The Hood Enters the Arena in Marvel Rivals
Marvel Rivals is gearing up for another major content update, as Marvel Games and NetEase Games have officially revealed everything coming in Season 9.5: The Mystery of Thebes. The new season launches on August 7 and introduces a fresh playable character, new cosmetics, and significant storage improvements across all platforms.
Leading the update is Parker Robbins, better known as The Hood, who joins the game’s growing roster as a Vanguard hero. The Hood brings a unique playstyle, letting him switch between his human and demonic forms during battle. Armed with dual pistols, he can provide steady cover fire while also using dark magic to create protective barriers and shield teammates. His Ultimate Ability unleashes his full demonic power, allowing him to fire shield-piercing shots while boosting the health of nearby allies. The character is voiced by WWE SmackDown star Damian Priest (Luis Berrios).
The update doesn’t stop there. On August 13, Marvel Rivals will kick off Volume 2 of its Summer Festival, featuring a new collection of swimsuit-themed costumes and cosmetics. Lady Loki is also receiving customizable movement and ability animations, giving players even more ways to personalize the character. Meanwhile, the popular Krakoan Reels event returns for another round.
Season 9.5 also delivers a welcome technical upgrade. Thanks to a new texture compression system, the game’s install size will shrink by around 40GB on PC and approximately 15GB on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S without sacrificing visual quality. As always, the update will include a full set of patch notes and hero balance adjustments.
With a new hero, stylish cosmetics, and a much smaller download size, Season 9.5 looks set to give Marvel Rivals players plenty of reasons to jump back into the action.