TheRetroArcade
Veteran
Posts: 2,013
Joined: Feb 2026
Joined: Feb 2026
I'm surprised Gambit lasted this long.
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Marvel Rivals brings a ton of new systems and heroes to the table. But what I'm interested in the most are the individual hero balance changes and the tweaks to the competitive placement match system.
Players have been crying out for some serious nerfs and overall balance changes in Marvel Rivals for quite some time now, I've been asking for it since the game launched, and while we're still not where many would like to be, there has been a big change this season.
Captain America has undergone some huge changes to his combat mechanics. "Captain America's normal attack (Sentinel Strike) chain consists of a six-hit combo," the patch notes explain. "Hits one and two remain completely unchanged in this update. However, we know the community has been actively discussing the remaining four hits, his ranged shield tosses."
Previously, Cap players could animation-cancel the rest of the throw if they entered sprint immediately after his shield spawned during the third hit, meaning they could trigger the fourth hit instantaneously. But if you sprint-canceled before the third hit struck the enemy you'd actually end up negating all the damage dealt. It was weird but both had the potential for giving a huge payout for players or completely stuffing up attacks, and usually meant they'd have to hold back on attacking enemy targets.
So NetEase has come up with the idea of allowing Cap to throw his shield while sprinting, meaning you can't cancel his shield throw now. However, all four sprint throws do now take slightly longer to execute, although the difference is less than 0.3 seconds.
"In the heat of battle, targets are always moving," the patch notes continue. "The old system forced you to wait for the third strike to physically hit the target before you could sprint-cancel into the next throw; otherwise, the damage would drop (the same for hits five and six). The further away the enemy was, the longer you had to wait, making damage drops incredibly common. Only a fraction of mechanically flawless players could hit the absolute maximum attack frequency, and only against relatively stationary targets.
"With the new system, the moment the shield leaves Cap's hand in each stage, you can immediately sprint without waiting for the impact. Whether you're engaging at quarters or mid-range, your shield strikes will re...Read more: Full article on www.pcgamer.com
What do you think about this?
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Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team.
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Every Friday
GamesRadar+
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Every Thursday
GTA 6 O'clock
Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O'clock experts.
Every Friday
Knowledge
From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what's on the horizon.
Every Thursday
The Setup
Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more.
Every Wednesday
Switch 2 Spotlight
Sign up to our new Switch 2 newsletter, where we bring you the latest talking points on Nintendo's new console each week, bring you up to date on the news, and recommend what games to play.
Every Saturday
The Watchlist
Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we've got you covered.
Once a month
SFX
Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month!
Marvel Rivals brings a ton of new systems and heroes to the table. But what I'm interested in the most are the individual hero balance changes and the tweaks to the competitive placement match system.
Players have been crying out for some serious nerfs and overall balance changes in Marvel Rivals for quite some time now, I've been asking for it since the game launched, and while we're still not where many would like to be, there has been a big change this season.
Captain America has undergone some huge changes to his combat mechanics. "Captain America's normal attack (Sentinel Strike) chain consists of a six-hit combo," the patch notes explain. "Hits one and two remain completely unchanged in this update. However, we know the community has been actively discussing the remaining four hits, his ranged shield tosses."
Previously, Cap players could animation-cancel the rest of the throw if they entered sprint immediately after his shield spawned during the third hit, meaning they could trigger the fourth hit instantaneously. But if you sprint-canceled before the third hit struck the enemy you'd actually end up negating all the damage dealt. It was weird but both had the potential for giving a huge payout for players or completely stuffing up attacks, and usually meant they'd have to hold back on attacking enemy targets.
So NetEase has come up with the idea of allowing Cap to throw his shield while sprinting, meaning you can't cancel his shield throw now. However, all four sprint throws do now take slightly longer to execute, although the difference is less than 0.3 seconds.
"In the heat of battle, targets are always moving," the patch notes continue. "The old system forced you to wait for the third strike to physically hit the target before you could sprint-cancel into the next throw; otherwise, the damage would drop (the same for hits five and six). The further away the enemy was, the longer you had to wait, making damage drops incredibly common. Only a fraction of mechanically flawless players could hit the absolute maximum attack frequency, and only against relatively stationary targets.
"With the new system, the moment the shield leaves Cap's hand in each stage, you can immediately sprint without waiting for the impact. Whether you're engaging at quarters or mid-range, your shield strikes will re...Read more: Full article on www.pcgamer.com
What do you think about this?