The official Twitter account for Marvel Rivals has come up with a new image that players have completely different views about. It created a stir within the community, and the arguments were of such a nature that they could be likened to the striking of a hornet’s nest with a theorycrafting stick. The image that we cannot show you but you can see the clearly is trying, in a way, to classify or rank the tank heroes—the Vanguards as called by the game. In turn, the community’s answer is nothing but an impassioned, expert-level, detailed, and nitty-gritty discussion regarding the very nature of tanks.
It is a very technical matter from the start and the debate goes main tank vs off-tank vs hybrid and back which would really confuse even an Overwatch League analyst. One user, DRGJC99, is holding the front lines of the game meta and explaining it to the doer and to all who care to listen. The center of the disagreement seems to be Magneto. Is he a main tank, an off-tank, or a super hybrid? DRGJC99 is of the opinion that Mag is “110% a frontline main tank” as he can “continuously push and hold” even though he may not have occupied as much space as quickly as others do. But still, they claim that he is an “enabler” for his team, which sounds more off-tanky. It’s very confusing, dude!
Out of the blue, this prompts a thread discussion with another player, Entropic3ntropy, who just flat out ignores the whole thing. They go back to each other that Magneto does not only act like an enabler and therefore they support their case by saying he possesses the burst damage to just walk over and engage. “Just bc mag is able to help his team a lot doesn’t make him hybrid,” they say. The argument is full of twists and turns and win ratios, cooldown management, and map-specific strategies are being debated over as if they are repulsor blasts. They even drag Doctor Strange into the conversation, with Entropy suggesting that Strange’s shield is too easy to break and he is killed by crowd control, thus he is unable to hold the front line. DRGJC99 counters that Strange’s shield actually lasts longer and recharges faster than Mag’s. It’s intense!
However, the main topic of the debate is not only Magneto. The graphic has heroes assigned to locations that have caused some players to question the ranking. User MaxeyManiac confidently commands, “Swap cap and hulk.” AdiSri86 agrees, saying, “Would swap cap with hulk.” That indicates that there is a portion of the community that believes that according to this tier list or categorization system, Captain America and Hulk are misplaced. Meanwhile, players on the other side of the game are disputing the case of Peni Parker. DRGJC99 is advocating for her, stating that she has “the highest win rate of any character at all ranks,” and further saying that she does well in securing the area. Entropy questions that, pointing out her obvious counters, and declaring that she is good only on certain maps. “Destroy nest or just play phoenix,” they do not care very much.
Then you have the pure, unadulterated character loyalty shining through. ThEedOnHimSeLf comes out of nowhere with, “As a Thor tank main I approve this message lol.” Simple. Effective. No complicated theory, just a god of thunder enjoying the chaos. On the opposite side, we have the… let’s call them ‘tank aesthetics’ communings. Houdini_B7 designates certain tanks as “the most boring tanks you want,” which provokes Am3ricanIce to reply with a meme, saying Emma Frost “ended this mess.” Houdini counters, “Emma ended this mess,” thereby setting up a little feud concerning which tanks are boring and which ones have been finished. It’s amusing and completely disconnected from the fact-based arguments that are going on in other places.
What was I talking about? Oh yes, the meta. One key insight that emerges from all this is that Marvel Rivals has a community that is willing to take the in-game aspects of team composition and role classification all the way. They are not just playing dress-up with their favorite heroes but rather engaging in a detailed dissection and analysis of their kits, synergies, and weaknesses to the extent that it is more typical of games that have been out for a long time rather than the ones just launched. This early in the game, the level of engagement is a very good sign for the competitive scene, even if the discussions get a bit heated. It shows that people care. They are on the very basics of the game—on a fundamental level how it works—invested. The passion extends to players on PlayStation and Xbox as well.
