Marvel Rivals Season 3.5 our coverage of the new season’s launch as it happened

Hello and welcome!

We’re now just under 24 hours away from the launch of Marvel Rivals Season 3.5. We’ll get a whole new Duelist to try out, as well as a new event that features skins for Hela, The Thing and Black Widow as rewards. Join me as I break down the new season in the live build up to downtime.

When does downtime start?

The Queen’s Codex event launches with the new season

The Queen’s Codex event will arrive with Season 3.5, and there’s free and premium rewards to earn. Over on the free side, The Thing finally gets a symbiote skin. You’ll need to purchase the Premium Pass to get the Queen in Black skin for Hela, and there’s an awesome Phoenix-themed Black Widow skin too.

New skins in the store

The following skins will be available to purchase in the store once the new season launches:

• Blade – Polarity Edge Bundle
• Blade – Emoji Bundle
• Blade Dynamic Mood Bundle

Twitch Drops for Season 3.5

Blade joins the battle

Blade arrives as a new Hero in Marvel Rivals. He’s a Duelist that uses a katana and a shotgun, and can summon the blade of Dracula to trigger a devastating Ultimate. He can block incoming damage, and then dash towards enemies to get in close for the kill.

Doctor Strange gets a buff

Doctor Strange is finally getting a buff, hopefully bringing him back into contention against Emma Frost and Magneto. Here’s what’s changing:

• Increase Daggers of Denak projectile charges from 8 to 10.
• Reduce Cloak of Levitation cooldown from 15s to 12s.

New Team Up for Adam Warlock and Luna Snow

Luna Snow and Adam Warlock Team Up with Duality Dance. Luna Snow will get healing as she damages enemies. This adds a new level of self-healing for Luna, who would previously have to wait for her Ice Shards to gain health.

Twitch Drops for IGNITE

IGNITE mid-season Twitch Drops are now live. You can earn an awesome Star-Lord skin (from August 10) by watching 4 hours of eligible streamers. This one is available until September 6, so plenty of time to pick it up.

Goodbye for now

Those are the main things you need to know about Marvel Rivals Season 3.5. I’ll be jumping back on in the run up to downtime. From there I’ll be watching closely to see when the new update goes live, and then giving my impressions on what I’ve already played.

Happy Season 3.5 release day!

We’re now just a few hours away from the launch of Marvel Rivals Season 3.5. Downtime kicks off in 45 minutes, and I’m here to guide you through with live updates on what to expect from the new season.

How long is downtime expected to last?

Marvel Rivals goes into downtime before the launch of a new season. In the past, NetEase has given 2-3 hours as estimated downtime durations. Generally, the past few seasons have stuck to this, and I’d expect Season 3.5 to be no exception.

I’ve played Season 3.5

Thanks to NetEase for providing early access to Marvel Rivals Season 3.5, I’ve now gotten my hands on the new update. Blade is feeling extremely powerful, especially against Vanguards. His Ultimate is pretty much a guaranteed kill, and his Team Up can really boost hid durability.

Spider-Man is stronger this season

Spider-Man has gotten a buff for Season 3.5. It only boosts his Ultimate, with extra damage per second. Spidey has fallen behind a bit lately, overtaken by Wolverine and Black Panther as the game’s main menace. Maybe this will bring him back into the fight.

Guardian Revival is leaving soon

Guardian Revival is one of the more useful Team Ups in Marvel Rivals, though its viability has waned as Adam Warlock and Mantis have been out of meta. It’s being taken out of the game completely next season, with new Team Ups for Adam, Star-Lord and Mantis hopefully giving each Hero a bit more power on the battlefield.

Make sure you claim rewards from the Milano Repair Logs event

The Milano Repair Logs event will be taken offline once downtime kicks in. Make sure you go in and redeem rewards, which include the awesome Symbiote Storm skin.

Downtime kicks off in 15 minutes

Marvel Rivals will go into downtime in just 15 minutes. Matchmaking will be disabled, and there will be a new update to download. Stay tuned for details on how large the file size is, and for when the game goes back online.

Marvel Rivals servers are down

Marvel Rivals is now in downtime. The servers have been taken offline, and won’t be back for a couple of hours. Stay tuned for news on when you’ll be able to jump into Season 3.5.

Marvel Rivals Server Connection Failed

If you try to load into Marvel Rivals now, you’ll be greeted with the “Server Connection Failed” error message. Don’t worry, this is all normal while we get ready for a new season.

New Marvel Rivals update available

Make sure to quit Marvel Rivals and check for an update that just launched. On PS5, mine is only 5.210GB, but it’ll be different on other platforms. You’ll need to have this installed to play Season 3.5.

We’re now half an hour into downtime

Marvel Rivals is currently down, and has been under maintenance for half an hour. Hiopefully, we’ll be back online in 90 minutes. I’ll keep you updated.

Wolverine gets a nerf

Wolverine has been terrorizing lobbies since being buffed for Season 3. He’s now being retuned, so hopefully won’t just remain as an insta-ban in Competitive Mode. Here’s what’s changing:

• Increase the energy cost of Last Stand (Ultimate Ability) from 2800 to 3400.
• Lifesteal gained from the Primal Flame – Phoenix Warrior Team-Up Ability no longer contributes to Wolverine’s Ultimate Ability energy.

One hour into downtime

Is Marvel Rivals still down? Unfortunately yes, it is. This is to be expected however, as servers are still planned to be offline for another hour at least. Let’s hope we’ll get to jump into the new season sooner rather than later.

Official NetEase estimate for downtime

The in-game message has changed after I downloaded the most recent update. It now gives an estimated time for the end of downtime. If all goes according to plan, Marvel Rivals Season 3.5 will launch at the following times:

• East Coast (US): 7AM ET (August 8)
• West Coast (US): 4AM PT (August 8)
• United Kingdom: 12AM BST (August 8)
• Europe (Central): 1PM CEST (August 8)
• Japan (Tokyo): 8PM JST (August 8)
• Australia (Sydney): 9PM AEST (August 8)

No Rank Reset this time around

As this is a mid-seasonal update ( a ‘.5’), there’s no rank reset once the new season goes live. It’s likely that you’ll need to play a certain amount of Competitive games to be eligible for the new rewards, however. As long as you reach Gold by the end of Season 3.5, you’ll earn a new Blade skin.

Ten minutes to go!

If the prediction provided by NetEase holds true, then Marvel Rivals will be back online soon. I’ll be taking a look at the new event, and diving into some games with Blade.

Marvel Rivals Season 3.5 has launched

Marvel Rivals servers are back online. You can now jump into the Queen’s Codex event and start earning new skins and other items. I’ll be jumping into my first match as Blade, and will report back with some early impressions of the new Duelist.

Free unlock with the Premium event pass

I received the Shark-cited! emote on purchase of the Premium Queen’s Codex pass. There’s a ton of great skins in there, but I’m particularly excited to get my hands on the new Black Widow skin.

I got my Season 3 Ranked Rewards

I finished Season 3 in Gold rank, and received the Emerald Flames skin for Phoenix. It’s probably my favorite Phoenix skin released so far, and I’ll definitely be using it from now on.

First match as Blade

Blade is surprisingly more technical than I thought he’d be. Choosing when to switch modes to prioritize life steal is crucial, and using his block to counter Ultimates like Scarlet Witch can really change the flow of a match. Still, I’d like to try out his Team Up if possible, as I think that could really help Blade escape from situations more easily.

New Achievements to unlock

There’s a fresh batch of new Achievements to unlock now that Blade is here. You’ll need to Team Up with Moon Knight, and play as Blade on the Central Park map (3-player KO streak).

The Blade emoji bundle is in the store

The Blade Emoji Bundle has been added to the store for Season 3.5. It’ll allow you to add some extra flair to your Hero of choice. There’s a popular meme in there as well that’s sure to be popular.

The Phoenix Widow skin might just get me to play Black Widow

Black Widow hasn’t exactly been a popular character in Marvel Rivals since launch, but she does have some of the best skins. The Queen’s Codex event features the Phoenix Widow skin, which is her best so far, in my opinion.

That’s all for now

I’m signing off now. Marvel Rivals Season 3.5 is now live all across the world, and players can jump in and try out Blade. I’ll be back to cover the next season, but for now, see ya!