The announcement of Season 3 ofMarvel Rivalsconfirmed what fans had long suspected - Knull would be the new villain of the game’s story. The God of the Symbiotes has conscripted Hela, his Queen in Black, to free him from Klyntar and spread his corruption. However, even with Knull’s new role as the seasonal bad guy, it’s unclear what his exact role will be within the game.
Knull has long been hinted at inMarvel Rivals, appearing as early as the game’s launch trailer. Theobjective on the Klyntar map has always been to deliver or prevent Knull’s Essence from reaching the planet’s core, so players have heard the villain’s name mentioned for quite some time. However, withSeason 3 introducing another mapon Klyntar, Knull’s influence is far more present.
Knull Is Coming To Marvel Rivals, But Is He Playable?
The Lord Of The Void May Not Join The Game’s Roster
The arrival of Knull asks a few questions regarding his place in the game, especially when you consider the previous Seasons. In Season 1, the main villain of the game’s story was Dracula, who plunged New York into eternal night, but was never a playable character on the roster. On the other hand, Ultron became a Strategist character in Season 2 after invading Krakoa as the game’s villain in that story.
In the game’s lore, the version of Ultron that players control is a version modified by Tony Stark, aka Iron Man. The Ultron that acted as the villain was the one who discarded his old body, becoming X-Tron by merging with Cerebro, the advanced psionic AI used by telepathic mutants on Krakoa.
Ultimately,it is unlikely that Knull will be playable, as each Season only tends to have two playable characters. The Season 3 trailer already shows Jean Grey (Phoenix) and Blade as the two characters coming to the game, so Knull may play the same role as Dracula did back in Season 1. However, withUltron’s inclusion in Season 2, it is not impossible that Knull is added as a surprise third character.
This could only happen if Knull has been planned for much longer than Dracula, in the same way as Ultron. Recent videos showing the art design ofMarvel Rivalshave highlighted concept art of Knull that may have been created very early in the game’s life cycle. As a result,Knull’s role has a chance to become more prominent, especially as Season 3.5 marks major events in the seasonal story.
Knull Deserves To Be Playable In Marvel Rivals
The Roster Needs More Villains
In my opinion,Knull should become a secret third character added to Season 3, due to howMarvel Rivalsmarks a monumental focus on the character. Knull has only shown up in other games as a cameo, featuring only in mobile titles likeMarvel SNAP,Marvel Future Fight, andMarvel Strike Force. This time, Knull has a chance to be more than just a background villain, but a full character players can pick.
Knull’s weapon of choice, All-Black the Necrosword, is a perfect weapon for a hybrid-melee character. With wings,Knull could even be the first semi-flying Vanguard in the game, allowing the role to start fighting against the flying character meta that took shape with Ultron in Season 2.5.
As someone who has read nearly every Venom comic, Knull is a character whose presence is made much stronger by the overwhelming strength of his actions.The ability to control symbiotes could create a character with fascinating gameplay, unleashing a hivemind against his foes.Team-Up abilities inMarvel Rivalswith Knull could be fascinating as well, either with Venom or Hela as seen with the latter’s alliance in the Season 3 trailer.
Knull is one of Marvel’s best villains, agonizingly underrated by his lack of action in many appearances outside of comics. With Knull’s goals finally coming to the forefront ofMarvel Rivalsin Season 3, it would be a missed opportunity not to have the villain as someone players could use on their teams.
