During the recent Gamescom Opening Night Live showcase, two new characters for Marvel Rivals were revealed; the first was Captain America, and the second was his lifelong friend, the Winter Soldier.
Throughout the Gamescom period, we have had access to these two characters and have taken advantage of their entire builds to test their limits and see how well they fit into this upcoming title.
The Star Spangled Man Comes in Swinging in Marvel Rivals
As stated above, one of the two characters that were revealed during Gamescom was Captain America, but this version of the character isn’t one many would be familiar with.
This version of the character is from the 2099 universe, meaning that he has a more technologically advanced shield as well as a more metallic armor set.
Within Marvel Rivals, Captain America is a Vanguard class character, meaning that he is well versed in taking plenty of damage while also being able to dish it out if necessary, or as his MCU counterpart would say, “I could do this all day“.
The majority of Captain America’s kit involves him getting close to his opponents and fighting them hand-to-hand, or at least hand-to-shield, but there are some parts of his kit that allow him to take advantage of some distance.
To start, Captain America relies on using his shield a lot within his kit, as he can use it to hit opponents at close range and even use it to slam into the ground to close up the gap. He can even throw it, potentially ricocheting off multiple enemies, but where he really shines is when he works with Thor, as this allows Captain America to imbue his shield with lightning while also allowing him to throw it consecutively.
Along with using his shield as a weapon, Captain America can also use it to protect his team, as he can also hold his shield up, protecting himself and those behind him within a certain range, while even being able to deflect certain projectiles.
Finally, to round out this tough character, he also has his ultimate ability, which is essentially a rally cry, providing increased health, increased damage, and increased attack speed to all allies within a certain radius, showing once and for all, why Captain America is one of the most influential characters in the Marvel universe.
Stealing This Mechanical Arm May Leave You in a Bad State in Marvel Rivals
Unfortunately, due to Marvel Rivals still being in development, not all the information has been put into the game regarding certain characters, so the past of this version of The Winter Soldier is a mystery, at least for now.
However, we did get our hands on his kit, and with him being a duelist class type, he is able to destroy his enemies faster than they can see him, but only if you have the patience to time his abilities effectively.
The Winter Soldier is a more complicated character in comparison to Captain America, as Captain America relies more on staying close to his opponents and outliving them, whereas The Winter Soldier relies more on range, and is more focused on fast and strong attacks.
The weapon of choice for The Winter Soldier is a handgun with only two bullets in a magazine, unless he is paired with Rocket Racoon who’s ability can allow The Winter Soldier to have unlimited ammo. This may seem strange at first, but once you hear the rest of the kit, you will understand why.
Along with his handgun, The Winter Soldier can also use his mechanical arm in a multitude of ways, whether it be to fire an electrified blast at an opponent to weaken and hurt them or to fire a chain at them to draw them in, leaving them open for his charge and uppercut attack.
What makes this character so interesting is the fact that these attacks do devastating damage while also benefiting each other in a variety of ways. For example, once The Winter Soldier defeats an opponent with his mechanical arm attacks, this will automatically reload his gun, allowing players to alternate between his attacks while also, if efficiently done, ensuring they never have to reload.
Finally, to top it all off, is his ultimate attack, which may not seem like much on the outside but is devastating on the inside. Using this ability, he launches The Winter Soldier into the sky, allowing him to then use his mechanical arm, which is infested with some kind of tentacle machination, to slam onto his opponents, putting a unique status effect on their health and essentially limiting how much damage they can take before dying immediately.
To add to this ultimate ability, if a player with this status effect does die to its effects, it will also refresh the ultimate ability, allowing it to be used a second time, or even a third, and so on, as long as the player is defeating opponents with the status effect.
Both of these characters are fantastic to play as, and are very balanced allowing for some fun gameplay loops, while even ensuring players don’t get frustrated by constant death to insanely overpowered characters.
What do you think about these two characters making their way onto Marvel Rivals? Are you excited to experience them for yourselves when Marvel Rivals officially releases? Let us know in the comments what you think!
