Marvel Rivals creative director Guangyun Chen has a vision for the game that goes well beyond its current identity as a 6v6 hero shooter, and he's put a timeline on it: by 2027, NetEase wants the game to feel like a "moving anime" experience.
Speaking to FRVR, Chen was direct about the ambition: "Our goal is to shift from being 'just a shooter' to a comprehensive Marvel 'moving anime' experience." He also confirmed, without much hedging, “We are moving beyond standard 6v6 PvP.”
What 'moving anime' actually means here
Here's the thing: "moving anime" is a phrase that sounds like it was translated through three different languages before landing in English, and the Reddit community's response was roughly what you'd expect. The top comment in a related thread was simply "What?" which, fair enough.
But the underlying idea isn't as abstract as it sounds. Marvel superheroes and anime protagonists share the same visual DNA: impossible feats, expressive combat, characters whose personalities are communicated entirely through how they move and fight. Chen seems to be signaling that NetEase wants Marvel Rivals to feel less like a competitive shooter and more like an interactive version of the animated Marvel content fans already consume. Whether the execution lives up to that framing is a different question entirely.
PvE is coming, and it's not just a Halloween event this time
The most concrete part of Chen's announcement is the PvE expansion. Marvel Rivals dipped its toes into cooperative play during its first Halloween event in 2025, running a Marvel Zombies-inspired mode with 5 playable heroes. That was clearly a test run.
Now PvE is being positioned as a genuine pillar of the game's future, not a seasonal distraction. Chen didn't specify exactly what form the PvE content will take, but the direction is clear: NetEase wants players who have no interest in competitive queues to have a reason to log in.
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The Path to Doomsday roadmap, posted on the official Marvel Rivals Twitter account, outlines the content structure through 2027 and serves as the backbone for Chen's announced plans.
Five Infinity Saga updates and new game modes
The roadmap Chen references is called Path to Doomsday, and it's built around five MCU-related updates inspired by the Infinity Saga. Each update comes paired with new game modes and themed content, which suggests NetEase is structuring the next two years around recognizable Marvel story beats rather than original in-game lore.
The Infinity Saga framing is a smart move. It gives the content calendar a built-in narrative arc that even casual Marvel fans will recognize, and it creates natural hooks for new character releases. Chen pointed out that with over 9,000 Marvel characters in existence, the roster pipeline isn't something the team loses sleep over.
What this means for players who just want to shoot things
The key here is that none of this replaces the existing PvP experience. Chen's comments frame the expansion as additive, not a pivot. The 6v6 competitive modes that built Marvel Rivals' player base aren't going anywhere. The goal appears to be making the game appealing to a wider audience, including players who want story context, cooperative play, or just a reason to spend time with their favorite Marvel characters outside of a ranked queue.
For competitive players, the Infinity Saga content and new game modes could also bring fresh map environments and character additions that feed back into the PvP meta. More characters means more team-up combinations, which has been one of the game's most distinctive mechanical hooks since launch.
The roadmap through 2027 is ambitious, and Chen's "moving anime" description will probably continue generating confused Reddit threads for months. But the actual content plan, PvE modes, Infinity Saga updates, and expanded game modes, points to a live-service game that's serious about not becoming a one-trick shooter. For the latest on what's coming to the game, browse more gaming news as the Path to Doomsday updates roll out across the year. Make sure to check out more:
