The MCU Is Great, But Marvel Just Unleashed an Even Better Way to Boost Its Reach

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Marvel Rivals, a third-person hero shooter featuring characters from the comics and done in a style similar to Overwatch, officially launched in January 2024, and it could lead to brand-new comic readership. The first season of Marvel Rivals, titled Eternal Night Falls, also includes new maps, skins, missions, and an arcade game mode, all wrapped up in a vampire-themed package.

While Dracula vs. The Fantastic Four may seem like an odd mashup at first, Marvel Comics is no stranger to vampires. In fact, Marvel Comics’ 2024 summer event, Blood Hunt, was a vampire-themed line-wide crossover. The launch of Marvel Rivals Season 1 and the Blood Hunt event are spaced apart, but if things were timed differently, overlapping the first season with the launch of the event could have directed some of the gamers toward the comics, potentially making a new generation of comic fans.

While the timing didn’t work out for Season 1 of Marvel Rivals and Blood Hunt, there is still hope for something akin to this combination down the line as the game continues to dominate online.

Marvel Rivals Season 1 Could Have Tied Perfectly to Blood Hunt

Marvel Rivals Could Point New Readers to Similar Comics

Marvel advertised Blood Hunt as the bloodiest event in its history, and Blood Hunt even redefined the comics after it wrapped up. The vampires of the Marvel universe made a devastating move on humanity after the skies grew dark, prompting the Avengers and more to take on the children of the night while trying to stay alive and avoid being turned themselves.

Starting in May 2024, the event continued throughout the summer, and it was collected over the course of the fall in new collected editions. This event series took place prior to the launch of Marvel Rivals and well before the first official season of the game. However, the thematic similarities are undeniable. As seen in the trailer for Season 1 of Marvel Rivals, an eternal darkness has fallen over the world, like in Blood Hunt, which leads to Dracula and his vampires facing off with the heroes.

The Blood Hunt comics do not need to inform Marvel Rivals, and the game does not need to impact the comic continuity. However, given the thematic similarities, it is a missed opportunity not to aim for some cross promotion between Marvel Rivals and Marvel Comics. Especially for gamers who haven’t read the comics, cross-promotion could have pointed them in the direction of comics that are similar to this season of Rivals, like Blood Hunt. Plus, Marvel has found ways to connect its books to video games before, so the publisher can do it again.

Marvel Has Crossed Over With Video Games Like Fortnite Before

There’s a Precedence for Connecting the Comics and Games

Marvel has previously crossed over with video games featuring its characters. For instance, the Gamerverse featured comics inspired by Insomniac’s Spider-Man and The Avengers video games from the late 2010s and early 2020s. Spin-off comics based on other media, like video games or shows, are not uncommon for Marvel, but these stories often exist outside the main continuity, as is the case for Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, a comic based on the cartoon, which will explore Peter Parker’s newest origin story outside the main comic continuity.

Since Marvel Rivals pulls inspiration from the main line of Marvel Comics, there is another way to connect the games to the comics without making comics based off of the game. As seen with Fortnite x Marvel: Zero War, Marvel Comics can incorporate QR codes into their books that give readers exclusive benefits, like skins, in games. After all, Marvel Rivals is delivering plenty of new costumes with Season 1, so it would not be unprecedented for there to be skins one could access through the purchase of comics, as opposed to in-game purchases.

If Blood Hunt has been timed with the release of Marvel Rivals Season 1, for instance, those books could have included QR codes for game exclusives. Along with giving current comic readers an exclusive for reading the books, these codes could incentivize gamers to check out the books that these games are based on. Similarly, the games could feature QR codes to direct gamers to Marvel Unlimited and specifically the books that inspire the seasons and characters.

Marvel Rivals Sparks Interest In New and Old Comic Readers

Marvel Comics Has a Potential New Audience It Should Not Ignore

There is no denying that Marvel Rivals is one of the hottest games of the winter. Marvel Rivals even had one of the highest concurrent player counts, outdoing games like GTA 5. There are plenty of videos, memes, and reactions to the game and its characters across social media. This popularity can even be seen in local comic shops, as the demand for the Marvel Rivals variant covers is through the roof. On eBay, these covers, which should go for $3.99-$4.99, are being upsold at prices as high as $50.00.

There is an undeniable interest in Marvel Rivals, so for Marvel Comics not to try to use this hype as a means to boost interest in the comics themselves is a missed opportunity. While Marvel Comics and Marvel Games are separate entities, if the two could work together to have a little more synergy, they could better time comic events, like Blood Hunt, with the seasons of Rivals.

For those who like the game, they would know that there are comics similar to the seasonal event they could check out, hopefully getting them interested in other comics afterward. At the very least, Marvel Comics and Marvel Games should find a way to point gamers in the direction of the comics that already exist and have informed the beloved Marvel Rivals.

Blood Hunt is available now from Marvel Comics.

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