Marvel Rivals dev admits balancing competitive play isn’t the top priority

A Marvel Rivals developer has admitted the team doesn’t prioritize competitive gameplay balancing as much as other aspects of the hero shooter.

In general, Marvel Rivals caters to both casual and competitive players, thanks to its various game mode offerings.

But many players would argue competitive Ranked play has received the short end of the stick, especially when considering the questionable matchmaking system. The mode’s even come under fire from top players because of how easy it is to climb ranks.

Comments from a lead at Marvel Games could explain why the game’s competitive balancing feels so out of sync with the rest of the experience.

Marvel Rivals devs balance for fun “first and foremost”

In a GDC 2025 interview with PC Gamer, Marvel Games Executive Producer Danny Koo spoke candidly about how the development crew approaches gameplay balancing.

Characters get balanced “for fun, first and foremost,” Koo stated, then the team analyzes win rates data to ensure no character feels “too painful and oppressive so that everybody’s still having fun. But that’s secondary.”

Koo noted that casual and Ranked play can coexist, though the team recognizes the “majority of the players will not play competitive anyway.

“They just want to have fun with friends and go, ‘Hey, let’s queue and do a quick play.’ But competitive is also important, right? Because [players] also want an avenue to show off their mastery,” he explained.

Marvel Games

Despite prioritizing the fun factor above all else, the EP said NetEase keeps a close eye on how things progress in the game’s more competitive spaces. “We always look at it and balance it, if necessary, each season to see how fast players progress.”

And with regard to matchmaking, the system always aims to “pair users with people with the same level and the same rate as you to make it a comfortable experience.”

Such insight comes just days after rank distribution stats revealed that not many PC players have advanced in Ranked beyond the mode’s middle tiers. It’s a far cry from the competitive standings in Apex Legends and League, where the percentage of players across ranks looks to be more evenly distributed.