or attacking a vehicle as it heads towards a destination; In Domination both teams attack and seek to capture and hold a specific checkpoint. Conquest is all about winning points by destroying opposing team members. In Doom Match players are on their own, trying to rack up more kills than anyone else.

Marvel Rivals is a fast-paced game that may be especially appealing to players who enjoy teamwork, quick reactions, individual skill development, and unlocking the tactical secrets of maps and modes. Since this is an online game that requires play with others, you may want to consider whether your kids are ready for that kind of experience! Sure, the content may be appropriate for your 13-year-old, but if you’d prefer that they don’t play with others online there’s reason to delay downloading this one. Similarly, playing with and against others opens up a lot of gameplay variables. More often than not this leads to a lot of fun, but if your kids find that their adversaries are too good at the game, or that they’re not quite ready to engage in a team-based, competitive game, it may just end up frustrating them.

Manage Your Kids’ Marvel Rivals Experiences

There are plenty of tools and resources to help you set reasonable parameters for your kids’ video game experiences as they prepare to enter the next arena.

Of course, it’s always a good idea to check the ESRB-assigned rating information, including a game’s Rating Summary when available (which is not the case with Marvel Rivals due to it being a digital-only release), to make sure it’s appropriate for your children. If possible, the best way to learn about a game is to try it out before giving your kids permission to play. You can also learn more about a game with some online research, especially online streams, trailers, and gameplay videos.

As mentioned, it’s also important for you to familiarize yourself with the robust set of parental controls on the different consoles that allow you to manage what your kids play (based on the ESRB-assigned rating information), when and for how long, with whom, and whether they can spend money on new games or in-game purchases. You can find step-by-step parental control guides at ParentalTools.org.

If you’re looking for more tips about video games and online safety, visit ESRB’s Family Gaming Guide.

Colin Campbell is a freelance journalist whose work has appeared in The Economist, The Guardian, Polygon, IGN, Gamesindustry.biz and more.