Marvel Rivals Season 5.5 brings Rogue as a new Vanguard hero, new team-up abilities, the Jeffland holiday event, and a full set of Winter Celebration skins.
Marvel Rivals Season 5 has already been a busy one, with the big Times Square hub, anniversary content, and new modes giving players plenty to do. The game is deep into its first year, and it feels like NetEase is still pushing hard on new heroes, events, and maps.
Now Season 5.5 is just around the corner. The mid-season update lands on Friday, December 12, and it brings Rogue to the roster as a new Vanguard hero. On top of that, we are getting updated team-up abilities, the return of Jeff’s Winter Splash Festival in a new Jeffland map, and a fresh wave of holiday skins.
NetEase has released a new Dev Vision video that walks through what is coming in Season 5.5. In this article, we have put together early patch notes for everything the developers have shown so far.
Marvel Rivals Season 5.5 Early Patch Notes
Below, you can check out all the changes that have been revealed so far for season 5.5
Full patch notes for the Season 5.5 update are now live. Check them out here.
Rogue joins as a Vanguard hero
Rogue arrives in Season 5.5 as a melee Vanguard who wants to be in the middle of the fight, charging into enemy lines and creating space for her team.
From the Dev Vision breakdown, Rogue can:
- Jump onto an enemy hero and take them down, gaining a buff based on that hero’s role
- Copy signature abilities from certain characters, including:
- Doctor Strange’s Shield of the Seraphim
- Loki’s Regeneration Domain
- Use an Ultimate that:
- Drains Ultimate Ability Energy from nearby enemies over time
- Grants her extra buffs based on enemy roles while it is active
She looks built to punish stacked enemy teams and shut down big ult combos by draining that energy before it ever gets used. Check out the character trailer for Rogue below.
New team-up abilities
Season 5.5 makes some clear changes to existing team-ups. The long-running Mental Projection link between Emma Frost and Psylocke is being removed once the update goes live on December 12. Both heroes are getting new pairings instead.
Emma Frost and Luna Snow: Chilling Assault
Emma now calls on Luna Snow’s power in a new team-up called Chilling Assault. This one is all about control and area denial:
- Creates a diamond ice wall that blocks both movement and projectiles
- Sends out cold air that damages and slows enemies caught in the area
Psylocke and Cloak & Dagger: Sword of Duality
Psylocke’s new team-up, Sword of Duality, taps into Cloak and Dagger’s shared light and dark energy. She has two modes to pick from:
- Light option
- Throws a light shuriken
- Damages enemies and heals Psylocke and allies
- Dark option
- Fires a flurry of dark darts that deal minor damage
- Sends Psylocke into a Phased state for follow-up plays
Rogue and Gambit: Explosive Entanglement
Rogue is also getting in on team-ups right away. She joins Gambit in Explosive Entanglement, where she taps into his kinetic energy:
- For a short time, all of Rogue’s attacks gain:
- Area damage around targets
- Healing, giving her extra sustain while she is brawling up close
Jeff’s Winter Splash Festival returns in Jeffland
The holiday mode is coming back, but with some upgrades. Jeff’s Winter Splash Festival returns on Thursday, December 18, this time set in a new event map called Jeffland.
During the event, players can:
- Pick one of three unique Jeff builds
- Decorate Jeffland with different props and items
- Unlock new color variants (chromas) for the Cuddly Fuzzlefin Jeff costume
Winter Celebration skins for multiple heroes
NetEase also showed a bunch of new holiday looks in the Dev Vision, all grouped under the Winter Celebration lineup. Here is what we saw:
- Daredevil: Classic Christmas sweater look based on Daredevil (2011) #7
- Cloak & Dagger: Ice Dancer costume with a figure skating style
- Peni Parker: Ice Golem costume, a new original Winter Holiday skin
- Squirrel Girl: New festive outfit, themed around the holidays
- Star-Lord: Nutcracker costume inspired by the classic toy soldier style
- Winter Soldier: Original festive skin, with more details on timing coming soon
Mystery Burger hits Times Square
Last, there is a small but fun tease for the Times Square social hub. Starting December 18, you will be able to grab a “mystery burger” from Pym’s Test Kitchen. The devs only say that if you eat it, you might be surprised by the result, so we will have to see what that actually means in game.
That is everything NetEase has shown so far for Marvel Rivals Season 5.5. What do you think of Rogue’s kit, the new team-ups, Jeffland, and all these holiday skins? Tell us your thoughts in the comments.
