Marvel Rivals De-Rank System Causes Some Major Issues According To Fans

Marvel Rivals has just undergone its first-ever seasonal reset, and some players aren't happy about what it's done to their ranks. In seasonal, live-service games like Marvel Rivals, players' performance in ranked matches is measured in seasons. That means that they have a limited time to climb through the ranks. At the end of the season, progress is reset, and players typically go down a few ranks to give them a goal for the new season and test their skills against any new heroes or balance changes.

The idea is that the cream will always rise to the top, but that doesn't always hold true. Players like ayo_dudeski on Reddit believe that Marvel Rivals' first season has set ranked players back by much too far. This has led to imbalanced matches, no matter what rank you're in: players in the lower tiers, like Bronze and Silver, are currently finding themselves in matches against those who finished at a much higher standing last season, like Platinum and Diamond.

Marvel Rivals 7 Division De-Rank System Brings Unfair Matchups

Ranked Players Struggle With Imbalance

It's not uncommon at all for any game with a ranked mode to have a seasonal reset that takes players down a few pegs. It's the extent to which Marvel Rivals players have been de-ranked that's the problem: it appears that Rivals' Season 1 refresh automatically decreased each ranked player's tier by seven ranks, regardless of where they finished in Season 0. Rivals uses a pretty typical rank and tier structure, with ranks ranging from Bronze to Diamond, followed by Celestial, Eternity, and One Above All as its three highest tiers. Each rank except the latter three has three tiers within it.

So, conceivably, a player who finished in one of the lower Diamond tiers could find themselves ranked Silver, and a player who finished Platinum could find themselves in Bronze. These high-rank players have grown frustrated at the skill level of their new teammates. One player, Ralo_2, is disappointed at the far lower quality of their ranked games, finding that their fellow ranked players are missing obvious strategies and playing heroes in the wrong roles.

On the other side, players at the lower ranks are finding it impossible to win games when they're matched up with teams full of recently de-ranked Platinums. Although even matches are conceivable if each team gets an even sprinkling of high- and low-tier, Platinum players tend to queue together in groups. This means many matches will consist of a full team of Platinum players against a ragtag mix - and players like Redex_ say this results in unwinnable steamrolls.

As a whole, the seasonal reset has left players frustrated and seeking alternate solutions. Some suggest separate queues for groups and solo/duo players, to avoid Platinums and Diamonds ganging up on Bronzes and Silvers. Others are simply vowing to avoid ranked play until things even out a little more later in the season. These are good ideas, but there's a pretty obvious solution that both of them ignore.

Our Take: Maybe Diamond Against Bronze Isn't The Best Thing In Marvel Rivals

Look, there's nothing wrong with reducing ranks by a bit at the end of each season. But ultimately, it just seems like seven tiers is too great a decrease. I could see the merits of rolling players back by an entire rank, maybe even a little more, but seven is a bridge too far. Knocking everyone down multiple ranks creates an insurmountable skill gap that's annoying for high-rank players and frustrating for low-rank players. In future seasons, NetEase should consider smaller decreases to ensure that Marvel Rivals ranked matches stay balanced.

Sources: ayo_dudeski/Reddit, Ralo_2/Reddit, Redex_/Reddit