Marvel Rivals Dev Says They're Not Trolling Dataminers - 'We'd Rather Spend Our Time Developing the Game'

Marvel Rivals dataminers suspect the developers are playfully misleading them with lists of potential future characters hidden within the game's code. However, NetEase and Marvel claim their priorities lie in the game's actual development.

Last month, dataminers uncovered potential future heroes within Marvel Rivals' code, some of whom were quickly confirmed with the official announcement of the Fantastic Four. As the list expanded, speculation arose that some names were intentionally misleading additions.

Currently, the community debates the authenticity of these datamined characters.

We directly questioned Marvel Rivals producer Weicong Wu and Marvel Games executive producer Danny Koo about this alleged "troll." While they denied any deliberate deception, they advised caution regarding the code's contents. Wu explained that character design involves extensive processes, leaving remnants in the code that may or may not represent future plans. The ultimate inclusion depends on player expectations and desired gameplay experiences.

Koo likened the situation to finding a discarded notebook filled with brainstorming notes, lacking context for the viewer. He emphasized their preference for game development over such pranks.

When asked directly about intentional misleading, Koo stated, "No. We would rather spend our time developing the actual game."

NetEase presents these suggestions to Marvel Games for initial design. Community interest and upcoming Marvel film/comic plans influence the final decisions. The extensive list of heroes in the code reflects NetEase's ongoing ideation process.

Marvel Rivals launched successfully, and each new character enhances the game. The Human Torch and The Thing are the latest additions, arriving on February 21st. We also discussed a potential Nintendo Switch 2 release for Marvel Rivals (details available elsewhere).