Doctor Octopus Concept by Marvel Rivals Player Wins Fan Approval

NetEase Games has committed to introducing at least one new Marvel Rivals hero every half-season, yet this hasn't deterred one imaginative player from crafting his own vision of a playable Doctor Octopus.

Reddit user WickedCube recently captivated the r/MarvelRivals community with a 30-second video showcasing what appears to be early gameplay footage from NetEase's popular hero shooter. At first glance, the clip seems to feature a pre-Hulk Bruce Banner suspended in midair within a testing room. However, keen Marvel enthusiasts will quickly recognize this eight-armed rendition of the gamma-infused doctor as an unrefined, Marvel Rivals-inspired version of the iconic Spider-Man adversary, Doctor Octopus.

We need more vanguards, so i made one (Doctor Octopus)
byu/Wickedcube inmarvelrivals

.reddit-embed-wrapper iframe { margin-left: 0 !important; }Though the animation is somewhat stiff and amusing, the resemblance to Doctor Octopus is unmistakable. A closer look reveals a well-considered concept of how Doc Ock might appear and maneuver in Marvel Rivals should NetEase decide to include Otto Octavius. With his tentacles capable of magnetizing him to navigate around obstacles, WickedCube's creation effectively allows the character to 'fly' as long as he remains near a stable structure—a crucial aspect in a game with destructible environments. This rough concept of Doc Ock even features named abilities such as Havoc Claw for melee attacks and a ranged ability called Wrecking Grip. With over 16,000 upvotes at the time of writing, the concept is not only impressive and playable but also entirely the work of one individual.

“Doc Ock has always been one of the coolest villains in Spider-Man, and his tentacles pose a unique challenge to implement,” WickedCube shared, explaining his inspiration. “To my knowledge, they haven't been fully implemented with playable 3D movement in a game before.”

Motivated by his inability to play during a recent PSN outage, WickedCube decided to take matters into his own hands. “It all started when PSN was down and I couldn’t play Marvel Rivals,” he said. “While browsing Twitter, I came across some really cool Doc Ock fan art. I thought, ‘Since I can't play right now, why not make it myself?’”

Doctor Octopus in the style of Marvel Rivals
.#MarvelRivals #MarvelRivalsfanart pic.twitter.com/d3XHXMZsCL

— CoryHarris.jpg (@LordDepis) January 26, 2025

The response to WickedCube's creation has been overwhelmingly positive, with thousands of players expressing their appreciation and some even urging NetEase to consider adding Doctor Octopus to the game. WickedCube finds the reception “incredibly rewarding” and would be thrilled if NetEase adopted some of his ideas for an official Doc Ock character. While he doesn't plan to refine the design further, he aims to release a playable version in the near future.

“Seeing the response on Reddit has inspired me to share this and future concepts through a YouTube tutorial series,” WickedCube added. “I also plan to open-source the code on GitHub and make the playable versions available on Itch.”

NetEase is set to expand Marvel Rivals with two new official characters this Friday: the Human Torch and The Thing, following their Fantastic Four teammates, Mister Fantastic and the Invisible Woman, who were introduced last month. This robust start sets a high bar among competitors, yet comic book fans continue to see limitless potential in Marvel's extensive universe of heroes and villains.

WickedCube's project emerged from the community's call for more Vanguard, or tank-like characters, in the game. Although no solid rumors suggest Otto's inclusion anytime soon, WickedCube is already brainstorming additional heroes, with Nightcrawler and Professor Xavier from the X-Men on his list.

“The character roster at launch is substantial enough to keep the game engaging for a long time, and the pace at which they’ve promised to release new characters is astounding,” he remarked. “The designers clearly know how to craft a fun game, which, in my view, is the most challenging aspect to perfect.”

Marvel Rivals is gearing up for its Season 1 mid-season update on February 21, which will introduce the aforementioned characters, balance adjustments, gameplay tweaks, and more. While we await the update, you can catch up on recent layoffs affecting NetEase's U.S. team in Seattle and understand why the studio dismisses rumors about planted hero leaks.