Marvel Rivals Almost Cancelled Before Release Due to Disagreements at NetEase

A multiplayer superhero shooter that recently joined the NetEase catalog of games was in danger of being canceled just a few months before its release. This was reported by Bloomberg, citing its own sources.

According to the report, the project was almost closed due to the reluctance of NetEase CEO William Ding to pay Marvel royalties for the right to use iconic comic book characters. He even suggested that the developers create completely new heroes, which would have resulted in significant costs and could have disrupted the release date. In the end, this idea was abandoned, but the temporary pause cost the company millions of dollars.

NetEase officially denied information about such disagreements, emphasizing that the corporation has had a strong partnership with Marvel since 2017. Despite internal difficulties, Marvel Rivals was still successfully released, becoming a significant project in the studio’s portfolio.