When Season 1 kicked off last Friday, gamers buzzing on the Marvel Rivals Discord quickly noticed a hitch—their beloved mods were no longer functioning. This was due to a new system the game implemented called asset hash checking, which scans the game’s files and blocks anything altered. Any modifications that don’t get a nod from this system are effectively locked out.
MerryJoyKey, the developer behind the popular Marvel Rivals mod manager on NexusMods, shared their thoughts, commenting that while it’s not entirely impossible to find a way around this, it’s not highly likely either. “I’ll keep everyone posted here if and when a workaround comes up,” they added. For now, they’ve paused any updates to the mod awaiting a feasible solution.
NetEase chose to keep this change under wraps, with no mention in the Season 1 patch notes. It wasn’t until Wednesday that the studio made any statements regarding mods, cautioning through Polygon that altering game files might result in bans. But so far, nobody seems to have faced penalties. The game’s terms of use have always stated mods could lead to bans, yet that didn’t deter players. The modding community has been active, with thousands sharing and downloading mods on NexusMods recently, rivaling popular mod-heavy titles like Skyrim and Cyberpunk 2077. However, mods with custom skins of former U.S. presidents like Donald Trump, Joe Biden, and Barack Obama were removed, aligning with the site’s policy against mods involving U.S. sociopolitical themes.
It’s not unusual for online competitive games to crack down on mods due to potential fairness issues. Some mods can tweak the gameplay to give an unfair edge, such as altering map geometry. While mods in Marvel Rivals were generally harmless, things could have spiraled over time.
With these changes, players will have to revert to the traditional method of styling their heroes, saving up in-game currency to purchase skins. The days of donning Iron Man as Vegeta or Iron Fist as Goku are, quite unfortunately, behind us.
