Marvel Rivals vs Apex Legends: Which free-to-play shooter takes the crown?

Marvel Rivals vs Apex Legends isn’t a comparison that many players expect. But since both games are free-to-play shooters, there are plenty of variables we can use to judge them by. 

With the former launching in December 2024 and the latter in 2019, you could argue that Apex Legends has an unfair advantage in how long it’s been out for. However, developer NetEase Games isn’t new to the free-to-play space, with games like VALORANT Mobile and Destiny: Rising also available. With an IP like Marvel Rivals, there are plenty of conclusions we can draw now. So with this in mind, we’re comparing Marvel Rivals and Apex Legends to see which title wins out over the other.

Marvel Rivals leans into other popular titles like Overwatch and, to a point, League of Legends. Due to how characters are offered here, such as Hulk, Magneto, Storm, and more,  there are currently 43 heroes to choose from, split into Duelists, Strategists, and Vanguards. These vary the gameplay, helping players decide how to approach each match with specific heroes. As they each feature unique abilities, this can help maintain the pace, especially with match-driven objectives. Thanks to the number of heroes and respective abilities, there’s plenty of depth here, with more heroes reportedly coming soon. The launch of Season 5.5 saw Rogue join the roster shortly after Gambit in Season 5. Alongside these new heroes are team-up changes and new maps, and modes.

Apex Legends is a free-to-play shooter that offers something different in the battle royale genre. You get placed into squads of two or three, with up to 30 squads landing on an island; the last man standing wins. Loot found scattered across the map can include armour, weapons, gear, and more. You can send pings via your controller to teammates to figure out strategies and more to try and win the match. Like Fortnite, a “safe zone” will form around the map, shrinking as the match progresses. If you’re outside of the zone, you’ll take damage. Apex Legends is currently in its 25th season, Prodigy, which brings more refinements to gun damage, matchmaking improvements, and more. For a title that came out in 2019, there’s still plenty here to differentiate it from other shooters in the space.

Marvel Rivals score: 8
Apex Legends score: 8

Marvel Rivals offers just two game modes: Quick Match and Competitive. Within these, Convergence sets players in a 6v6 match where you must protect or destroy a vehicle as it moves past several checkpoints. There’s a King-of-the-Hill style mode called Domination, and Convoy, where Attackers and Defenders are based around a payload. Arcade mode has two modes, called Conquest and Doom Match, which are essentially Team-Deathmatch and free-for-all modes. There are clear rules for each mode, which can be a lot of fun in the many maps that players can go to. Every one of these modes offers structure, but it’s how you use the different types of heroes currently offered that you play as.

Apex Legends also has two game modes: Core and Freestyle. These both feature their own modes, with Core focusing on competitive matches with Ranked and Unranked modes, while Freestyle is more about having fun with friends, rather than leveling up. In Freestyle, there are three modes: Wildcard features quicker matches that last around 15 minutes with up to 30 players, Mixtape is a playlist of fan-favourite modes, and limited-time modes that are unique to the game. Each of these modes offers plenty of varied situations for players to suit whatever mood they’re in, with Respawn focusing on how it can cater to these needs.

Marvel Rivals score: 7
Apex Legends score: 8

Marvel Rivals unsurprisingly relies on its licensed Marvel characters. At the time of writing, there are 43 characters to choose from, including Deadpool, Venom, Magneto, and more, each with their own abilities and voices, which means the replayability is huge here. If you pick a different character in each match, you’ll see how these heroes work throughout the game modes, thanks to their powers and how they work in teams. Marvel Rivals’ ability to create some dream team-ups will appeal to many, but Apex Legends offers characters with no previous baggage. Ultimately, it makes you decide on your favourite heroes to play as, as well as those that may come up in future seasons.

In Apex Legends’ case, there are 27 characters, called Legends, to choose from, which are split into five classes: Assault, Controller, Recon, Skirmisher, and Support. These help you decide what role you plan to take before a match starts. It’s a great way to learn how each character works in these set classes, bolstering the replayability in a way that Marvel Rivals doesn’t. Each Legend also has unique abilities, from double jump to creating portals to faster sprinting. These only help you discover which Legend suits you best, and only add to the variety and replayability even more.

Marvel Rivals score: 9
Apex Legends score: 9

Developer NetEase Games has wasted no time in getting Marvel Rivals ready for the esports industry since launching the title in December 2024. Marvel Rivals Ignite began on May 1, with a huge $2 million prize pool ready to be distributed to successful players. There has already been a considerable number of viewers keeping track of the tournament since its premiere, with the game’s YouTube channel amassing over 700,000 subscribers, all wanting to keep track of Ignite. Despite the impressive figures, it’s too early to say whether Marvel Rivals will equal or surpass Apex Legends’ presence in the esports scene. But with huge viewership already there for the game’s first official tournament, it’s looking promising.

Since its 2019 release, Apex Legends has remained one of the biggest games in esports, thanks to its unique take on the battle royale genre. The Apex Legends Global Series (ALGS) is the main tournament for the game, with over 1.5 million viewers in 2024 and a $1 million prize pool up for grabs throughout the event. Indeed, the scene took a hit in June 2025 when prolific team Complexity announced its exit from Apex Legends’s esports scene, but EA and Respawn are in the throes of ALGS 2025, with some major changes to the tournament. This includes some regions getting consolidated, Legends getting removed from the pool for the remainder of the series, and much more. Ultimately, Apex Legends’ esports scene is still going strong, with a worldwide appeal that Marvel Rivals has yet to capture.

Marvel Rivals score: 7
Apex Legends score: 9

Granted, it can be a challenge to compare two free-to-play shooters that can differ massively. Marvel Rivals is a team-based PVP shooter with mission objectives, while Apex Legends is a battle-royale shooter that’s more reminiscent of Fortnite and Call of Duty. However, both games offer characters with unique abilities and two main game modes that branch into different, unique tangents.

It’s a hard call to make, but for now, Apex Legends wins this battle due to the longevity it’s benefited from and the huge esports scene it has. If you want to play something that’s team-based with friends, using characters that you may have grown up with, go for Marvel Rivals. But if you want something that differs from Fortnite and VALORANT, Apex Legends can also scratch that itch differently. For now, though, Respawn’s title reigns supreme, but with Marvel Rivals seemingly firing on all cylinders since its 2024 launch, this battle could be far closer if we revisit it in a year’s time.