Marvel Rivals celebrates a successful launch, with NetEase Games' Overwatch rival hitting over 10 million players in just 3 days

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Step aside, Blizzard

Marvel's Rivals
(Image credit: NetEase)

With Marvel Rivals out now and available to both console and PC players for free, developer NetEase Games is celebrating the success of its new Overwatch 2-esque shooter - and how it managed to snag the attention of over 10 million players after just three days.

Marvel Rivals only launched a few days ago, but the hero shooter is already making its mark as a smash hit. According to NetEase in an online post from earlier today, the game has more than 10 million players already. "In just 72 hours," announces the studio, "we've reached an incredible milestone of 10 million players worldwide! We want to extend our heartfelt thanks to each and every one of you. Let's ignite the battle together!"

It's an impressive achievement - one that could even outshine Blizzard Entertainment's own Overwatch. The iconic 2016 shooter hit 25 million players in eight months, but its sequel saw success much more quickly, boasting similar numbers after just 10 days and "nearly triple" the original's peak of daily users. There's no telling whether Marvel Rivals will reach 25 million itself, but it seems safe to say it's on the right path.

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After all, along with Path of Exile, Marvel Rivals is pulling massive crowds on Steam with Valve's platform seeing a record 39 million concurrent users. Unlike Overwatch, however, the game will stay on  PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S, with no Nintendo Switch port planned. There's also no mobile version in the works, whereas Blizzard is reportedly going the Call of Duty route itself with an upcoming mobile edition of Overwatch 2.

Not sure about the game yet? Read our Marvel Rivals review to learn more about it.

Anna Koselke
Anna Koselke
Staff Writer

After spending years with her head in various fantastical realms' clouds, Anna studied English Literature and then Medieval History at the University of Edinburgh, going on to specialize in narrative design and video game journalism as a writer. She has written for various publications since her postgraduate studies, including Dexerto, Fanbyte, GameSpot, IGN, PCGamesN, and more. When she's not frantically trying to form words into coherent sentences, she's probably daydreaming about becoming a fairy druid and befriending every animal or she's spending a thousand (more) hours traversing the Underdark in Baldur's Gate 3. If you spot her away from her PC, you'll always find Anna with a fantasy book, a handheld video game console of some sort, and a Tamagotchi or two on hand.