Marvel Rivals Players Are Risking Account Bans to Mod the Game Even After Season 1 Clampdown

Despite the risk of account bans, players of Marvel Rivals continue to use mods even after a crackdown that accompanied the launch of Season 1. Since the game's highly successful debut in December, fans have been customizing skins, transforming characters like Iron Man into Vegeta from Dragon Ball and Mantis into a goth. Another popular mod morphs Jeff the Land Shark into Pochita from Chainsaw Man.

Last week, with the introduction of the Fantastic Four and the start of Season 1, Marvel Rivals implemented a covert mod restriction through asset hash checking. Developer NetEase confirmed to IGN that the game's terms and conditions explicitly ban mods, as well as cheats, bots, hacks, or any unauthorized third-party software. NetEase had previously cautioned players about the risks associated with mods and reiterated this warning in a statement to IGN: "It is not recommended to modify any game files, as doing so carries the risk of getting banned."

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Yet, some players remain undaunted. A workaround has been discovered and is now widely shared online, requiring more steps than before but still accessible to most PC users. Modder Prafit, who posted the workaround on Nexus Mods, issued a warning: “Use at your own risk,” Prafit stated in the mod's description.

"By using this, you are actually bypassing a system designed to prevent modding since the Season 1 patch. It's unclear whether NetEase will enforce bans, but to our knowledge, they have never issued permanent bans."

New mods have emerged that capitalize on the addition of Fantastic Four characters. For instance, Ercuallo's mod transforms Mister Fantastic into Luffy from the manga One Piece. According to Nexus Mods statistics, this Luffy mod has been downloaded over 5,000 times within just two days of its release.

Modding Marvel Rivals lives on but it needs extra steps to pull off pic.twitter.com/VEeiiHyxiA

— Marvel Rivals - Leaks & Info (@RivalsLeaks) January 12, 2025

The question looming over Marvel Rivals modders and users is whether NetEase will follow through on its threat to ban players. While no confirmed cases of bans due to mod use have surfaced, these workarounds might provoke further action from the developers.

NetEase's motivation to ban mods stems from multiple concerns. Besides the potential loss of revenue from skin sales and intellectual property issues, mods could disrupt gameplay balance and impact game performance. Modder Prafit emphasized that their temporary workaround should only be utilized by those with powerful PCs.

In the meantime, take a look at the Marvel Rivals Season 1 patch notes, and official statistics that detail Marvel Rivals' pick and win rates in Quickplay and Competitive modes from Season 0. Don't forget to keep an eye on the latest Marvel Rivals codes for free skins, and participate in voting for the strongest Marvel Rivals characters in our community tier list.