Marvel Rivals Boosts Stability, Cuts Memory Use

Marvel Rivals' upcoming Season 2 introduces an experimental feature designed to boost game stability and optimize memory consumption. Discover how this functionality works, along with details on future in-game events and content updates.

New Features and Events in Marvel Rivals

Switch Shader Compilation Mode

NetEase is rolling out an experimental feature to enhance Marvel Rivals' performance by reducing memory usage and improving stability. In an April 30 post on X (formerly Twitter), the game's developers announced the Switch Shader Compilation Mode, which aims to deliver smoother gameplay—particularly for players with limited RAM or those experiencing frame rate issues.

A detailed blog post on the official Marvel Rivals website explained what players can expect from this new option. The developers recognize that performance stutters and crashes, often caused by high memory demand during matches, have been a concern for the community.

The blog states: "To tackle memory overload, we're launching an experimental feature in Season 2 called the Switch Shader Compilation Mode. Starting with the Season 2 update, players can enable this setting via the PC launcher." This feature is particularly recommended for systems with 16GB of RAM or less.

When activated, the mode delivers the following improvements:

　●　Shader compilation occurs only when launching the game after a new update or graphics driver installation.
　●　Game memory usage is significantly lowered, minimizing severe FPS drops, frozen screens, and crashes due to insufficient memory.

However, the developers note several known issues when using this mode. For example, at the start of a match, certain textures might appear incorrectly for a few frames before normalizing. Occasional stutters may also occur initially but typically resolve as the match continues.

Marvel Rivals Season 2 Twitch Drops

Marvel Rivals kicks off Season 2 with a Twitch Drops campaign running from April 11 at 12:00 UTC to April 30 at 23:59 UTC. To claim rewards, players must link their Marvel Rivals account to their Twitch account and watch any Marvel Rivals stream with Drops enabled.

Rewards are based on total watch time and include the following:

Marvel Rivals Season 2 Launch Schedule

The latest Dev Vision showcase offered a sneak peek at Marvel Rivals Season 2: Hellfire Gala, and revealed plans to shorten seasonal cycles by adding one new hero each month.

Marvel Rivals will undergo server maintenance in preparation for Season 2, beginning on April 11 at 9:00 UTC and lasting approximately 2 to 3 hours.

This update introduces Emma Frost as a new playable hero, featuring both her X-Revolution and Blue Sapphire outfits. It also adds a new Domination map—Hellfire Gala: Krakoa—and a fresh battle pass with 10 all-new heroic costume sets.

Marvel Rivals is available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. For the latest news and updates on the game, check out our article below!