The Marvel Rivals Bot Conspiracy, Explained

While Marvel Rivals continues to land atop Steam and Twitch charts, one issue has fans suspicious of their time with NetEase Games’ new hero shooter: bots.

The superhero-themed competitive multiplayer experience launched in December to critical acclaim and praise from fans thanks to its style and creative use of iconic characters like Spider-Man, Wolverine, and, most recently, the Fantastic Four. It’s achieved so much success that hundreds of thousands of gamers are still firing up Marvel Rivals every day on Steam alone (via SteamDB). While NetEase’s new hero shooter has managed to dodge some of the pitfalls that trap other competitors in this space, fans have spent weeks raising concerns regarding how AI enemies have been implemented across several of its game modes.

“I know people may feel differently but playing against bots in (Quickplay) just doesn’t feel good at all to me,” one Reddit user commented. “AI should be in AI modes and that’s it.”

Like other multiplayer games released over the last 15 years, Marvel Rivals offers practice modes that make it clear players will be competing against what many refer to as “bots.” These AI-driven opponents can often have their difficulty tweaked to a user’s liking, cementing these modes as valuable tools for those looking to improve their skills or cool down between the often more intense matches against human players. Where the Marvel video game is running into trouble is the appearance of what many believe are bots in standard Quickplay matches.

For weeks, social media has slowly flooded with posts from users concerned that they are being tossed into matches against low-level bot players, with some reporting that their teammates are also occasionally being replaced by bots. The jury’s out on what triggers these bot matches, but the working theory is that Marvel Rivals will match players into these comparatively easier matches after the occurrence of one too many losses. It’s a tactic that could keep players from feeling so defeated that they quit the game, and it may help users load into Quickplay matches without delay instead of sitting through long queue times.

Unfortunately, there is little transparency from NetEase regarding which players are bots or if there are bots in Quickplay matches at all — and the company has remained quiet thus far (IGN has asked for comment). More than a few posts caught fire on social media in the weeks since launch as players tried to establish what is and isn’t a red flag in the hope of finding their own solution. Examples include bizarre-but-repetitive behavior in-game to similarities between each teammate’s names, including team names filled with single words and all capital letters or names split between one full name and one half name. The most telling sign, though, is when every enemy’s career profile is labeled “restricted.”

“The fact that you can even get bot games after wins and that the game doesn’t tell you that you’re against bots is what gets me about this,” another Reddit user said. “You don’t want to learn new heroes in comp because people will understandably rage at you for doing that, but if you try to learn a hero in (Quickplay) you now have to second guess if you actually are getting any better on that hero or if the game is just making you think you are because it’s handing you free wins in the form of bots.”

The use of bots in multiplayer games is far from new; players have argued about how bots could be impacting their Fortnite performance for years. As for Marvel Rivals, some have called for the option to toggle bot matches on or off, while others want the feature removed completely. There is also a selection of players who don’t mind fighting against the occasional bot lobby, explaining that they use these matches as an opportunity to complete a few specific hero achievements. Reddit user ciaranxy began to question some of their matches shortly after launch and created a post calling on the community to do the same.

“So, you can choose to believe this is an issue or not – that is your CHOICE,” ciaranxy says in the post. “But – for everyone else – when you press Quickplay, NetEase does not give you a choice.”

If you’ve played Marvel Rivals for more than a few hours since launch, there’s a good chance you found yourself in one of the questionable lobbies that has others so fired up. I can confirm running into at least one suspicious Quickplay match that featured more than a few of the elements players have warned of, including stiff player movement, similarly structured names, and three teammates and an entire enemy team with restricted profiles. We’ve reached out to NetEase for clarification about the matches that have players concerned and the alleged existence of bots in Marvel Rivals.

While users flock to investigate bots across gaming, you can learn more about how some Marvel Rivals players are using the Invisible Woman to literally stop bots in their tracks. With or without addressing this new controversy, NetEase is planning for a bright future in 2025, kicking off its plans with the Fantastic Four in Season 1: Eternal Night Falls. Creative director Guangyun Chen has also promised to deliver at least one new hero every half-season, and later this month, fans can expect to pick up a new skin in the form of Peter Parker’s Advanced Suit 2.0 from Marvel’s Spider-Man.

Michael Cripe is a freelance contributor with IGN. He started writing in the industry in 2017 and is best known for his work at outlets such as The Pitch, The Escapist, OnlySP, and Gameranx.

Be sure to give him a follow on Twitter @MikeCripe.