Marvel Rivals is set to launch its season 9.5 update on Friday, 7 August, adding a new playable hero, The Hood, alongside a fresh batch of summer-themed cosmetics. Developer NetEase has previewed the content ahead of release as the game continues its "sweaty summer" run of updates, aiming to keep the free-to-play hero shooter's community engaged with new characters and seasonal customisation options.

The Hood, real name Parker Robbins, joins as a Vanguard hero who can switch between human and demon forms, wielding dual pistols that become assault rifles when transformed, with his cloak also able to shield allies; his ultimate turns him into a "Gun Demon" capable of piercing shields and enemies while healing teammates. He is voiced by WWE wrestler Damian Priest. The update will also add new Swimsuit Special skins for characters including Star-Lord, Winter Soldier, Scarlet Witch, Black Cat, Storm and Magik, alongside a major texture compression overhaul that will cut the game's file size by around 40GB on PC and 15GB on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, though the update download itself will be larger than usual. Full hero balance changes were still to be announced at the time of writing.