SCIENCE & TECH: Marvel Rivals Season 3.5 live build up: Blade release time, downtime, and our preview impressions leading up to launch

Spider-Man is stronger this season

Spider-Man has gotten a buff for Season 3.5. It only boosts his Ultimate, with extra damage per second. Spidey has fallen behind a bit lately, overtaken by Wolverine and Black Panther as the game’s main menace. Maybe this will bring him back into the fight.

I’ve played Season 3.5

Thanks to NetEase for providing early access to Marvel Rivals Season 3.5, I’ve now gotten my hands on the new update. Blade is feeling extremely powerful, especially against Vanguards. His Ultimate is pretty much a guaranteed kill, and his Team Up can really boost hid durability.

How long is downtime expected to last?

Marvel Rivals goes into downtime before the launch of a new season. In the past, NetEase has given 2-3 hours as estimated downtime durations. Generally, the past few seasons have stuck to this, and I’d expect Season 3.5 to be no exception.

Happy Season 3.5 release day!

We’re now just a few hours away from the launch of Marvel Rivals Season 3.5. Downtime kicks off in 45 minutes, and I’m here to guide you through with live updates on what to expect from the new season.

Goodbye for now

Those are the main things you need to know about Marvel Rivals Season 3.5. I’ll be jumping back on in the run up to downtime. From there I’ll be watching closely to see when the new update goes live, and then giving my impressions on what I’ve already played.

Twitch Drops for IGNITE

IGNITE mid-season Twitch Drops are now live. You can earn an awesome Star-Lord skin (from August 10) by watching 4 hours of eligible streamers. This one is available until September 6, so plenty of time to pick it up.

New Team Up for Adam Warlock and Luna Snow

Luna Snow and Adam Warlock Team Up with Duality Dance. Luna Snow will get healing as she damages enemies. This adds a new level of self-healing for Luna, who would previously have to wait for her Ice Shards to gain health.

Doctor Strange gets a buff

Doctor Strange is finally getting a buff, hopefully bringing him back into contention against Emma Frost and Magneto. Here’s what’s changing:

• Increase Daggers of Denak projectile charges from 8 to 10.
• Reduce Cloak of Levitation cooldown from 15s to 12s.

Blade joins the battle

Blade arrives as a new Hero in Marvel Rivals. He’s a Duelist that uses a katana and a shotgun, and can summon the blade of Dracula to trigger a devastating Ultimate. He can block incoming damage, and then dash towards enemies to get in close for the kill.

See also

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Twitch Drops for Season 3.5

There’s a Mantis skin to earn in Season 3.5 through Twitch Drops. Watch 4 hours of eligible streamers on Twitch to get ahold of the Will of Galacta skin for Mantis. There’s other rewards to earn as well.

New skins in the store

The following skins will be available to purchase in the store once the new season launches:

• Blade – Polarity Edge Bundle
• Blade – Emoji Bundle
• Blade Dynamic Mood Bundle

The Queen’s Codex event launches with the new season

The Queen’s Codex event will arrive with Season 3.5, and there’s free and premium rewards to earn. Over on the free side, The Thing finally gets a symbiote skin. You’ll need to purchase the Premium Pass to get the Queen in Black skin for Hela, and there’s an awesome Phoenix-themed Black Widow skin too.

When does downtime start?

Welcome to Season 3.5 | Dev Vision Vol. 08 | Marvel Rivals – YouTube

Watch On

Let’s kick things off by taking a look at when Marvel Rivals will be taken offline for maintenance. Downtime begins in Marvel Rivals at the following times:

• East Coast (US): 5AM ET (August 8)
• West Coast (US): 2AM PT (August 8)
• United Kingdom: 10AM BST (August 8)
• Europe (Central): 11AM CEST (August 8)
• Japan (Tokyo): 6PM JST (August 8)
• Australia (Sydney): 7PM AEST (August 8)

Hello and welcome!

We’re now just under 24 hours away from the launch of Marvel Rivals Season 3.5. We’ll get a whole new Duelist to try out, as well as a new event that features skins for Hela, The Thing and Black Widow as rewards. Join me as I break down the new season in the live build up to downtime.