I’m not new to the hero shooter genre, having pumped well over 1,000 hours into Overwatch since its 2016 release. And it’s hard not to feel like 2016 is exactly when Marvel Rivals was meant to be a thing. I should’ve been eagerly awaiting its launch while mourning the loss of Harambe, witnessing a low point in English football at the hands of Iceland, and, crucially, riding the high of watching Captain America: Civil War. That said, what we’re getting in 2024 is a very fun hero shooter that I’ve had a great time with thanks to a chunky roster of varied heroes, as well as some solid maps and modes. What remains to be seen, however, is whether Rivals will find a fervent fanbase like both Blizzard and Marvel did all those years ago – a task most hero shooters have struggled with recently. But with a high level of care in each of its comic book characters, exciting combat for all skill levels, and a relatively generous free-to-play model, Rivals is doing all it can to buck that trend.

Imitation is the most sincere form of flattery – just ask Taskmaster – and it’s not out of line to say the footprints of Overwatch really can be seen everywhere you step in Marvel Rivals. Its 6v6 ensembles of tank, damage, and support equivalent classes (here called Vanguard, Duelist, and Strategist, respectively) battle it out in the familiar escort and point capture modes that have become hero shooter staples. You’ll either be pushing Marvel-themed payloads through familiar locales like Wakanda, preventing them from reaching their destination, or battling for possession of a contested zone in the centre of the map. There’s no reinvention of the wheel going on here, but these are battle-tested tug-of-war modes that act as an effective vehicle for Rivals’ superpowered action.

Look, I know I’m banging on a lot about Overwatch here in a Marvel Rivals review, but it doesn’t take more than a match to see why for yourself. Even its menus and UI bear a resemblance to Blizzard’s hero shooter as uncanny as the X-Men. But while not being the most original, it’s hard to bemoan some of the hero designs, seeing as many are simply following fun archetypes with roots stretching all the way back to Team Fortress 2. It’s also really nice to see superhero character designs that understand and embrace their comic book origins, rather than the Suicide Squad approach of handing everyone assault rifles.

And what seems like simple imitation at first can sometimes reveal itself to be more inspired beneath the surface. Psylocke’s mutated mixture of up-close and ranged damage options are flashy and fun, as is healer/DPS hybrid Cloak & Dagger’s shapeshifting suite of tricks, and Loki’s complex decoy-centered systems are a challenge to manage on the battlefield. It’s pretty impressive to launch with a roster as large as 33 and for very few, if any, to feel completely redundant, with a good mix of faces seen from match to match. Yes, some feel a little too powerful – Venom, Moon Knight, Scarlet Witch, here’s looking at you, kids – but this is far from an unfixable situation and something I assume will become more balanced in time.