Marvel Rivals season 9.5 will finally address a growing issue with NetEase’s hero shooter
Marvel Rivals developer NetEase Games will overhaul how the hero shooter handles texture compression in the upcoming season 9.5 update, tackling the game's steadily growing file size without any loss of visual quality. The change matters because storage space remains a persistent concern for live-service games, which tend to balloon in size as content is added over time, so a significant reduction is likely to be welcomed by players on both console and PC.
Marvel Rivals currently takes up around 73GB on consoles and about 100GB on PC; season 9.5, due out on 7 August, will cut roughly 15GB from the console version and 40GB from the PC version, a near-50% reduction on PC. This brings both versions close to, or below, their file sizes at the game's 2024 launch, when it required about 40GB on consoles and 70GB on PC. The update, which also adds new hero The Hood and a fresh batch of skins, will require a larger-than-usual download since the game's assets must be fully repackaged, but NetEase says this one-off inconvenience will deliver lasting long-term savings.
In short
- Marvel Rivals season 9.5 overhauls texture compression to shrink file size.
- Console file drops by 15GB, PC by 40GB, out 7 August.
- Update also adds hero The Hood and new skins.
Explained simply
Marvel Rivals is a free-to-play team game in which players choose Marvel characters with different abilities and work together in matches. It is made by NetEase Games and receives regular updates with new characters, outfits and other content.
As a live-service game, Marvel Rivals has grown in size as new content has been added. Texture compression is a way of storing the visual files used for characters and environments more efficiently; changes to it can reduce the space a game takes up while keeping its appearance. Storage matters to players on consoles and PCs, where games compete for limited drive space.
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