3 hours ago
2
Marvel Rivals was very close to being canceled ahead of its launch because of a huge cost that had the NetEase CEO concerned.
Marvel Rivals is one of the hottest new hero-shooters in the gaming industry. Developer NetEase is creating a real adversary to Overwatch 2, which has amassed a huge player base and shows no signs of slowing down.
With the launch of Season 1, Invisible Woman and Mister Fantastic were added to the already-stacked roster of characters. The mid-season update introduced even more heroes, including The Thing and Human Torch.
Despite its success, the entire US team and Game Director Thaddeus Sasser were laid off. As outlined by NetEase online, this decision was made “for organizational reasons and to optimize development efficiency for the game.”
Now, a report from Bloomberg has revealed that Marvel Rivals almost never even launched in the first place, the article noted that a key reason ahead of its release had the devs worried about whether the game would even be worth creating in the first place.
NetEase CEO wanted to cancel Marvel Rivals due to licensing cost
Marvel GamesWolverine is a popular Marvel character.
According to one source, NetEase CEO Ding Lei was apprehensive about paying to use licensed Marvel characters and tried to “persuade” artists to create original designs and follow in the footsteps of Overwatch, Valorant, and others.
While NetEase attempted to cancel the game, backing out would have allegedly cost the company millions, so the game was released anyway at the end of 2024.
Ding objected to paying Walt Disney Co. for the use of particularly popular Marvel characters such as Wolverine and Spider-Man. However, a NetEase spokesperson denied this, claiming that the company has “enjoyed” a “close partnership” with Marvel that dates back to 2017.
While it’s been a tumultuous few weeks for Marvel Rivals, the newly released characters, hero nefs, buffs, and more have kept players diving into the multiplayer mayhem.
English (US) ·