Marvel Rivals, the Overwatch-like starring Spider-Man, Scarlet Witch, and other Marvel superheroes, came under fire over the weekend during its ongoing closed alpha playtest. After reading through developer NetEase’s contract for access to the playtest, streamers noticed a section that precludes them from speaking negatively about the game. The blowback was loud enough that NetEase had to put out a statement.
Most of the noise started when streamer Brandon “A_Seagull” Larned tweeted an excerpt from the contract with the non-disparagement clause. If signed, the user may not “make any public statements or engage in discussions that are detrimental to the reputation” of Marvel Rivals. This includes making “disparaging or satirical comments” about any of the game’s features, characters, or music. The contract also specifically prohibits making “malicious comparisons” to competitors or providing “subjective negative reviews” [note: all reviews are subjective].
Some creators seemed to have overlooked (or not read) this part of the contract, and as Larned’s post circulated, there were reports that members of the Marvel Rivals creator program were being removed. Streamer Miller Ross tweeted about The Aftershow Podcast co-hosts being banned from the creator program for critiquing Marvel Rivals (one of whom says they hadn’t signed the playtest contract), asking for them to be reinstated, as they had their issues but largely enjoyed the game.
As more people spoke out against this part of the contract, NetEase sent an apologetic email to creators saying it was aware of “inappropriate and misleading terms” in the document, and said its “stand” on the matter was “open for both suggestions and criticisms to improve [its] game,” and that it would be revising the “miscommunication terms” of the contract. Shortly after, one of the co-hosts from The Aftershow Podcast was unbanned from the creator program. This culminated in a public statement on Marvel Rivals’ official social channels on May 13, apologizing for the “confusion, suspicion, and frustration” caused by the “excessively restrictive terms” from the original contract and said it is revising the agreement. The full statement reads as follows:
Dear Marvel Rivals players,
Today is the third day of the Closed Alpha Test, and we are truly grateful for all the love and support from the community.
We would like to take this opportunity to address the concerns we’ve seen regarding the agreement terms of Content Creator Programs and, above all, we would like to apologize for any unpleasant experiences or doubts caused by the miscommunication of these terms.
The Content Creator Program is a small-scale project that aims to aid in the production of incredible content by supporting Creators through giving them more resources. We actively encourage Creators to share their honest thoughts, suggestions, and criticisms as they play. All feedback, positive and negative, ultimately helps us craft the best experience for ourselves and the players.
We sincerely apologize for the confusion, suspicion, and frustration caused by these excessively restrictive terms and thank you for sharing with us. We cherish and appreciate every suggestion given by our players and always respect your feedback. We are currently working with Creators who have expressed these concerns and are revising the current version to be less restrictive and more Creator-friendly. Thank you for bearing with us while we make these adjustments.
We hope you are enjoying the game so far and we are always open to hearing your sincere thoughts and ideas on how we can improve the game.
Marvel Rivals Team
NetEase announced Marvel Rivals back in March. It’s very evocative of Overwatch’s team-based gameplay, and includes characters from Avengers staples like Iron Man and The Hulk to X-Men and Guardians of the Galaxy supes. The game will have 18 heroes at launch, with plans to add more through seasonal updates.
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