Marvel Rivals Season 1 Update Cracks Down on Mods
Marvel Rivals' Season 1 update has reportedly disabled custom-made mods, a popular feature among players since the game's launch. While not explicitly announced, players discovered their mods no longer function, reverting characters to their default appearances.
Launched on January 10, 2025, following a successful debut in December 2024, Season 1 introduced the Fantastic Four as playable characters (Mr. Fantastic and Invisible Woman initially, with the Thing and Human Torch to follow), a new Battle Pass, maps, and a Doom Match mode. The simultaneous disabling of mods, however, has sparked controversy.
NetEase Games, the developer, has consistently stated that mod usage violates the game's terms of service, even for cosmetic modifications, and has previously issued bans. The Season 1 update appears to have preemptively addressed this through the implementation of hash checking, a technique verifying data authenticity and effectively eliminating widespread modding.
This move, while not entirely surprising given NetEase's prior actions (including banning a controversial Donald Trump mod), has disappointed players who enjoyed custom content. Some mod creators have expressed their frustration, sharing unreleased creations now rendered obsolete.
While some mods featured explicit content, prompting player complaints, the primary driver behind NetEase's crackdown is likely financial. As a free-to-play game, Marvel Rivals relies heavily on in-game purchases of character bundles containing cosmetic items. The availability of free cosmetic mods could severely impact the game's profitability. Therefore, the ban on mods represents a business strategy to protect revenue streams.
