Dive In And Master Marvel Rivals' Magik
Many of the Marvel Rivals Duelists settle in nicely into specific roles. Psylocke functions perfectly as an assassin while Hawkeye is meant to be used at range. But if you're looking for an easy-to-pick-up hero with more flexibility, there is plenty of fun to be had with Magik.
Read More:Marvel Rivals' Damage Heroes, Ranked From Worst To Best
The young mutant is a powerhouse of a duelist who can deal substantial damage and steal health from enemies at the same time. Her kit is admittedly a bit all over the place, but we have the tips to help you master the Limbo ruler and bully the opposition.
Magik has two prominent play-styles that can find success. The more popular strategy in my experience is using her as a dive character. This means using her Stepping Discs to teleport in from the sides or behind the enemy team, getting an elimination or two, and then returning to safety. I wouldn't recommend taking on a Vanguard, but any support heroes or lonely ranged attackers are perfect targets.
Another viable strategy is to play Magik as more of an off-tank, to keep enemies from focusing on your team's Vanguards. The main difference is that you'll be fighting on the frontline alongside your Vanguards. Feel free to mix it up occasionally and use your stepping stones for a quick dive on the opposing team as well.
One of my favorite qualities about Magik is her sword's reach. The 6.5m length outclasses all other melee units and has helped me get numerous eliminations that seemed just out of reach. However, it does come with a unique drawback of damage falloff. Her primary Soulsword melee only deals the maximum 65 damage if the enemy is within 4.5m. It will then fall to 50 percent at the end of its range.
This drawback exists in her Darkchild form as well. Although her Soulsword range increases to 10m, the damage falloff begins at 6m and drops to a measly 25 percent damage at maximum range. The key takeaway here is that it's better to be up close and personal when swinging this sword.
Another drawback with Magik's Soulsword is the slow rate of the attacks. Thankfully, just like other heroes, you can get a lot more damage in with animation canceling. Many of her abilities can instantly cancel the swinging animation, but the sweet spot is right after the sword makes contact. My go-to combos typically follow a loop of Soulsword > universal melee > another ability. Thanks to the damage buff she receives from her Season Bonus, I usually just need another Soulsword swing plus melee added to ensure that combo eliminates weaker heroes.
Outside of animation canceling, the proper balance to her weighty attacks is some nifty mobility techniques with Stepping Discs and Umbral Incursion. Stepping Discs is a two-charge ability that teleports her horizontally in whichever direction she's moving. Aside from becoming invincible to damage during the movement, it also allows her to cast one of two additional attacks for three seconds after teleporting. These special attacks include a wide area-of-effect swing and a demon familiar summon.
Umbral Incursion is a rapid dash that will slash enemies upward if it makes contact. Its range is longer than her teleport and the potential launcher is a great way to deal more damage. While she isn't invincible during the dash, Magik can use it to dash upward or downward.
My advice is to use these liberally with fights and general movement alike. Both abilities are perfect for repositioning around enemies and putting the hurt on them. Pair them together and you can even get in the face of flying heroes like Iron Man. Equally important, the invincibility of Stepping Discs and verticality of Umbral Incursion makes them perfect for making a quick exit.
Whenever a fight gets too dicey for most heroes, the solution is either to use a protective or healing ability, or to escape. The appropriate response in Magik's case is usually to keep swinging that sword and using her abilities. Thanks to her Limbo's Might passive, Magik converts 30 percent of the damage she inflicts as bonus health. I can tell you from experience playing with her and against her that she can last a long time in a fight. Once the odds get stacked against her, such as a pesky ranged hero joining the fray, it's time to leave.
Magik's ultimate has her transform into the corrupted Darkchild for 12 seconds. Unlike the Hulk, the ability moveset is the same across both forms. The difference is that everything is enhanced as Darkchild. Attacks can do more damage and land additional hits, Umbral Incursion reaches a longer range at a quicker speed, and cooldowns are lowered across the board. All of it comes together to allow her to deal massive amounts of damage and gain a decent amount of bonus health at the same time.
Whether you're diving in the back or pushing up front, the goal of Darkchild is to be aggressive and do whatever you can to get some eliminations. Earning the Ace title can be a cinch with an ultimate like this. Just don't activate it in the middle of a fight, since her low health can quickly get depleted and waste your opportunity.
Magik isn't without her weaknesses in Marvel Rivals, but she is still one of the deadliest dive heroes on the roster. If you're interested in checking out a Vanguard dive hero, you can't go wrong with Venom.
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CNET
2 days ago
- CNET
Get Free Marvel Rivals Skins From Season 2.5's Cerebro Database Event, Combat Chest and More
Marvel Rivals season 2.5 is moving the Hellfire Gala afterparty to space -- our heroes are heading to the sentient planet Arakko to prevent Ultron's planet-exterminating plans from coming to fruition. Stopping a robot army is going to require a whole new wardrobe's worth of battle gear. Luckily for you, there are many ways to unlock some free skins in the hit hero shooter right now -- including a new seasonal event that unlocks a free Hawkeye skin. The Cerebro Database Part 2 event is the debut seasonal event for Marvel Rivals season 2.5, and it's a fairly standard challenge-based event. Different rewards include chrono tokens for the battle pass, units to spend on shop skins and other odds and ends, but the big ticket item is the Hawkeye Binary Arrow skin. Outside of the latest event, there are still other ways to earn free skins right now. Whether you're getting used to the new suite of team-up abilities or you're getting in more playtime on the latest addition to the Strategist roster by beaming down enemies with Ultron, season 2.5 has introduced a slate of free skins that you can use to deck out your favorite characters. Here's what you should know about the Cerebro Database Part 2 event and the rest of the free skin lineup at the beginning of Marvel Rivals season 2.5. Get the Hawkeye Binary Arrow skin free in the Cerebro Database Part 2 event The Cerebro Database event is live now. It began with the launch of the season 2.5 patch on May 30 and ends on June 27. While this event is fairly easy, the presentation might confuse some players. As with any Marvel Rivals event, you'll need to complete challenges to earn rewards. In this event, though, each featured character (Iron Man, Black Widow, Magneto and Ultron) has nine unique challenges arranged in a 3x3 board. The new Cerebro Database event plays out just like the previous one -- including the annoying time-gated challenges. NetEase Games/Screenshot by CNET You don't need to complete all 36 challenges to receive all of the event rewards. Instead, you need to complete enough challenges to make three separate horizontal, vertical or diagonal lines on all four boards to finish the event. Basically, you're playing tic-tac-toe to quickly make three lines on all of the boards to earn your rewards as efficiently as possible. Like most Marvel Rivals events, several characters' boards are time-gated, which means that the most enterprising players will only be able to unlock the Hawkeye Binary Arrow skin starting on June 11. Until then, you can earn Chrono Tokens, units, sprays and gallery pages. The Combat Chest is a new type of battle pass -- it's a more traditional experience-based progression system. NetEase Games/Screenshot by CNET Get the Mister Fantastic Future Foundation skin during the first ever Combat Chest event A new type of experience-based battle pass also launched at the beginning of season 2.5. The Combat Chest is a smaller, half-season battle pass that rewards consistent playtime over challenge completion. The free track contains one costume, while the premium Combat Chest (which costs 690 Lattice, or roughly $7) has two additional costume rewards. It contains 24 reward tiers and each reward tier requires 1,800 experience points to unlock. Players can earn a maximum of 7,200 experience points every day, so it's theoretically possible to earn every Combat Chest reward in six days. The free Mister Fantastic Future Foundation skin is on tier 18 of the Combat Chest so it will take the most enterprising players four days to unlock the new addition to the body-bending hero's wardrobe. Premium skin rewards include Storm Ultimate Wind-Rider on tier 6 and Magneto Binary Sword on tier 24 of the Combat Chest. The first version of this shortened alternate battle pass will disappear July 11 at the end of season 2 but any players who purchase the premium version can continue unlocking any remaining tiers after that date. How can I get free skins during Marvel Rivals season 2.5? Players who link their Twitch account to their Marvel Rivals account right now can nab a free Emma Frost skin. But if you only care about rewards you can earn in-game, a different Emma Frost skin and an Ultron skin are available by progressing through the competitive ladder and new Iron Fist and Magik looks are available free on the season 2 battle pass. The immortal Iron Fist goes toe-to-toe with Doctor Strange in his new free battle pass skin. NetEase Games What Marvel Rivals skins are available free right now? There are currently 11 free skins available. Here's how you get them: Hawkeye Binary Arrow: Complete the Cerebro Database Part 2 event challenges on all four characters by June 27 to unlock this skin. Complete the Cerebro Database Part 2 event challenges on all four characters by June 27 to unlock this skin. Mister Fantastic Future Foundation: Complete 18 tiers of the current Combat Chest battle pass by July 11 to unlock this skin. Complete 18 tiers of the current Combat Chest battle pass by July 11 to unlock this skin. Emma Frost Will of Galacta: To claim this skin, you'll need to link a Twitch account to your Marvel Rivals account and then watch four hours of livestreams from streamers participating in the drop campaign. If you're unsure about which channels are partnered with Marvel Rivals, look for the mention of "Drops" in the stream title. This skin is only available until Friday, June 27. To claim this skin, you'll need to link a Twitch account to your Marvel Rivals account and then watch four hours of livestreams from streamers participating in the drop campaign. If you're unsure about which channels are partnered with Marvel Rivals, look for the mention of "Drops" in the stream title. This skin is only available until Friday, June 27. Emma Frost Golden Diamond: Reach Gold rank or higher in competitive mode in season 2. You must play at least 10 competitive matches to be eligible to receive the skin. Reach Gold rank or higher in competitive mode in season 2. You must play at least 10 competitive matches to be eligible to receive the skin. Ultron Golden Ultron: Reach Gold rank or higher in competitive mode in season 2.5. You must play at least 10 competitive matches to be eligible to receive the skin. Reach Gold rank or higher in competitive mode in season 2.5. You must play at least 10 competitive matches to be eligible to receive the skin. Magik Retro X-Uniform: Reach page 3 in the season 2 battle pass by July 11. Reach page 3 in the season 2 battle pass by July 11. Iron Fist Immortal Weapon of Agamotto: Reach page 9 in the season 2 battle pass by July 11. Four of the currently available free skins are not time-gated although they are locked behind achievements or platform exclusivity. Here are the Marvel Rivals skins you can unlock at any time: Spider-Man Scarlet Spider: This skin is available to PS Plus subscribers who play the game on the PS5. It can be found on the PSN Store under Marvel Rivals DLC. This skin is available to PS Plus subscribers who play the game on the PS5. It can be found on the PSN Store under Marvel Rivals DLC. Peni Parker Ven#m: Like the Scarlet Spider skin, this Ven#m skin is available for PS Plus subscribers and can be found in the PSN Store. This skin is also available in the Marvel Rivals in-game store, where it can be purchased with units. Like the Scarlet Spider skin, this Ven#m skin is available for PS Plus subscribers and can be found in the PSN Store. This skin is also available in the Marvel Rivals in-game store, where it can be purchased with units. Storm Ivory Breeze: Earn 200 Achievement Points in the Heroic Journey achievement section. Earn 200 Achievement Points in the Heroic Journey achievement section. Star-Lord Jovial Star: Earn 400 Achievement Points in the Heroic Journey achievement section. A classic X-Man look for Magik is available free on the Season 2 battle pass. NetEase Games How can I get more free Marvel Rivals skins? There are many ways to get skins in Marvel Rivals. Sometimes the developer issues special codes to unlock them while others require completing challenges. There are also some made available by watching streams on Twitch and many skins are "free" for progressing through the Marvel Rivals Battle Pass, which costs 990 Lattice, or approximately $10. You can also earn skins through regularly playing the game, as a free skin is frequently awarded with the completion of seasonal events. Players who reach gold rank or higher in competition also receive a free skin as a reward for their performance. Live events like Cerebro Database include free skins as a completion reward. What free skins used to be available in Marvel Rivals? Twitch drops, battle passes and promo codes get cycled in and out of rotation, allowing Marvel Rivals players to earn different free skins from engaging with the game during different events. Here are all of the previously available free skins, what season they were introduced in and how they were obtainable. Season 0 free skins Iron Man Armor Model 42: This skin was unlocked through opening the Bundle Code main menu option and inputting the promo code nwarh4k3xqy. The skin rotated out of availability on March 5, 2025. This skin was unlocked through opening the Bundle Code main menu option and inputting the promo code The skin rotated out of availability on March 5, 2025. Scarlet Witch White Witch: This skin was an exclusive reward for Closed Alpha players, rewarded upon logging in for the first time in season 0. This skin was an exclusive reward for Closed Alpha players, rewarded upon logging in for the first time in season 0. Venom Cyan Clash: This skin was an exclusive reward for Closed Beta players, rewarded upon logging in for the first time in season 0. This skin was an exclusive reward for Closed Beta players, rewarded upon logging in for the first time in season 0. Magneto Will of Galacta: This skin was unlocked as a Twitch drop during season 0. The skin rotated out of availability on Dec. 31, 2024. This skin was unlocked as a Twitch drop during season 0. The skin rotated out of availability on Dec. 31, 2024. Moon Knight Golden Moonlight: This skin was available as a competitive reward for any players who reached Gold or higher in Competitive mode in season 0. This skin was available as a competitive reward for any players who reached Gold or higher in Competitive mode in season 0. Jeff the Shark Cuddly Fuzzlefin: This skin was a reward for the season 0 Winter Celebration event. This skin was a reward for the season 0 Winter Celebration event. Hela Empress of the Cosmos: This skin was a free reward from the season 0 battle pass. The season 0 battle pass was briefly available for purchase again during season 2, temporarily reintroducing this skin to the game. Season 1 free skins Hela Will of Galacta: This skin was unlocked as a Twitch drop during season 1. The skin rotated out of availability on Jan. 25, 2025. This skin was unlocked as a Twitch drop during season 1. The skin rotated out of availability on Jan. 25, 2025. Adam Warlock Will of Galacta: This skin was unlocked as a Twitch drop during season 1. The skin rotated out of availability on April 4, 2025. This skin was unlocked as a Twitch drop during season 1. The skin rotated out of availability on April 4, 2025. Winter Soldier Revolution: Available via a promo code sent to moviegoers who saw Captain America: Brave New World in participating Regal theaters during opening weekend. Also available to buy in the in-game shop. Available via a promo code sent to moviegoers who saw Captain America: Brave New World in participating Regal theaters during opening weekend. Also available to buy in the in-game shop. Invisible Woman Blood Shield: This skin was available as a competitive reward for any players who reached Gold or higher in Competitive mode in season 1. This skin was available as a competitive reward for any players who reached Gold or higher in Competitive mode in season 1. Human Torch Blood Blaze: This skin was available as a competitive reward for any players who reached Gold or higher in Competitive mode in season 1.5. This skin was available as a competitive reward for any players who reached Gold or higher in Competitive mode in season 1.5. Thor Reborn From Ragnarok: This skin was a reward for the season 1 Midnight Features Part 1 event. This skin was a reward for the season 1 Midnight Features Part 1 event. Groot Carved Traveler: This skin was a reward for the season 1 Midnight Features Part 2 event. This skin was a reward for the season 1 Midnight Features Part 2 event. Black Widow Mrs. Barnes: This skin was a reward for the season 1 Galacta's Cosmic Adventure event. It can be bought now in the in-game shop. This skin was a reward for the season 1 Galacta's Cosmic Adventure event. It can be bought now in the in-game shop. Peni Parker Blue Tarantula: This skin was a free reward from the season 1 battle pass. This skin was a free reward from the season 1 battle pass. Scarlet Witch Emporium Matron: This skin was a free reward from the season 1 battle pass. Season 2 free skins


Business Insider
2 days ago
- Business Insider
What Marvel Rivals Season 2.5 Means for NetEase Stock (NTES)
Marvel Rivals developer NetEase (NTES) launched Season 2.5 on Friday, and with it came major changes to the team-based hero shooter featuring Disney's (DIS) Marvel characters. The biggest change in Marvel Rivals Season 2.5 is the introduction of Ultron as a new character to the game. He fills the Strategist role, and players can unlock a golden skin for the robot menace. Confident Investing Starts Here: Easily unpack a company's performance with TipRanks' new KPI Data for smart investment decisions Receive undervalued, market resilient stocks right to your inbox with TipRanks' Smart Value Newsletter Other changes introduced in the mid-season update include a new map: Hellfire Gala – Arakko. There's also the Cerebro Database II season event for players to take part in. Finally, a laundry list of hero changes was introduced, including balances and new Team Ups. These changes and additions benefit NetEase, as they encourage players to spend money on new character skins, as well as other cosmetics. The new events and introduction of a new character also help bring back players who may have taken a break since the last major update. NTES Stock Movement Today Despite the release of Marvel Rivals Season 2.5, shares of NTES stock were down 2.21% as of Friday morning. Even so, shares of NTES stock are still up 40.96% year-to-date. The NTES stock drop today could be the result of a more muted reaction to Ultron's introduction from gamers. Previous new character additions, such as Emma Frost, set the internet ablaze as fans welcomed the busty beauty to the game. Ultron's more utilitarian design may not have sparked the same type of interest from players. Is NetEase Stock a Buy, Sell, or Hold? Turning to Wall Street, the analysts' consensus rating for NetEase is Moderate Buy, based on five Buy and two Hold ratings over the past three months. With that comes an average NTES stock price target of $130.36, representing a potential 4.9% upside for the shares.


CNET
23-05-2025
- CNET
Will Ultron, Jeff-nado, Auto Battler Be Enough to Boost Marvel Rivals' Season 2.5?
Marvel Rivals season 2 is approaching its midseason update next week, and we've gotten our first glimpse of some of the changes coming to the game. The Marvel Rivals Season 2.5 update is a much-needed refresh for Rivals, which has struggled with declining Steam player numbers all season (not the full picture, but currently down to about one-third of the average players compared with January) and a player base that's grown increasingly frustrated with one another. What's the cure for all this? The game hopes it's adding one of the most-anticipated new heroes and also leaning full bore into the zaniness by letting Storm and Jeff the Landshark team up to create a Jeff-nado. Here's what we learned about the Marvel Rivals season 2.5 update from the latest developer vision video. Marvel Rivals season 2.5 start date Season 2.5 kicks off next Friday, May 30, UTC. We don't have an exact start time, but for these major season updates the game tends to go offline in the middle of the night ET/PT and come back online in the wee hours of the launch date. New hero: Ultron Officially announced at the start of season 2, Ultron joining the roster as a strategist might have been the most well-known "secret" that Rivals has been hiding since launch. If you'd asked me last year which role Ultron was most likely to slot into, I would've guessed duelist or vanguard, but a free-flying strategist with unique healing mechanics is a welcome change of pace for the role. Ultron's video preview shows us a few details about the hero's kit: His primary fire shoots a quick beam pulse with considerable range. He can free-fly and activate an 8-second dash of some sort. His alternate fire grants overhealth to allies in sight. He has another ability that appears to toggle between two different modes, though the video doesn't make the effects clear. And his ultimate summons a squad of Ultron bots to temporarily boost his offensive and healing capabilities. I'd love to see more strategists with unique mechanics like Loki's clones or Invisible Woman's shields -- as much as I enjoy the shoot-to-heal strategist gameplay, I think the game's in a better place when there's more variety in the roster. So I'm likewise glad to see that Ultron's ultimate isn't another variation of "big heals in a circle" like most strategists' ultimates -- instead Ultron shoots a series of rapid-fire beams that heal allies and damage enemies. It's no Loki Doppelganger, but it's something different. Marvel/Screenshot by Adam Benjamin/CNET New map: Arakko As usual, the midseason update adds a new map alongside the new hero -- this time, we're getting Arakko, the former sister island of Krakoa (season 2.0's new map), which has been mechanized by X-tron, the version of Ultron that was reborn through Krakoa's resurrection chamber. The map appears to be a convergence map, with heroes escorting the objective toward a X-tron waiting on his throne. A bunch of new team-ups and balance changes The Rivals midseason patch is surprisingly hefty, according to the latest developer vision video. The game is adding six new team-ups, including a new one between Iron Man and Ultron, as well as two new team-ups for Jeff -- the aforementioned Jeff-nado, plus the ability to use Venom's symbiote to shoot healing tendrils onto (into?!) allies. Luna Snow can also give Hawkeye a stunning ice arrow; Rocket and Peni power up each other's deployable abilities; and Punisher gives Black Widow's rifle a piercing upgrade. In exchange, season 2.5 will say goodbye to four previous team-ups, including the notorious Symbiote Bond wherein Venom players gave Spider-Man and Peni Parker an extra damage burst to help melt your backline. Also leaving are Luna Snow and Jeff's ice combo, Hawkeye and Black Widow's afterimage team-up and Ammo Overload for Rocket and Punisher. In addition, Iron Man will no longer benefit from a team-up with Hulk (though Namor still does). Rivals devs also addressed the current metagame, framing it as a "rock-paper-scissors dynamic" among mobile dive compositions (Cap, Iron Fist, Human Torch), wall-and-brawl comps (Groot paired with other mid- to close-range heroes like Thing, Winter Soldier and Mister Fantastic) and triple-strategist compositions. It doesn't feel like the fairest analogy, as the devs pointed to both of the latter comps as countering the high mobility comps, rather than being a true (theoretical) rock-paper-scissors where each composition is strong against one alternative and weak against another. Marvel/Screenshot by Adam Benjamin/CNET Still, the developers are shaking things up in season 2.5 with balance changes, including "reworks" (or at least kit tweaks) for Thor and Jeff. Thor will be able to more reliably charge Thorforce as his Hammer Throw loses the Thorforce costs, becomes a regular, rather than global, cooldown and grants a Thorforce for every enemy hit. As a result, he should be able to charge his Awakening Rune more consistently, including from rage. And if the Jeff-nado team-up wasn't enoguh, devs are changing Jeff's primary fire to now pierce allies for healing while also damaging any enemies hit. His Aqua Burst secondary fire is now a charge-based ability that holds three charges, deals slightly more damage and tosses enemies slightly airborne. For Vanguards, Strange gets improvements to his damage falloff and Magneto's rings charge slightly faster while Groot loses some damage and gets a substantial cooldown nerf on his Ironwood wall, Cap loses some health and gets a shield cooldown nerf and Emma Frost trades more range on her primary fire for a weaker shield and Diamond Form. Mobility-focused duelists Iron Fist, Human Torch and Psylocke are getting nerfs while Punisher, Storm and Squirrel Girl will receive "modest" buffs. The only strategist mentioned in the dev vision video's upcoming balance tweaks was Luna Snow, whose ult charge gets another nerf, offset by a "mild boost" to her other abilities -- more healing from her primary fire and bonus health for frozen enemies. It's a bit perplexing that Rivals devs seem focused on increasing ult charge requirements for Luna Snow instead of just making it last less than an eternity, but the season 2.5 balance changes feel generally in the right direction, knocking down overperforming heroes and giving underperforming ones buffs. That said, it's a little wild to me to see Rocket escape with no nerfs -- he's currently the hero with the highest win rate across all ranks (55%) and the second-highest pick rate among all heroes (22%, trailing only Cloak & Dagger's 28%). His win rate drops a little bit at the highest ranks, but is still in line with heroes like Iron Fist and Human Torch who received nerfs, and his pick rate similarly drops slightly but is still third overall and second among strategists. Marvel/Screenshot by Adam Benjamin/CNET Other changes: New tactics mode, emoji Perhaps the biggest surprise in the season 2.5 announcement was the addition of a new experimental mode called Ultron's Battle Matrix Protocol. It's an autobattler that lets you choose a team of six heroes, enhance their abilities, and unleash them against opposing teams. I have zero experience with autobattlers like Teamfight Tactics of Hearthstone Battlegrounds, but it was as fun watching a massive Venom looming over the battlefield as it was seeing a Namor with six (I counted) active turrets. Marvel/Screenshot by Adam Benjamin/CNET The game is also introducing emoji, finally allowing you to nonverbally express your disdain for the teammates begging for healing while Spider-Man and Iron Fist treat you like a punching bag.