Marvel Rivals released on December 5th, 2024 has taken over the gaming community with a peak player count hitting over 600K at the start of their Season 1. The momentum does not seem to be slowing down either as they have announced 2 new heroes can be expected to be added each season with the latest additions being Mister Fantastic and The Invisible Woman. Plus with their endless supply of Marvel and X-Men heroes, the imagination can run wild with how many heroes there could end up being added to the game. 

Heroes are broken up into 3 categories; Duelist, Vanguard, and Strategist with each hero having their own set of skills and passives as well as potential team-up abilities that can give certain heroes a massive advantage. These team-up abilities are only activated if you and another player select the appropriate heroes, some are given passive buffs while others can gain a new move or attack. I would encourage everyone to spend some time reading what each team-up ability entails but keep in mind these are not permanent and could change based on new heroes or future seasons. 

Optimize your controller for the best accuracy. 

Now that we’ve covered the basics, let's jump into a few things you can do yourself to ensure your controller and settings are optimized for the best possible accuracy and movement. Before we get into discussions about in-game settings we need to make sure your controller is optimized and the best way to do that is getting your hands on KontrolFreek’s Frenzy Edition Thumbsticks. These thumbsticks were made for games like this and will immediately enhance your overall gameplay as well as drastically improve your accuracy. 

The Frenzy Edition Thumbsticks are two different heights with new improved proprietary rubber material that has a laser-etched design to further enhance your grip. The right thumbstick is known as a mid-rise thumbstick that at 6.5mm in height will add more surface area for your thumb and allow for easier maneuverability for your analog stick. The left is a high-rise thumbstick (10mm) which is made to improve your accuracy by allowing you to have more precision, so you can nail those headshots or just take down a pesky hero like Iron Man or Spider-man.     

When it comes to Marvel Rivals, like any game with a competitive mode, players are always seeking a way to get an edge on other players as they grind their way through those sweaty lobbies. As with any shooter, the quickest way to gain an edge on other players is to make sure you are optimizing your own settings and if you are new to third-person shooters a few changes to your settings can make a major impact.

Ways to improve your aim in the settings

Marvel Rivals has one of the more in-depth settings when it comes to tweaking your accuracy and it's easy to get overwhelmed but do not worry I have three key areas you can focus on that will take your game to the next level. 

1. Custom Reticle

Currently, you can choose from 5 total reticle settings; default, circle, crosshairs, dot, circle, and circle+crosshair but you can take things much further if you select the “advance” button. The "advance" dropdown will introduce options for you to tweak almost everything about your reticle from colors, angle, opacity, and width. You can also save individual reticles and can even assign a unique reticle to each hero so you are always optimized as soon as a match begins.

2. Controller & Aim Assist settings

For the most part, your analog sensitivity setting is a personal preference but in Marvel Rivals there are a few overall controller settings that can make a significant impact. Vibration settings are one I typically have turned off because during intense moments or chokepoints, your controller may be vibrating excessively and that could impact precision and aim. Changing your aim assist settings is another area that could have a major change to your accuracy, although many games include aim assist for controllers it is not always going to be the same. I would recommend utilizing the practice range with several different characters you play to determine which setting is best for you. Remember you can save settings individually by hero so there could be heroes that are more accurate with a higher aim assist sensitivity. 

3. Feedback settings - For Strategists/Supports

Lastly, if you are like me and primarily a support/strategist player (shoutout to any Mantis mains!) I would recommend you turn on the Healing Reticle Feedback, this will cause a green tick to appear on your reticle to let you know you are healing your teammates. Certain characters like Luna have abilities that go through several heroes at once so it is helpful to know if you are healing your team. You can also adjust your Targeting Sensitivity setting to make sure you are healing/buffing the hero you want to and not accidentally wasting all your heals/buffs on a Venom or Thor who typically have larger hitboxes.

Types of aiming mechanics to understand

            One of the coolest features of this game that personally took some getting used to for me is that each hero utilizes different weapons, powers, or skills to attack which means there are multiple aiming mechanics. Currently, heroes fall into these categories when it comes to aim mechanics, Hitscan, Projectile, Melee/tracking, and Hybrid which is a mixture of them all. Knowing what type of aim mechanic a hero has will quickly give you an advantage when playing one or defending against one. Based on current win rates I have a few of the top heroes from each category to give you a head start on learning:

●      Hitscan Aim is when there is no travel time between the action and the attack injuring (or healing) the target. Top hitscan heroes would be Hela and Luna Snow, both of these characters are extremely powerful in their roles and have high win rates.   

●      Projectile Aim unlike hitscan aim factor in travel time to the target so it is recommended to lead your reticle when aiming with these types of attacks. Mantis and Peni Parker are two top win-rate heroes with this aiming mechanic so leading your aim is key with these two.

●      Melee/Tracking Aim requires closer proximity and requires you to follow the movement of the hero you are attacking and is a great starting point for any beginners to the game. Heroes like Magik and Thor are top melee heroes with the best win rate that requires being in close proximity for damage.

●      Hybrid Aim types of heroes who have abilities that are a combination of the above and genuinely more difficult to master but can be equally as strong. Spider-man with his webshots and melee or Iron Man with his alternating projectile and tracking attacks can dominate matches if not properly countered.

In games like Marvel Rivals, there can be a learning curve but with so many heroes it is even more important to test out as much as you can to optimize the best settings for your play style. The more you play and try out different heroes the more you will be able to further optimize your controller settings but enjoy testing out these recommended settings in combination with a pair of KontrolFreek’s Frenzy Edition Thumbsticks for the best advantage.