Marvel Rivals players are using this character wrong and I’m done with it already

When two new heroes dropped with Marvel Rivals’ Season 1 on Jan. 10, we all knew Competitive was about to become a chaotic mess. Players rushed to instalock them without even a Quick Play warm-up or a spin in AI mode. My history with Overwatch had me bracing for frustration.

But nothing could have prepared me for the tidal wave of players absolutely refusing to play a certain hero the way she’s meant to be played. Instead of embracing her role, they’re out here trying to rack up damage numbers that might be funny if they weren’t so… Well, embarrassing.

Invisible Woman is a healer. She’s not a DPS, not a Duelist, and definitely not built to be the primary damage dealer in a team fight. And yet, here we are, watching people charge in and ignoring her entire kit.

Let’s talk about abilities

Her kit screams support. Out of her nine abilities—including her Team-Up—five are healing-reéated. Her primary attack can be used to heal twice as many points as it can be used for damage. Her shield heals nearby allies while she uses it. Her ultimate does 165 points of healing per second while making her allies invisible to enemies. And that’s just three of the five such abilities she has.

A growing Reddit thread (with over 11,000 upvotes, mind you) is filled with Strategist mains like me begging DPS players to either leave her alone or learn how to play her properly. One user pleaded, “Please instalock her if you’re a Strat main. The duelist mains refuse to heal us.” Another hit the nail on the head in reply: “Which is funny given her DPS is really bad compared to the other supports. Probably the lowest after maybe Rocket.”

So why on Earth are players throwing themselves into enemy territory, spamming left-click for a pitiful 20 points of damage per hit when they could be saving their team with the same ability? It’s baffling. Sue Storm does the least damage of any Strategist character, with the exception of Rocket Racoon, who does four points less.

The bigger issue with Marvel Rivals

This all speaks to a larger problem: healing is a thankless role. We see it in games like Marvel Rivals and Overwatch all the time. Healers are blamed when the team wipes, when someone dies, or when a DPS player dives into enemy lines like they’re roleplaying as Leeroy Jenkins and somehow expecting to survive.

Marvel Rivals does try to blur traditional roles—Strategists aren’t strictly healers, Duelists aren’t only about DPS, and so on—but let’s be real: healing is a massive part of this hero’s utility. Ignoring that isn’t thinking outside the box, it’s just bad team play.

Listen, DPS mains, I get it. You like being flashy. You live for those highlight-worthy eliminations. But if you’re picking a character whose literal job is to heal the team and provide defensive cover. If I have to play alongside one more Invisible Woman who thinks they’re the next Winter Soldier and going off guns blazing, I’m going to lose it.

Sincerely,
A Strat main.