The Answer to Marvel Rivals’ Biggest Question Seems…

Marvel Rivals fourth season has brought a range of rumors to an end, with a vast majority confirmed to be true. The launch hero for the season is indeed going to be Angela, former Spawn character turned sister of Thor, Loki, and Hela. The new map will take players to the mystical city of K’un-Lun, while another batch of summer skins for characters like Punisher and Invisible Woman is on the way. And come the midseason update for the game, the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen, Matt Murdock, will be a playable character. Though as of now, players aren’t quite sure what role he’ll fit into — even if the most obvious answer is probably the right one.

marvel-rivals-daredevil — Marvel rivals daredevil

To offer a glimmer of hope, NetEase hasn’t taken the straightforward path with its version of Daredevil at all thus far, so there’s always the chance it could subvert expectations again. Marvel Rivals’ Daredevil boasts a new name (Dizang), superpowers granted by the dragons of K’un-Lun, and an extremely different base costume. While the thin, long horns and glowing logo will certainly catch players’ eyes, it’s the bulkiness of the armor that gives gamers hope that Daredevil will be a Vanguard when he releases. While I don’t want to be the bearer of bad news, I do think this is highly unlikely.

Why I Don’t Buy Into The Idea of Daredevil Being a Vanguard

daredevil-transforms-marvel-rivals — marvel rivals daredevil transformation

To be clear, I would truly love it if Daredevil were a Vanguard. It’s the role I main, regularly bouncing between my Lord Emma Frost and Lord Magneto, so I’d surely get more playtime out of the Man Without Fear if he was a tank as opposed to a healer or damage-dealer. Considering that he’s in my top 3 superheroes ever (only behind Batman and Spider-Man), this would be a killer combo. I recently binged the Bendis and Brubaker omnibuses and am about to start the Waid run, I’ve seen the Netflix series several times, and I’ve been patiently waiting for Daredevil to get his due in the world of video games. Sadly, I’m almost certain I won’t be getting to play Daredevil much, as I’m fairly sure he’ll be in the ever-crowded Duelist category instead.

The biggest point of evidence players have pointed to for Marvel Rivals' Daredevil being a Vanguard is his build and the size of his armor. Yes, he’s bigger than fans of the character are used to, but I don't put much weight into the idea that this trait means he’ll be a Vanguard. After all, there is no shortage of bulky damage dealers in Marvel Rivals. The following characters are arguably Vanguard-sized, but still find themselves in the Duelist role:

Wolverine
The Punisher
Mr. Fantastic (thanks to his transformations and survivability)
Blade

Marvel Rivals The Fantastic Four First Steps Skins 5

Back when Blade leaked, players were optimistic about him being a Vanguard and not a Duelist due to his height. Sound familiar?

Matt Murdock may be stockier than players are used to, but he looks to be closer to The Punisher than any of the Vanguards in terms of size. Similarly, the devil form that was teased in his battle with Angela during the Season 4 reveal trailer could easily work like Magik’s shift into Darkchild, or Reed’s transformation into a Thing-sized DPS. On top of all this, there’s a recent Rivals Assembled interview with Creative Director Guangguang where he mentions how it may take several months to address the concerns over a lack of Vanguards and Strategists, as seasons and their characters have been planned far in advance. With this statement in mind, it seems like players are being eased into a world where they only get a Vanguard of Strategist here and there, with at least one Duelist per season. If this is indeed the case, then it’s very hard to imagine a double-Vanguard season happening right now.

Marvel Rivals Players Will Know Matt Murdock’s Role Soon Enough

Marvel Rivals leaks have proven to be extremely credible over the last several months, as players knew about Angela’s debut weeks before she was unveiled (and Daredevil a few days prior to the trailer). Knowing this, additional info on Daredevil prior to the midseason update is probable. The leak cycle for Marvel Rivals has been fairly consistent, so players should know about his kit long before the curtain is officially pulled back on the midseason update. Ability descriptions (or even leaked gameplay like Blade received) would be enough to determine his role, so players may have their answers very soon. Even if Daredevil is kept fully under wraps, Marvel Rivals gets new heroes monthly now, and the wait until mid-October should fly by based on how exciting Angela looks. Hopefully, though I’m quite certain that Daredevil will be a Duelist, he ends up in the Vanguard category, as I’d love to see one of my all-time favorite heroes as part of my go-to role.

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