Marvel Rivals Tier List Of All The Heroes
by Dana Sydorenko Last update: December 21, 2024
💡 Highlights
- Heroes in Marvel Rivals are divided into five tiers (S to D), with S-tier heroes being the most powerful and versatile.
- All characters are grouped into three roles – Vanguard (tanks), Duelist (high DPS), and Strategist (support).
- The best Marvel Rivals characters upon the game release include Doctor Strange, Star-Lord, Hela, and Luna Snow.
- A unique feature of Marvel Rivals is team-up abilities – some heroes can team up with others and get a boost to their abilities.
Marvel fans are in for a fun time because an awesome new heroic shooter featuring favorite superheroes dropped on December 6. I had the chance to jump into the closed beta, try out this new game from NetEase, and prepare a preliminary Marvel Rivals tier list and description of the best heroes! However, with the release of the game the number of characters increased to 33, changing the meta significantly. So, if you want to learn more about all the characters and which ones to choose at the start of the game, read this article further.
How We Compiled Our Marvel Rivals Tier List
This Marvel Rivals tier list is based on my thoughts about the heroes after playing through the closed beta for two weeks and now trying the game upon the official release. It gives a rough idea of how some heroes stack up against each other, showing which ones might become popular right away and which ones seem a bit weak for now. Comparing the beta and the game after the official release, I can definitely say that the character balance has changed, and this tier list reflects the latest changes.
Marvel Rivals Character Tier List By Powers And Abilities
In Marvel Rivals, all heroes are divided into three roles, just like in Overwatch: Vanguard (tanks), Duelist (high DPS heroes), and Strategist (support heroes). Based on the results of the closed beta, the overall tier list for Marvel Rivals looks like this.
Tier | Characters |
---|---|
S | Hela, Luna Snow, The Punisher, Cloak & Dagger, Hawkeye, Moon Knight |
A | Loki, Venom, Scarlet Witch, Groot, Rocket Raccoon, Adam Warlock, Mantis, Magneto, Iron Fist, Squirrel Girl, Star-Lord, Doctor Strange |
B | Peni Parker, Iron Man, Thor, Hulk, Jeff the Land Shark, Storm, Black Widow, Wolverine, Captain America |
C | Winter Soldier, Psylocke, Spider-Man, Magik |
D | Black Panther, Namor |
S Tier
This tier contains the best heroes in Marvel Rivals, who are the strongest and most effective in any situation.
Hela
Currently, she is the strongest Duelist hero in my Marvel Rivals tier list, dealing very high damage at a long range. Still, it will take some time to get used to her pace. Her attacks seemed to me to be a little slow, especially after Star-Lord, but this is compensated by the amount of damage she deals. Her ability to teleport makes her maneuverable and able to catch the enemy off guard. Her ultimate with good area damage can cause a lot of inconvenience to the enemy team.
Luna Snow
One of the Marvel Rivals best characters with support abilities at the moment. She can heal allies and control enemies by freezing them for a few seconds. In addition, she is pretty flexible, and her ultimate gives your team a damage boost or healing, depending on what you need more.
Hawkeye
A top-tier Ranged DPS character in Marvel Rivals, Hawkeye excels at dealing precise, high-impact damage from a safe distance. His abilities include long-range attacks that target multiple enemies, making him perfect for crowd control and picking off vulnerable opponents. With his versatility, he can adapt to various situations, using trick arrows to apply effects like slowing or stunning enemies. His ultimate unleashes a flurry of explosive arrows, dealing massive AoE damage and turning the tide of battle. A must-have for teams looking to maximize firepower and strategic precision.
Moon Knight
A versatile Melee DPS character in Marvel Rivals, Moon Knight stands out with his ability to adapt to different combat situations. His unique kit revolves around dealing consistent damage while maintaining his survivability with self-healing abilities. Moon Knight can switch between aggressive burst damage and sustained combat modes, giving him an edge in prolonged fights. His ultimate unleashes a devastating chain of attacks, overwhelming enemies and providing a damage boost for a short duration. Ideal for players who value adaptability and raw melee power in their lineup.
Cloak & Dagger
A dynamic Duo Hybrid in Marvel Rivals, Cloak & Dagger shine as versatile characters with a mix of offensive and support capabilities. Cloak specializes in crowd control, enveloping enemies in darkness to reduce their effectiveness, while Dagger brings healing and light-based attacks that damage foes and restore ally health. Together, their synergy amplifies their utility, making them a formidable pairing. Their ultimate unleashes a devastating combo attack that deals massive area damage and provides a powerful team-wide buff, enhancing both damage output and survivability. Perfect for players who value flexibility and coordination in their team composition.
A Tier
This tier contains second-best characters in Marvel Rivals with minor drawbacks. They are usually more challenging to master, requiring more time and effort from the player.
Loki
The god of mischief in Marvel Rivals acts as a good support hero from the A tier list who can both reliably heal teammates and deal damage to opponents. To master this hero, you will need some time to learn how to use his projections correctly. Loki has a useful ultimate ability that will allow you to temporarily transform into any hero of your allies or opponents, copying their abilities.
Venom
This is a powerful hero and a desirable pick in the tank role, who also has good mobility, excellent damage-dealing, and Symbiote skills. Venom is great in the front-line role, diving into fights and slowing down opponents with his tentacles. This opens up a window of opportunity for your team to deal devastating damage to the enemy team. Due to his high mobility and healing boosts, Venom has one of the best survivability of all Vanguard heroes in the Marvel Rivals tier list.
Scarlet Witch
She is a great Duelist hero and a meta champion who can deal a lot of damage at close range. Her incredibly powerful ultimate can easily wipe out an entire enemy team if used correctly and timed well. Scarlet Witch has weak defenses, but this is compensated by her high mobility and combat abilities.
Groot
This is a classic tank hero from the A-ranked tier in Marvel Rivals. He is quite slow compared to others but with good defense and a focus on zone control. Groot is able to put up several protective barriers, reliably covering the team of allies, absorbing damage, and inflicting good damage on the enemy.
Rocket Raccoon
A classic support hero who essentially has two tasks in the team – to heal allies and boost damage. Rocket Raccoon also deals good damage thanks to his impressively sized gun. He is most effective when paired with Groot, sitting on his shoulder and focusing on the damage.
Adam Warlock
A support hero with excellent revival abilities. He has a situational but very strong ultimate that allows him to instantly revive a fallen ally and give invulnerability for a short time.
Mantis
In addition to healing and buffing the team, she has the ability to control the crowd. Mantis will provide reliable healing and a damage boost to herself and her team, and thanks to Spore Slumber, she can stun enemies for a short time.
Magneto
Magneto is a strong offensive tank that can be a pain in the ass in the right hands. His ultimate can deal a lot of damage to multiple enemies if used and timed correctly.
Iron Fist
A powerful Melee DPS and Self-Sustain hero in Marvel Rivals, Iron Fist combines martial arts mastery with the mystical power of the dragon. His abilities focus on delivering high-impact, chi-powered strikes that deal heavy damage to enemies while restoring his health, making him a resilient fighter. Iron Fist excels in close combat, where his agility and precision allow him to dominate opponents. His ultimate channels the full power of the Iron Fist, unleashing a devastating burst of energy that deals massive AoE damage and stuns enemies in its path. A great pick for players who enjoy fluid, high-damage melee combat with self-sustaining capabilities.
Doctor Strange
Doctor Strange is one of the best characters in Marvel Rivals and most versatile Vanguard heroe, who deservedly gets into the meta. He has excellent defensive and offensive abilities, allowing him to reliably cover the team and provide good control of the enemy, thanks to his ultimate, which temporarily disables their mobility. But his primary ability is, of course, teleportation, thanks to which you can open portals anywhere. They can be used not only by you but also by your teammates.
Star-Lord
He is a great Duelist from the Marvel Rivals meta if you can handle his speed and keep up the pace. Star-Lord can get in and out of fights with lightning speed thanks to his famous Element Guns and rocket boots. His ultimate makes him almost elusive for some time while still focusing on the enemy and dealing damage. Star-Lord is perfect for forcing fights and finding weak spots in the enemy’s defense.
Squirrel Girl
A quirky yet highly effective Hybrid DPS and Crowd Control character in Marvel Rivals, Squirrel Girl is a surprising powerhouse. Her abilities focus on overwhelming enemies with an army of squirrels, dealing consistent AoE damage and disrupting enemy formations. She can summon her furry allies to distract and debilitate foes, making her excellent at controlling the battlefield. Her ultimate unleashes a massive squirrel swarm, dealing significant damage and applying debuffs to enemies, leaving them vulnerable to follow-up attacks. Perfect for players who enjoy unconventional strategies and chaotic combat effectiveness.
B Tier
This tier contains good heroes with several drawbacks that prevent them from taking a higher place. This can be either limited game situations in which these heroes will show themselves well or weaker abilities compared to heroes of higher tier lists in Marvel Rivals.
Black Widow
A masterful Stealth DPS and Debuff Specialist in Marvel Rivals, Black Widow excels at taking down priority targets while disrupting enemy strategies. Her abilities focus on agility, stealth, and precision, allowing her to infiltrate enemy lines and deal devastating single-target damage. She can apply debilitating effects like poison or stuns, weakening foes and creating openings for her team. Her ultimate unleashes a tactical strike with high-tech gadgets, delivering massive burst damage and impairing enemies with area-wide debuffs. Perfect for players who value cunning and precision in combat.
Peni Parker
Peni Parker is a pretty situational hero, as all of this character’s powers revolve around setting traps and creating Cyber-Webs that periodically spawn Spider-Drones. Although she has a helpful mech suit with a decent range, she is a very specific hero requiring a special approach.
Iron Man
Iron Man is my favorite superhero in the Marvel Universe, and I was disappointed to see that he actually belongs to B-Tier here. He almost always flies around the map and deals damage from the air. This type of movement takes some getting used to, and he can be pretty vulnerable in some situations. His ultimate can do good damage to enemies in the area but still not enough, as well as the damage with his basic abilities.
Thor
This Vanguard acts like a Duelist on the battlefield but is average in both roles. Thor has a low HP for a Vanguard hero and is unable to absorb damage. His playstyle is quickly rushing into the thick of battle, dealing good damage in melee combos with the team’s support, and leaving the battlefield quickly. In addition, his three Mjolnir abilities go into a short cooldown after using one of them. Overall, I don’t think this hero is easy to master and that’s why he belongs to the B-tier list in Marvel Rivals.
Hulk
This solid Vanguard hero has a large health pool and good melee abilities. He does a good job of rushing in, forcing a fight, breaking through defenses, and allowing Duelists to deal the bulk of the damage. The hero’s downsides include the fact that he has several forms, is quite difficult to master, and has nothing to counter ranged heroes with.
Jeff the Land Shark
Jeff is an easy-to-master Strategist with solid healing skills. His Hide and Seek ability helps him dodge danger, but he’s still vulnerable to melee heroes. His ultimate can swallow enemies and spit them off the map for easy kills, but it also affects allies in the area. It’s pretty cool when used with a coordinated team!
Wolverine
A relentless Melee DPS and Self-Sustain character in Marvel Rivals, Wolverine thrives in close-quarters combat with his high damage output and remarkable survivability. His abilities focus on brutal slashing attacks that deal massive damage to enemies, while his healing factor allows him to regenerate health over time, making him hard to take down. Wolverine’s ultimate unleashes a ferocious berserker rampage, delivering devastating blows to multiple enemies and temporarily increasing his attack speed and damage. A must-pick for players who enjoy aggressive playstyles and sustained melee dominance.
Storm
She is a very mobile Duelist who can deal good area damage and help her allies with movement or damage boosts. Her ultimate turns her into a hurricane and pulls enemies in a certain area to her, dealing good damage. She also boosts her abilities well when teamed up with Thor.
Captain America
A versatile and reliable character in the Marvel Rivals roster, Captain America excels as a frontline tank and support. His shield provides excellent defensive capabilities, allowing him to absorb significant damage and protect allies. Additionally, his abilities include stunning enemies, creating openings for your team, and boosting your team’s defense. His ultimate enhances survivability, granting shields or increasing the team’s resilience depending on the situation. A well-rounded choice for any team composition.
C Tier
This Marvel Rivals tier traditionally lists fairly average heroes that need some enhancements. These heroes typically have even more limited scenarios in which they can be effective and have even weaker abilities.
Spider-Man
This is a potentially very strong Duelist and a fun hero. He is ideal for hit-and-run tactics and can become a thorn in the enemy’s side thanks to his incredible speed, web, and fast strikes. However, this is a complicated hero to master, and his speed can be a problem for the player. So, the friendly Spider-Man may end in Tier S for most players in terms of effectiveness.
Winter Soldier
A deadly Ranged DPS and Versatile Fighter in Marvel Rivals, Winter Soldier excels at dealing precise, high-impact damage while maintaining tactical flexibility. Armed with his cybernetic arm and advanced weaponry, he delivers a mix of ranged attacks and melee strikes to adapt to any situation. His abilities include burst damage and debuffs that weaken enemies, making him a key asset in controlling the battlefield. His ultimate unleashes a barrage of explosive rounds, dealing massive AoE damage and leaving enemies staggered. Ideal for players who value precision and adaptability in combat.
Psylocke
A lethal Melee DPS and Crowd Control specialist in Marvel Rivals, Psylocke blends swift, high-damage attacks with psychic abilities to dominate the battlefield. Her abilities focus on chaining combos, teleporting to enemies, and inflicting psychic debuffs that reduce their effectiveness. Psylocke’s agility allows her to evade attacks while delivering devastating strikes. Her ultimate is a dazzling display of psychic energy, dealing massive AoE damage and stunning enemies caught in its path. A perfect pick for players who enjoy fast-paced, high-skill gameplay with a balance of damage and utility.
Magik
This is a good Duelist with an aggressive gameplay style. She rushes into battle, deals melee damage with her long sword, gains health, and then quickly runs away with her short-range teleportation ability. Despite being a mobile hero with a good escape ability, Magik is very vulnerable to ranged heroes.
D Tier
This tier contains weak heroes that require improvement since, in their current form, they are not able to compete with other heroes. You’d better avoid heroes from this tier for now.
Black Panther
Can’t believe I’m writing this, but Black Panther is currently the weakest hero in the Marvel Rivals tier list. Despite high mobility and good damage, he is still losing to all other Duelist heroes, and the Vibranium Marks abilities cannot significantly contribute to the team. In addition, he, like almost all melee-focused characters, is an easy target for ranged heroes.
Namor
This duelist hero is fairly easy to learn but lacks damage compared to other heroes in this role. His trident is quite weak, and only in a team with Luna Snow, thanks to the team-up ability, does he become a serious opponent. In this scenario, his trident shots use ice energy, further boosting the attack with an ultimate ability that summons several sea creatures. Namor is a very situational hero who is not effective without support.
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Final Thoughts
We are expecting a worthy competitor to Overwatch, which takes all the best from it. Nevertheless, Marvel Rivals has its own face and unique features and gameplay mechanics, such as team-up abilities, which open up additional space for meta team compositions. In this article, I shared my thoughts on the Marvel Rivals tier list after the the game’s release and am ready to spend many hours playing for my favorite Marvel superheroes!