Marvel Rivals Apologizes for Banning Non-Cheaters

Marvel Rivals Developer, NetEase, Issues Apology for Wrongful Bans

NetEase, the developer behind Marvel Rivals, recently issued a public apology for mistakenly banning a significant number of innocent players. The incident occurred during a crackdown on cheaters, where several non-Windows users were incorrectly flagged.

Mac, Linux, and Steam Deck Users Affected

The unintentional mass ban primarily impacted players utilizing compatibility layers like those found on macOS, Linux systems, and the Steam Deck. On January 3rd, a community manager on the official Discord server confirmed the error, stating that players using compatibility software were wrongly identified as cheaters. NetEase has since reversed the bans and apologized for the inconvenience. They encouraged players to report actual cheating behavior and offered an appeal process for those wrongly banned.

The Steam Deck's Proton compatibility layer has a history of triggering anti-cheat systems, potentially contributing to this issue.

Calls for Universal Character Bans

Separately, the Marvel Rivals community is advocating for a change to the game's character ban system. Currently, character bans—a feature allowing players to remove specific characters from selection—are only available in Diamond rank and above.

Players on the game's subreddit express frustration, arguing that lower-ranked players should also have access to this mechanic. They believe it would improve gameplay balance, encourage strategic diversity, and provide a more level playing field. NetEase has yet to publicly respond to these concerns.