Blade in Marvel Rivals: Release Date and First Gameplay Revealed

Oh man, ever get that feeling when you’re waiting for something for so long, and then—bam! It’s finally here, and you’re like, “Was this real life?” Anyway, so Blade’s crashing into Marvel Rivals come August 8th. Yeah, the Daywalker himself, and people have been buzzing like bees for ages about this. Saw a sneak peek of the gameplay, and honestly, it’s got that “finally worth it” vibe. Or maybe I’m just overhyping. Who knows.

So, get this: Blade’s kinda like the perfect mashup of a Duelist with his whole close-to-mid-range chops. He’s got this sword (classic) and a shotgun combo? Sounds like me trying to decide between coffee or tea—just take both. Oh, and he can block damage for a bit. It’s like he’s dancing through the battlefield, zipping around like he’s on some secret rollerblades or something. He just leaps forward—zoom! And his ultimate? Dracula-esque craziness. Slicing up baddies even mid-air! There’s this clip where Blade’s all like, “Hey Iron Man and Storm,” before… kaboom, done. Then he lands, but doesn’t turn around to check his handiwork. Because—cliché alert—cool dudes just don’t look back at explosions.

Folks, as you’d guess, are already raving and pledging their allegiance. Sure, this tends to happen with every new hero. But Blade’s got style, you know? It’s like that pitch-perfect bowl of ramen on a cold day. One comment on YouTube? Something about how the soundtrack just pumps the reveal up by about a hundred times. Which is fair, music can do that to you.

Blade isn’t arriving solo though. Oh no. He’s part of this big shuffle of maps, modes, and hero teams or whatever. Some heroes scooting out, new ones jumping in, like a high school musical cast dance-off. Blade’s hopping into the Lunar Force crew, teaming with Cloak and Dagger—they’re all about that sneaky invisibility trick. Here’s what NetEase dropped on us about team changes (yawn or yay, depends on your mood):

Ok, so Guardian Revival’s out. Bye Adam Warlock—Mantis/Star-Lord. Then there’s Atlas Bond taking a break too. Loki’s no longer partying with Ragnarok Rebirth. But hello to some fresh faces: Duality Dance and Vibrant Vitality. It’s all in the shuffle, baby. And Blade joins Lunar Force with Cloak & Dagger. The more, the merrier, I guess?

On the flip side, multiplayer’s getting a bit of a facelift too. More like a tidy-up, you might say. NetEase is reining in the chaos—in-game chat’s getting monitored and maybe subjected to good old human review. Those folks ditching matches? They’re looking at heftier penalties, which is kinda fair if you ask me. And if you stick it out despite a dumpster fire of a game, you get points. Yay for moral victories?

Yeah, and if the system booted you due to tech hiccups, don’t worry, there’s a review and appeals process too. So they’re saying anyway. Hope it’s speedy, like, faster than waiting for Blade, at least.