Let’s face it—Marvel Rivals gets a lot of things right. Smashing superpowered battles, massive rosters, flash, sizzle, you name it. But, wow, there’s one hot topic that’s been splitting the fanbase lately. That’s right: role queue. Should it exist in Marvel Rivals, or does it ruin the game’s spicy unpredictability?
And trust me, this isn’t some mild-mannered debate quietly lurking in the corners of Discord. Just swing by any Reddit thread from the last month—you’ll see players dropping opinions faster than Spider-Man drops quips. Let’s break this debate wide open and take a close look at both sides. Hold onto your main, because what comes next might just shake up your next five matches.
The Pile-Up: Why So Many Duelists?
Pop open the hero select screen and you’re instantly greeted by a bombardment of choices. As of June 2025, Marvel Rivals rolls out the welcome mat to 39 different characters. Now, here’s the real kicker:
- 10 Vanguards, aka your tanks and space-makers
- 19 Duelists—the flashy, pure-damage crowd-pleasers
- 10 Strategists, also known as supports and game-changers
Yup, Duelists reign supreme in numbers. And strangely enough, that matches exactly what happens once everyone locks in their character. Scroll through a match summary and you’ll barely go three rounds without seeing a team stacked to the rafters with Duelists and only a single, brave soul daring to play support. (Or, in the wildest games, no supports at all.)
This all leads to the classic Marvel Rivals scenario: your team lines up with five characters who can dish out damage but not a single shield or healing bubble in sight. Cue the collective groan in team chat and a round of frantic pings.
Enter: The Role Queue Dream
Enter the concept of role queue. It’s not a new idea in the hero shooter world. Overwatch did it, and it changed the game’s meta forever. Players crave balance, and so the role queue system promised less chaos and more structure.
Folks pushing for role queue in Marvel Rivals have some pretty strong arguments up their sleeve:
- No more all-Duelist squads getting flattened because nobody picked a tank.
- Fewer “Hey, why’d you lock Rocket too?!” arguments at hero select.
- A smoother, more strategic experience, especially for competitive play and ranked ladder.
Even if you just log in to mess around with friends, there’s something tempting about a little guaranteed balance. It helps newbies too, since not everyone learns about team composition the hard way—by getting stomped.
The Creative Director Speaks
On the other end of this tug-of-war, Marvel Rivals’ creative director, Guangyun “Guangguang” Chen, has made his feelings clear. In multiple interviews, Chen’s quoted saying the team wants players to experiment freely. One statement sums it up perfectly: “It’s all about giving the players the freedom to experiment and find their unique strategies… we believe no role queue will lead to a richer gaming experience for everyone.” (GamesRadar+)
That philosophy isn’t just some buzzword for the dev team, either. The Marvel Rivals experience, at its core, thrives on wild synergy and unexpected combos. So, maybe five Duelists and one sleep-deprived Strategist is the point? Chen sure seems to think so.
The Casual Player’s Dilemma
Of course, not everybody’s convinced. Plenty of players—not just the would-be esports stars—think the fun takes a hit when teams roll out without a solid support or a solid shield. It’s not uncommon on Reddit to see comments like:
- “Team wipe incoming, our healer picked Black Panther again.”
- “Can we get a role lock? These no-support games are actually making solo queue unplayable.”
- “I just want to play Vanguards, but I end up being the only one every match.”
So, the lack of a role queue leaves casuals with a choice: play what you love and risk losing, or fill the missing gap (again). Sometimes you’re the hero. Sometimes you just wish you could play Widow, not Winston—oops, wrong game!
Role Queue Realities: What History Teaches Us
Role queue isn’t simply a fantasy. Other games have been there and done that. Overwatch, after years of “let the chaos happen,” added structured queues. Suddenly, you had far fewer triple sniper matches. Players finally stopped arguing about team balance and started game-planning from the first screen.
But here’s the catch: role queue has its own flaws.
- Queue times for DPS (Duelists, in this case) spiked right into orbit. Playing as your favorite hero sometimes meant waiting three times longer.
- Flexibility and experimentation with oddball comps? Gone. The creative, wacky team fights that didn’t fit the meta? Rarer than a polite Deadpool.
- Tanks and supports often got stuck with teammates who only picked the role to skip the lines, then played badly or just flat-out trolled anyway.
Marvel Rivals could face those very same issues. Want that damage dealer life? Get ready for a wait. Want a team full of weird picks that somehow work together? Not happening with a locked-in role. Competitive integrity soars, sure, but things get regimented. Depending who you ask, that’s either a blessing or a curse.
Stats Don’t Lie: The Duelist Dilemma
Back to those pick rates. Marvel Rivals, as of June 2025, stacks up with nineteen Duelists compared to just ten of each for the other roles. Over and over, player data and forum chatter highlight one thing: Duelists are massively overrepresented.
Some Discord moderators even made unofficial polls (not scientific, but a fun barometer) showing that in quick play, roughly 60% of matches ended up with three or more Duelists per side. In some matches, teams rolled out with five or even six Duelists. Small wonder that new support mains are hard to come by!
So, the problem isn’t just theoretical. It’s happening live, every day, in thousands of matches.
But What About Ranked Mode?
Competitive players push hard for a fair, balanced experience. Ranked matches mean sweat, tryhards, and players who grind every stat. It’s no surprise that this crowd, generally, screams the loudest for role queue. When every match counts and your hard-earned rating is at risk, losing simply because nobody picked a healer feels deeply unfair.
Players in the ranked scene want:
- One Vanguard, two Duelists, two Strategists? Perfect. Time to climb.
- A shot at actually improving at your preferred role, not spending half your matches plugging unwanted gaps.
- Less tilting over “bad team comp loss,” more focus on actual gameplay.
But, for every ranked hero demanding role queue, there’s another player in casual or arcade mode who just wants to run wild with offbeat picks and silly team-ups. Sometimes, chaos brings the best highlights.
The Devs Are Listening—But Staying the Course (For Now)
Here’s the real kicker: developers are very aware of all this. They’ve been peppered with questions on Discord, Reddit AMAs, and even direct Q&A sessions. Not a single community update drops without the “role queue when?” question popping up.
Chen and the Marvel Rivals team, though, remain firm: for now, it’s all about freedom. They love seeing wild strategies and believe the game will thrive as players explore, not as they’re nudged into specific roles. You have to admire the conviction.
The Crystal Ball: What Happens Next?
So where does that leave us for the rest of 2025 and beyond? The debate will rage on, that’s for sure. Let’s sketch out some possible futures:
If Role Queue Arrives…
- Ranked mode would probably feel much fairer.
- Team comps would instantly become more standard.
- Wait times for popular roles? Strap in, they’d get longer.
- Creative, meme-worthy comps and accidental all-star squads? They’d go extinct.
- Frustrated players stuck in less-loved roles might pull out, drop games, or play suboptimally.
If Things Stay Wild…
- Flexible, fast matchmaking, especially in casual and events.
- Players who love off-meta comps get the ultimate playground.
- The Duelist drought means support mains stay in short supply, and every match risks imbalance.
- Ranked mode stays a bit messy, but endlessly unpredictable.
It’s a bit like Marvel’s own Multiverse—a world where every choice splits off into a different, equally wild reality.
Time to Lock In?
Honestly, there might not be one “right” answer here. Players are passionate, and the Marvel Rivals dev team is even more passionate about their creative vision. For now, the chaos continues, Duelists dominate, and every match promises at least one surprise. Either way, it’s clear this debate isn’t fading anytime soon.
So, what do you think—would you lock your favorite role for a better chance at glory? Or do you relish the mayhem, win or lose? The fate of the meta might rest in the hands of whoever shouts the loudest… or whoever queues up first. Either way, next time the match starts, maybe flex that Strategist pick. Who knows? You might just save the day.
