Marvel Rivals has turned the Marvel Universe brand into a hit team-based shooting game, further expanding the scope of Marvel’s success in the gaming industry. The Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise is the biggest part of the brand, and fans love to see concepts from their favorite games get adapted for the MCU, as much as they love seeing concepts from the comics come to life onscreen (or both, in the case of the Spider-Verse animated films). One of Marvel Rivals‘ biggest achievements has been successfully debuting new designs for characters that have been iconic for decades – to the point that a few of the suits are already becoming new fan-favorites.
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Like any game, Rivals offers players numerous skins for each of the iconic characters they can play as. In this list, we’ve picked the best character designs – whether regular or variant – that would absolutely slap if they become actual MCU costumes, down the line.
Hawkeye (Default)
MCU fans have come to love Jeremy Renner’s Hawkeye as an everyman staple of a superhero universe. That said, Hawkeye’s personal life and self-aware bravado have always been more memorable than what costume he’s wearing – with one exception. Avengers: Endgame depicted Hawkeye as a darker, more ninja-influenced vigilante known as “Ronin,” and his costume definitely stood out.
Marvel Rivals smartly embraces both the archer and ninja halves of Hawkeye’s hero persona, and merges them into one of the character’s best looks yet. The default skin for Hawkeye makes Clint Barton look more badass and battle capable than he ever has – and it’s actually a suit that could be easy for the old pros in Marvel Studios’ costuming department to create.
Captain America (Default)
Captain America has one of the most iconic costumes in comic book history – in large part because it doubles as an obvious symbol for the American Flag and the nation’s ideals. As such, Cap’s suit may have changed slightly over the years (usually depending on his relationship with the country and/or its government) but the fundamentals have always stayed the same. That held true when Chris Evans took on the role of Steve Rogers/Captain America in the MCU.
Marvel Rivals takes the revolutionary step of giving Steve Rogers an actual armored suit to go into battle with – and it’s a look that definitely works. The sturdier combat armor still retains the America-themed elements that are distinctly Cap, but feels more in line with the character’s penchant for charging straight into danger and battling opponents up close and personal. As the MCU continues to introduce new threats like rogue Hulks, even a Super Soldier like Steve would need an upgrade. With rumors that Evans is returning to the MCU for Avengers: Doomsday, a variant Captain America wearing Marvel Rivals-style armor (designed by his buddy Tony Stark?) would be a welcome sight to see.
Moon Knight (Blood Moon Variant)
Moon Knight is pretty iconic for being Marvel’s Batman, with a horror-themed costume to go with that badge of (dis)honor. However, fans typically associate Moon Knight with his signature white-color costumes, but Marvel Rivals flips the script by bringing Moon Knight into its vampire-themed story arc of the season, and giving him a darker black-and-red costume known as the “Blood Moon” variant.
Marc Spector is a freaky character from the jump, with his unstable mix of multiple personalities and unpredictable actions as a hero. Giving him a darker, night-themed makeover only adds to Moon Knight’s menace – and Marvel Rivals does it right. The next time we see Oscar Isaac’s Moon Knight in the MCU, it would be great to let the Jake Lockley persona run wild in this darker costume.
Star-Lord (Master of the Sun Variant)
Thanks to James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy Trilogy, Peter Quill/Star-Lord has become a household name. The character has also become synonymous with Chris Pratt’s wisecracking dude-bro performance, and while that take has been highly-entertaining for the run of the Guardians movies, there needs to be some long overdue maturation of the character (who we’ve already been promised will return in future MCU projects).
Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 2 is the black sheep middle-child of the trilogy, and a lot of the storyline introduced in the film has since been ignored – one of the biggest being Star-Lord’s status as a celestial-human hybrid. Future MCU projects (especially cosmic events like Avengers: Secret Wars) need to remind fans that Star-Lord can actually live up to his name, and Marvel Rivals has the perfect look to do it. The “Master of the Sun” variant skin highlights Peter’s cosmic bloodline while retaining that same retro aesthetic (disco, baby!) fans loved in the MCU films. Bare-chested Chris Pratt in a leather outfit with bushy hair and beard? Yes please!
Psylocke (Default)
Let’s be honest: X-Men’s Psylocke has been one of the most problematic characters in the Marvel Universe, judging by today’s standards. The saga of English noble girl Betsy Braddock and Japanese assassin Kwannon being Freaky Friday-ed in a psychic swapping scheme has taken years to unravel through comic book retcons. Nowadays, both ladies are active in the X-Men Universe, and the next time we see Psylocke in live-action, Kwannon’s full identity and culture deserve to be at the forefront of her character.
Marvel Rivals gives Psylocke a costume that is befitting her ninja background and training as a former member of the Hand cult – far better representation than the overly-tittilating outfits that the “exotic” character was made to wear in the 1980s and 1990s. The 2016 film X-Men: Apocalypse chose to still use that “classic” suggestive outfitting for Olivia Munn’s Betsy Braddock/Psylocke; the MCU would do well to take inspiration from what Marvel Rivals has done with the character, instead.
[RELATED: Best Look Yet at Daredevil’s New Born Again Suit]
Thor (Herald of Thunder Variant)
Thor: Love and Thunder made it clear that Marvel’s Thunder God needs a serious overhaul in the MCU – and that includes a new look. Chris Hemsworth’s Thor wore out his welcome as a comedic relief beefcake, and fans are definitely looking for something different from the actor next go-round. Love and Thunder ended with Thor taking on an important father-figure role, which means that “Daddy Thor” would be the next logical era of the character’s development.
Marvel Rivals‘ version of Thor totally gives “father.” The default skin is solid (with its bearded style and traditionally Norse amor), but for our money, the “Herald of Thunder” skin is the best fit for Hemsworth’s physique, and most in line with the MCU’s ‘Asgardians are advanced aliens’ aesthetic. It’s regally mature, cosmically ethereal, reflects Thor’s warrior nature, and best of all: it’s serious. No one needs to see that splashy-colored (and CGI “enhanced”) Love and Thunder armor, ever again.
Iron Fist (Default)
Like Psylocke, Iron Fist is another Marvel hero with a problematic history (seeing a pattern yet?). As modern creators (and cultural sensibilities) have stepped in, the Danny Rand version of the character (white man who masters the martial arts) has been replaced by Lin Lie, a young man from Shanghai, China, who is tapped to become the new Iron Fist.
Marvel Comics has given Lin’s Iron Fist a more traditional comic book superhero outfit, but Marvel Rivals has given fans a version of the suit that is already feeling more iconic, as much as it is functional. With Lin Lie being a newer character that mainstream audiences don’t yet know, the MCU should “borrow” this Rivals look to give the character his best possible live-action debut.
Magneto (Default)
What do you get for the man who only looks good in one thing? Magneto’s look cannot be perfected upon – you can only change the color coding. The X-Men movies from the 20th Century Fox era are now so iconic that rebooting them in the MCU is a monumental challenge. Ian McKellen’s and Michael Fassbender’s takes on Magneto are two of the most iconic elements of those old X-Men films – as are the comic-accurate costumes they each wore.
The Marvel Rivals Magneto costume design is already sparking major hype with fans. While the suit never strays too far from the core concept of Magneto, it’s been upgraded with a fully metallic armored design that makes Magnus look like he’s actually ready for that war for mutant supremacy he’s always preaching about. With the daddy-beard and red highlights in the silver-and-gray armor, Magneto looks like a true mutant king; the circular disc of alien-style metal at his back is a quiet-but-fearsome reminder of his power, control, ruthlessness, and that unbending iron will.
The Punisher (Thunderbolts)
Frank Castle / The Punisher is another character who is complicated to adapt for the screen because he is so basic in core design. Frank is a killer vigilante who employs the best tactical gear to complete his bloody missions – including defensive gear like kevlar vests. As long as it’s black (for tactical reasons) and has a white skull emblem painted on it, it qualifies as a Punisher costume.
Marvel fans are hyped that Jon Bernthal’s Punisher is officially joining the MCU in Daredevil: Born Again, as he was another fan-favorite of the Marvel-Netflix era. However, with Bernthal’s Punisher joining a franchise where the streets of NYC are filled with superheroes and supervillains, Frank may need to rethink his entire tactical approach. Marvel Rivals gives Castle skins that are clearly meant to be a Punisher costume upgraded for superpowered opponents. The “Thunderbolts” variant skin adds a nice touch of bloody red to the usual black-and-white dynamic, not to mention being a nice head-nod to his frienemy Daredevil, and branding tie-in with the upcoming Thunderbolts* film.
The Winter Soldier (Revolution)
Bucky Barnes has had one of the most convoluted arcs in Marvel Comics history, having held several different superhero, anti-hero, or villain titles during his run. In the latest era of Marvel Comics, Bucky has taken up the name “Revolution” and has committed himself to forming a new team of Thunderbolts and taking down clandestine organizations (The “Outer Circle”) or figures (Red Skull) who are trying to control world events.
Sebastian Stan is now winning Golden Globes and getting Oscar nominations. If Marvel Studios wants to hold on to its Bucky Barnes, it’s time for an actual revolution with the character, instead of the strange creative limbo he’s been left in for a decade now. People love Stan with some longer hair, and Marvel Rivals’ Winter Soldier Revolution skin certainly makes the best of it, no? It’s also a great middle ground between Bucky’s more heroic and villainous looks, which is exactly the kind of anti-hero grayness MCU fans want from the character, following his role in the Thunderbolts* film.
Marvel movies and TV series can be streamed on Disney+. Thunderbolts will be released in theaters on May 2nd.
