Marvel Rivals Gets First New Update in December to Celebrate Anniversary

Marvel Rivals has today received a new update that continues to celebrate the game’s one-year anniversary. Since hitting the scene at the end of 2024, Marvel Rivals has become one of the most popular multiplayer games in the world. This popularity has only continued throughout 2025 as developer NetEase Games has added new playable characters and modes for players to experience. Now, in what is likely one of the last patches of the year, Rivals has added a handful of new events that will only last for a limited time.

Downloadable now across all platforms, the latest Marvel Rivals update further expands on the game’s ongoing anniversary celebration. Three new events will be coming to Rivals starting today with “Van Dyne’s: Grand Opening” and continuing on December 6th with the “Times Square Countdown” and “Year in Review” offerings. Additionally, NetEase has also lengthened the time that the popular Marvel Zombies game mode will be sticking around due to how big of a hit it has been with players. This PvE mode will now remain in Marvel Rivals until next month on January 16th.

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On the balancing front, Marvel Rivals has only received a handful of tweaks. Doctor Strange and Adam Warlock have had bugs tied to some of their own abilities resolved, while smaller adjustments to portals have also been made. While this isn’t a very extensive update when it comes to big fixes, these changes should still improve Rivals a bit.

To get a look at all of the balance changes and fixes that have come with this new Marvel Rivals update, you can check out the pull patch notes below courtesy of NetEase.

Marvel Rivals Update 20251204 Patch Notes

Fixes and Optimizations

• Anniversary Event – Rivals Assemble: We’ve made a few tweaks to help you rally your crew and complete the event more smoothly:
• You can now open the Rivals Assemble event interface directly from Times Square.
• Added a Quick Copy Friend UID option in the friend list’s menu, making it faster than ever to connect, coordinate, and collect rewards!

Fixes

Heroes

• Portal Perplexity Problem: On rare occasions, some heroes firing at certain special angles when near portals could cause the attacks to mysteriously deal no damage. We’ve patched the loophole, no more phantom bullets slipping into the multiverse void!  
• Doctor Strange’s Sideways Shield: In rare cases, the Sorcerer Supreme’s Shield of the Seraphim decided to face the wrong direction, as if defending the wrong dimension entirely. We’ve restored its mystical bearings, now it guards exactly where the Master of the Mystic Arts intends.  
• Adam Warlock’s Replay Riddle: During a respawn at Rocket Raccoon’s B.R.B., if the beacon was destroyed mid-process, Adam sometimes found himself watching his own Past Lives KO replay… again. We’ve fixed the cosmic glitch, no more déjà vu from the edge of eternity.  
• Angela’s Standstill Stumble: Under unstable network conditions, Assassin’s Charge could leave her frozen in place, as if mid-battle meditation. We’ve unleashed her stride, the Asgardian huntress now sweeps across the battlefield without missing a beat, no matter the connection.