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What’s Free on the Epic Games Store This Week?

This week we’ve got River City Girls, Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms and more. Check out how you can get these games and all their rewards at the Epic Games Store.

Are you eager to play a game but struggling to decide on one? Or perhaps you’re reluctant to spend money on a game that might not meet your expectations. Making the right decision is crucial, particularly with rising gaming costs and 2025 looking unpredictable for the gaming industry. Look no further than the Epic Games Store if you’re after something that makes decision-making easier. Each week, you can download a free game (often two or three, if you’re lucky) and keep it forever—without spending a penny. This is the best way to discover exciting new titles without financial risk.

Fortnite is a major influence in pop culture, and it’s also a video game that helped propel Epic Games into the limelight. Following the game’s success, Epic Games launched its own storefront in 2019, offering various games — from action titles to indie favorites — to attract gamers. It quickly became a direct competitor for Valve’s own gaming store, Steam, especially with its offering of free games to play each week.

Sorry console gamers, but the Epic Games Store is exclusively available on PC. This means you cannot access its free games on systems like the PS5 or Xbox. However, if you have a PC or laptop, now’s the time to dive into the Epic Games Store and take full advantage of its free discounts and deals. Creating an Epic Games account is completely free, and you’ll gain numerous rewards. Don’t miss out.

What is the new free game on the Epic Games Store this week? (April 10 to April 17)

Arcadegeddon

It’s time to head into the future with IIIFonic’s Arcadegeddon, a cooperative rogue-lite shooter multiplayer. It is a third-person POV, and players will go up against a virus injected into the arcade they are part of. To level up and progress, they’ll have to explore multiple biomes, take part in mini-games, search for hidden chests and defeat enemies and bosses.

The game came out in 2023, so its player base isn’t as active as one might expect — so be sure you’ll be able to enjoy the game with friends before you download it. Even so, Arcadegeddon has been praised for its «tight level design» as well as its satisfying gunplay. If you like a challenge, you’ll probably want to take advantage of this shooter.

Players can redeem 5,000 ARC coins, which can be used to purchase items and weapons in-game. So don’t miss out on this limited-time offer.

Arcadegeddon’s offer of 5,000 ARC coins is available for free via the Epic Games Store. Released in 2023, most gamers who enjoyed it liked its diverse characters and found gameplay relaxing. It has a 4.5 out of 5 rating.

Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms: Astarion’s Champions of Renown Pack

Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms is a strategy management game that dares to ask: What if your favorite Dungeons and Dragons characters united and embarked on a grand adventure together? Wouldn’t that be the coolest thing ever? If you think so, then this is the game for you.

If you’ve been a fan of Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms, you’ll already know that Baldur’s Gate 3’s most popular character Astarion is a huge reason to jump into the game. With Astarion’s Champions of Renown Pack, players will receive over $100 worth of rewards for free. You’ll need to hurry, though, because this offer ends on April 17.

The rewards of the renown pack are the following:

  • Unlocks for the following Champions: Artemis (Seat 3), Karlach (Seat 4), Kalix (Seat 5), Astarion (Seat 10) and the Dark Urge (Seat 11)
  • Exclusive Skin: Tuxedo Kalix
  • Exclusive Familiar: Rumble the Angry Flumph
  • Artemis Chests: 32 Platinum Artemis Chests with 2 shiny equipment cards guaranteed.
  • Karlach Chests: 32 Platinum Karlach chests with 2 shiny equipment cards guaranteed.
  • Kalix Chests: 32 Platinum Kalix chests with 2 shiny equipment cards guaranteed.
  • Astarion Chests: 32 Platinum Astarion chests with 2 shiny equipment cards guaranteed.
  • The Dark Urge Chests: 32 Platinum The Dark Urge chests with 2 shiny equipment cards guaranteed.
  • Two Week-Long Buff Potions: 1 potion of the Gold Hunter and 1 potion of the Gem Hunter.

Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms: Astarion’s Champions of Renown Pack is free via the Epic Games Store. Idle Champions is a free-to-play game, with many gamers praising the game for its selection of iconic characters from the Forgotten Realms and how easy it is to jump into a game without worrying too much about controls.

River City Girls

You wake up one morning only to discover your and your best friend’s boyfriends have been kidnapped. What is a girlie to do? Find out who did it and beat them within an inch of their life, duh.

River City Girls can be best described as a chaotic, action-adventure beat-em up with glorious pixel-art aesthetic and graphics that will leave you wanting more. As the tough-as-nails heroines Misako and Kyoko, players who enjoy using an arsenal of weapons, items and wise-cracking dialogue to put the smackdown on their enemies will love the game’s zany energy.

Better yet, you won’t have to embark on this challenge alone (though you can, if you want to). With 2-player co-op, you and your friend can put the hurt on the bad guys who took your boyfriends while also enjoying the motion-comic story panels and anime cutscenes. If you love anime, you may even recognize some cameo characters featured in-game. And if not characters, recognizable voice actors such as Cristina ‘Vee’ Valenzuela, known for multiple roles in both anime and video games, are sure to entice you.

It isn’t just fights, however. River City Girls also features six large city regions to explore and participate in side quests. Some may even change the ending you get… depending on the choices you make.

Usually $30, River City Girls is now available for free via the Epic Games Store. River City Girls is well-liked, with 79% of critics recommending it, and it boasts a score of Strong on OpenCritic. Most gamers who enjoyed the game liked its appealing aesthetic and diverse characters.

What will be free on the Epic Games Store next week? (April 17 to April 24)

Firestone Online Idle RPG Epic Games Store Offer

If you’re someone who enjoys the aesthetics of fantasy RPGs but doesn’t have time to play them, then you’ll be intrigued by Firestone Online Idle RPG. Alternatively, if you’re someone who prefers the social aspect of multiplayer RPGs, you should also consider jumping in on this game before its offer next week.

While you might be sitting idle, your heroes never are. Even if you don’t have your eyes on the game, your characters will hack, slash and dice their way through waves of enemies. Of course, if you’d like to speed things up, you can treat the game as a clicker, giving you control of the ferocity of battle alongside other players.

With Firestone Online Idle RPG’s Epic Games Store offer, players will get the chance to claim special rewards and an exclusive skin — altogether valued at $100 altogether.

The offer contains the following rewards:

  • Exclusive skin for the hero, Boris
  • 2 Avatars for your Character Profile
  • 10 Common Chests, each containing at least 1 piece of gear for Heroes
  • 5 Uncommon Chests containing at least 1 Uncommon gear
  • 10 Wooden Chests with at least 1 Heroes Jewels
  • 5 Iron Chests with at least 1 Uncommon Jewel
  • 360 Strange Dust to help train your Guardians or conduct experiments
  • 50 Scrolls to enhance your stats in battle
  • 35 Game Tokens to test your mettle at the Tavern
  • 5 Prestige Tokens
  • 200 Gems

To get this offer, log onto the game through the Epic Games store — it doesn’t matter if you’re a new or existing player. However, new players must reach stage 15 before obtaining the rewards.

Firestone Online Idle RPG Epic Games Store Offer will be available via the Epic Games Store. Firestone Online Idle RPG is a free-to-play game, with a review score of 3.8 out of 5. Many players enjoy the game’s playful visuals and easy controls.

Previous free games on the Epic Games Store

Unsure whether your favorite game has been selected as part of Epic’s free game of the week or curious about what deals you’ve missed? We’ve listed a selection of games from previous weeks.

Epic Games Store free games in 2025

  • Firestone Online Idle RPG (April 17 to April 24)
  • River City Girls (April 10 to April 17)
  • Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms (April 10 to April 17)
  • Arcadgeddon (April 10 to April 17)
  • Cat Quest II (April 3 to April 10)
  • Cat Quest (March 27 to April 3)
  • Neko Ghost, Jump (March 27 to April 3)
  • Jurassic World Evolution 2 (March 20 to 27)
  • Mortal Shell (March 13 to 20)
  • World of Warships: Anniversary Party Favor DLC (March 13 to 20)
  • Them’s Fighting Herds (March 6 to 13)
  • Mages of Mystralia (Feb. 27 to March 6)
  • World War Z Aftermath (Feb. 20 to 27)
  • Garden Story (Feb. 20 to 27)
  • F1 Manager 2024 (Feb. 13 to 20)
  • Humankind (Feb. 6 to 13)
  • Beyond Blue (Feb. 6 to 13)
  • Undying (Jan. 30 to Feb. 6)
  • Behind the Frame: The Finest Scenery (Jan. 23 to 30)
  • Escape Academy (Jan. 16 to 23)
  • Turmoil (Jan. 9 to 16)
  • Hell Let Loose (Jan. 2 to 9)
  • Kingdom Come Deliverance (Jan. 1)

Epic Games Store free games in 2024

  • Sifu (Dec. 31)
  • [Redacted] (Dec. 30 to 31)
  • Orcs Must Die 3 (Dec. 29 to 30)
  • Kill Knight (Dec. 28 to 29)
  • Hot Wheels Unleashed (Dec. 27 to 28)
  • Ghostrunner 2 (Dec. 26 to 27)
  • Control (Dec. 25 to 26)
  • Dredge (Dec. 24 to 25)
  • Darker and Darker: Legendary Status (Dec. 23 to 24)
  • Wizard of Legend (Dec. 22 to 23)
  • TerraTech (Dec. 21 to 22)
  • Astrea: Six Sided Oracles (Dec. 20 to 21)
  • Vampire Survivors (Dec. 19 to 20)
  • The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria (Dec. 12 to 19)
  • Bus Simulator 21 Next Stop, Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga (Dec. 5 to 12)
  • Brotato (Nov. 28 to Dec. 5)
  • Beholder (Nov. 21 to 28)
  • Castlevania Anniversary Collection; Snakebird Complete (Nov. 14 to 21)
  • Apex Legends Ash Unlock Bundle; Deceive Inc (Nov. 7 to 14)
  • Witch It; Ghostwire: Tokyo (Oct. 31 to Nov. 7)
  • Moving Out (Oct. 24 to 31)
  • Kardboard Kings; Invincible Presents: Atom Eve (Oct. 17 to 24)
  • Empyrion: Galactic Survival; Outliver: Tribulations (Oct. 10 to 17)
  • Bear and Breakfast (Oct. 3 to 10)
  • The Spirit and The Mouse (Sept. 26 to Oct. 3)
  • TOEM; The Last Stand: Aftermath (Sept. 19 to 26)
  • Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland; Super Crazy Rhythm Castle (Sept. 12 to 19)
  • Football Manager 2024; Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts (Sept. 5 to 12)
  • Wild Card Football; Fallout: Classic Collection (Aug. 29 to Sept. 5)
  • Gigantic: Rampage Edition; The Callisto Protocol (Aug. 22 to 29)
  • Death’s Gambit: Afterlife (Aug. 15 to 22)
  • Cygni: All Guns Blazing; DNF Duel (Aug. 8 to 15)
  • Lumbearjack (Aug. 1 to 8)
  • F.I.S.T.: Forged in Shadow Torch; Olympics Go! Paris 2024 Exclusive Outfits Pack (July 25 to Aug. 1)
  • Maid of Sker; Arcade Paradise (July 18 to 25)
  • Floppy Knights (July 11 to 18)
  • The Falconeer (July 4 to 11)
  • Sunless Skies: Sovereign Edition (June 27 to July 4)
  • Rumble Club Free Game of the Week Bonus; Freshly Frosted (June 20 to 27)
  • Redout 2; Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms (June 13 to 20)
  • Marvel’s Midnight Suns (June 6 to 13)
  • Chivalry 2 (May 30 to June 6)
  • Farming Simulator 22 (May 23 to 30)
  • Dragon Age: Inquisition – Game of the Year Edition (May 16 to 23)
  • Firestone Free Offer; Circus Electrique (May 9 to 16)
  • Orcs Must Die! 3, Cat Quest II (May 2 to 9)
  • Lisa: Definitive Edition, Industria (April 25 to May. 2)
  • Town of Salem 2; The Big Con (April 18 to 25)
  • Ghostrunner (April 11 to 18)
  • Thief; The Outer Worlds: Spacer’s Choice Edition (April 4 to 11)
  • Islets (March 28 to April 4)
  • Invincible Presents: Atom Eve; Call of the Wild: The Angler (March 21 to 28)
  • The Bridge; Deus Ex: Mankind Divided (March 14 to 21)
  • Astro Duel 2 (March 7 to 14)
  • Aerial_Knight’s Never Yield (Feb. 29 to March 7)
  • Super Meat Boy Forever (Feb. 22 to 29)
  • Dakar Desert Rally (Feb. 15 to 22)
  • Lost Castle; Doki Doki Literature Club Plus (Feb. 8 to 15)
  • Doors: Paradox (Feb. 1 to 8)
  • Infinifactory (Jan. 25 to Feb. 1)
  • Love (Jan. 18 to 25)
  • Sail Forth (Jan. 11 to 18)
  • Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy (Jan. 4 to 11)
  • A Plague Tale: Innocence (Jan. 3 to 4)
  • 20 Minutes Till Dawn (Jan. 2 to 3)
  • Escape Academy (Jan. 1 to 2)

Epic Games Store free games of 2023

  • Ghostrunner (Dec. 31, 2023 to Jan. 1, 2024)
  • Saints Row (Dec. 30 to 31)
  • Snakebird Complete (Dec. 29 to 30)
  • Cat Quest (Dec. 28 to 29)
  • Cursed to Golf (Dec. 27 to 28)
  • Human Resource Machine (Dec. 26 to 27)
  • The Outer Worlds: Spacer’s Choice Edition (Dec. 25 to 26)
  • Ghostwire: Tokyo (Dec. 24 to 25)
  • Fallout 3: Game of the Year Edition (Dec. 23 to 24)
  • Art of Rally (Dec. 22 to 23)
  • Melvor Idle (Dec. 21 to 22)
  • DNF Duel (Dec. 20 to 21)
  • Destiny 2: Legacy Collection (Dec. 13 to 20)
  • Predecessor, Gigabash (Dec. 7 to 13)
  • Mighty Fight Federation; Jitsu Squad (Nov. 30 to Dec. 7)
  • Deliver Us Mars (Nov. 23 to 30)
  • Surviving the Aftermath, Earthlock (Nov. 16 to 23)
  • Golden Light (Nov. 9 to 16)
  • Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion (Nov. 2 to 9)
  • The Evil Within 2; Tandem: A Tale of Shadows (Oct. 26 to Nov. 2)
  • The Evil Within; Eternal Threads (Oct. 19 to 26)
  • Q.U.B.E. Ultimate Bundle; Blazing Sails (Oct. 12 to 19)
  • Godlike Burger (Oct. 5 to 12)
  • Soulstice; Model Builder (Sept. 28 to Oct. 5)
  • The Forest Quartet; Out of Line (Sept. 21 to 28)
  • 911 Operator (Sept. 14 to 21)
  • Spelldrifter (Sept. 7 to 14)
  • Cave Story Plus (Aug. 31 to Sept. 7)
  • Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak (Aug. 24 to 31)
  • Dodo Peak; Black Book (Aug. 17 to 24)
  • Orwell: Keeping an Eye on You; Europa Universalis IV (Aug. 10 to 17)
  • Loop Hero, Bloons TD 6 (Aug. 3 to 10)
  • Severed Steel; Homeworld Remastered Collection (July 27 to Aug. 3)
  • The Elder Scrolls Online; Murder by Numbers (July 20 to 27)
  • Train Valley 2 (July 13 to 20)
  • Grime (July 6 to 13)
  • The Dungeon of Naheulbeuk: The Amulet of Chaos (June 29 to July 6)
  • The Hunter: Call of the Wild; Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms (June 22 to 29)
  • Guacamelee 2; Guacamelee Super Turbo Championship Edition (June 15 to 22)
  • Payday 2 (June 8 to 15)
  • Midnight Ghost Hunt (June 1 to 8)
  • Fallout: New Vegas Ultimate Edition (May 25 to June. 1)
  • Death Stranding (May 18 to 25)
  • The Sims 4 The Daring Lifestyle Bundle (May 11 to 18)
  • Kao the Kangaroo; Horizon Chase Turbo, Against All Odds (May 4 to 11)
  • Poker Club; Breathedge (April 27 to May 4)
  • Never Alone (Kisima Ingitchuna); Beyond Blue (April 20-27)
  • Second Extinction; Mordhau (April 13 to 20)
  • Shapez; Dying Light: The Following — Enhanced Edition (April 6 to 13)
  • Tunche; The Silent Age (March 30 to April 6)
  • World of Warships Starter Pack: Ishizuchi; Chess Ultra (March 23 to 30)
  • Warhammer 40,000: Gladius — Relics of War (March 16 to 23)
  • Call of the Sea (March 9 to 16)
  • Rise of Industry (March 2 to 9)
  • Duskers (Feb. 23 to March 2)
  • Warpips (Feb. 16 to 23)
  • Recipe for Disaster (Feb. 9 to 16)
  • Dishonored: Death of the Outsider; City of Gangsters (Feb. 2 to 9)
  • Hell Is Others, Adios (Jan. 26 to Feb. 2)
  • Epistory: Typing Chronicles (Jan. 19 to 26)
  • Gamedec: Definitive Edition; First Class Trouble; Divine Knockout (Jan. 12 to 19)
  • Shadow Tactics: Aiko’s Choice; Kerbal Space Program (Jan. 5 to 12)

Epic Games Store free games of 2022

  • Eximus: Seize the Frontline; Dishonored: Definitive Edition (Dec. 29, 2022 to Jan. 5, 2023)

Epic Store free games FAQ

What do I need to do to get free Epic Store games?

To get free games from the Epic Store each week, you must sign up and make an account.

To register as a user for the Epic Store, first head to the Epic Games website. At the top right-hand corner, click the Sign In button and then Create Account at the bottom of the page.

Can I play the free Epic Store games on Steam?

The Epic Store is different to Steam, so the games that you own on the Epic Store will not be available to play on Steam. If you want to play the free games you’ve downloaded from the Epic Store, you must play them via Epic’s launcher.

Technologies

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Technologies

Marvel Rivals Season 2: The 6 Best Heroes to Start Learning Now

Every balance patch shakes up a hero shooter’s meta compositions. These are the best heroes you can learn to be flexible in your matches.

Everyone’s favorite heroes are attending the Hellfire Gala in Marvel Rivals Season 2. As Ultron attacks Krakoa, the sentient island and sanctuary for all mutants, it’s time to take up arms and leave the dancing for the afterparty.

But not every hero is built the same way. As a competitive live service game, Marvel Rivals’ seasonal patches change how heroes function, shifting stats around health pools, damage output and ability cooldowns. Some heroes lose abilities and other heroes gain more, fundamentally changing their base kits — which could shift the balance through the whole season, empowering some characters and limiting others.

Any character is viable in the right hands and the most important variable for success in a hero shooter is the ability to play around your team. If you make character picks that synergize with your teammates and work together, you can even overcome players with more mechanical skill than you.

If you’re serious about ranking up, it’s important to find a character or two that fits your playstyle in each role so that you can remain flexible enough to fill in your team’s needs. While certain characters have undeniably gained key strengths in the Season 2 patch, you should play who you feel comfortable with.

That said, you have a whole season to adapt to the current power balance and grow your roster of playable picks. If you’re looking to learn a new hero, these characters are some of the best ones you can invest time into this season.

The biggest winners in Marvel Rivals Season 2

The Marvel Rivals Season 2 patch introduced some critical buffs for struggling characters, making them better all-rounders that bring more utility to the table for their team.

Players who have put in the time to master these characters will benefit the most from their increased competitive viability this season. Ranking up requires just as much flexibility as it does mechanical skill in a hero shooter like Marvel Rivals, so you’d do well to add these characters to your roster this season.

Peni Parker

While Peni Parker has always been a very strong pick on defense for certain maps, she has struggled to find success in other situations. Her slow movement and massive hitbox led her to get shredded by characters like Punisher and Hela, who can keep up constant pressure with hitscan firepower.

Recognizing that Peni could lock down an area but wasn’t great at defending herself, the Marvel Rivals devs gave the character a series of buffs increasing her firepower, mobility and survivability in one patch. Peni is now able to shoot her primary fire Cyber-Web Clusters with a 20% movement penalty, rather than the extremely punishing 40% movement penalty that she shipped with. She also gained a 100 health point increase up to 750 to help her stay in fights longer. This is massive for a character that can generate a small amount of passive healing for themselves.

Perhaps most important, Peni is now able to land critical hits with her primary fire, drastically increasing an accurate player’s damage potential — which will be especially helpful if you’re able to web up one of the flying heroes zooming around. If you want to lock down defensive zones and provide utility for your team, Peni Parker has always been a solid pick — and now her poking capabilities are a whole lot stronger, too.

Scarlet Witch

Wanda was always a decent anti-dive duelist pick but she lacked the firepower to play around enemy strategists and her ultimate ability requires a lot of dedicated support from the team to be truly effective. In Season 2, the Scarlet Witch is able to put out some more consistent damage, making her a more effective all-rounder — and she becomes truly dangerous in her new team up with Doctor Strange.

Scarlet Witch’s primary fire now does 80 damage per second (up from 60), which means she can delete squishy targets in just three seconds if they’re not getting any healing. Her small area-of-effect alternate fire, Chthonian Burst, now does 80 damage on direct impact as well, which means she has a strong burst damage option for beginning and ending engagements. These simple number tweaks go a long way in helping Scarlet Witch players challenge opponents in one-versus-one situations, where they’d previously be forced to retreat from battle.

The real lynchpin of Wanda’s kit this season is her team up ability: Sorcery Surge transforms Chthonian Burst into a field of magic missiles capable of shredding even the bulkiest vanguards and it can be used in tandem with primary fire.

As long as a Doctor Strange player is on the team, I expect to see Scarlet Witch rotating her presence throughout the battlefield much more in Season 2, using Sorcery Surge to shred the frontlines before retreating to peel for the strategist backline in a pinch.

Psylocke

While Psylocke didn’t receive any direct changes to her damage output or cooldowns for this patch, she was part of the first team up ability mix ups. While the mutant assassin definitely benefited from Magik’s stepping discs, she already has impressive survivability from the escape tools in her base kit.

Now Psylocke is part of Emma Frost’s team up, which lets players create an AI-controlled copy of the character that can use her primary fire as well as the Psi-blade Dash and Wing Shuriken abilities when the player activates them.

Unlike a Loki clone, Psylocke’s copy stays mobile, diving on any enemies the player does. This effectively doubles Psylocke’s damage output — and the cloned projection will stay and fight enemies even if players activate Psylocke’s ultimate.

The new team up ability makes Psylocke an even deadlier assassin, and if you believe you can time your assaults from the shadows to catch the enemy team off guard, you’ll be able to make crucial picks before anyone is able to react. There are very few characters that can so quickly skew a fight in their team’s favor, making Psylocke an important duelist to learn in Season 2.

Hawkeye

The Avengers’ crackshot bowman was built with intentional weaknesses to balance out his ability to one-shot enemy duelists and strategists. He moves slowly, charges his primary fire up by aiming at enemies and doesn’t have much mobility. The Season 2 patch removes some of these restraints, letting Hawkeye move slightly quicker while drawing his bow and building his ultimate even faster than before.

Hunter’s Sight, Hawkeye’s ultimate ability, now only takes 3,100 ultimate charge to build up instead of 3,700 charge, and it’s gotten a pretty massive buff this season. The sharpshooter now draws his bow 1.5x as quickly while his ultimate is active, letting him fire additional volleys of high-damage arrows into his enemies and their afterimages.

Hawkeye’s Hypersonic Arrow ability also got buffed: Each hit now does 55 damage. This is another indirect buff for Hawkeye’s ultimate, as the arrow can pierce through enemies and their afterimages to reach crucial KO breakpoints for duelists and strategists alike. Skilled Hawkeye players will once again be able to pluck off members of the enemy team before anyone can react, creating a version of this character that is somewhat reminiscent of the Season 0 balance patch.

Rocket Raccoon

This rascally weapons specialist was a controversial pick in Season 1 — his team up and revive offered some of the best utility to a coordinated team but his lack of burst healing and mediocre ultimate ability compared to other strategist heroes made Rocket a tough pick against certain team compositions. In Season 2, Rocket Raccoon’s healing and ultimate have been completely revamped, making him perhaps the biggest winner of the patch.

The wily trash panda now puts out a whopping 55 burst healing when his healing orbs make initial contact with teammates, and they still provide 50 healing per second afterwards as well. Rocket’s ultimate also received big changes — teammates in the Cosmic Yarn Amplifier’s area of effect will now receive a lessened 25% damage boost but they’ll also gain 100 bonus health points per second while they maintain the link. This is a huge buff that brings Rocket’s ultimate ability more in-line with the healing power of other strategists.

In exchange, the raccoon’s escape ability got nerfed: Each dash takes longer to regenerate and doesn’t take Rocket as far away from the action as it previously did. But Rocket is one of the only strategists with the ability to heal himself. A small constriction of his mobility doesn’t damper his immense survivability, which means this character will have some of the most consistent healing and utility this season.

If you want to support your teammates with healing and utility and never get caught without an escape route, Rocket is one of the best characters you can pick up in Season 2.

Mantis

Rocket isn’t the only member of the Guardians of the Galaxy that got a massive buff this season. Mantis lost 25 base health this season, bringing her down to 250, so she’s squishier than ever before — but her sleep is still an effective anti-dive tool that should allow skilled players to offset this survivability nerf.

What makes Mantis a winner in the Season 2 patch are the changes to her Healing Flower and Allied Inspiration buffs. Casting these abilities on allies gives them 20 health points per second and a powerful 12% damage boost, respectively, for eight seconds. That damage boost is a crucial bit of utility that isn’t usually available outside of Rocket Raccoon and Luna Snow ultimates.

Before Season 2, recasting the ability on the same target would refresh the eight second timer but now Mantis can stack these buffs on her teammates until they have 16 seconds of healing and damage boosts.

If you’re a strategist player who often plays with dive DPS teammates, the change to these boosts helps you enable these players to disrupt the enemy backline and return alive much more frequently. You just might not want to force this character into single or double strategist team compositions — she works much better as a third, flexible strategist.

Heroes who took a hit in Marvel Rivals Season 2

While most of the Season 2 patch notes detailed buffs for characters across the Marvel Rivals roster, some heroes received a mixed bag of adjustments or outright nerfs. These characters aren’t unplayable — in fact, some of them will still be able to outperform the rest of the lobby in a skilled player’s hands — but they won’t be operating in top form like they were in Season 1.

Doctor Strange

The Sorcerer Supreme has been hit with another nerf — and while previous adjustments have focused on decreasing the magician’s health pool, the Season 2 stat changes affect the character’s damage output. Each dagger in Strange’s primary fire now does two less damage, which means the good doctor loses 10 damage total from a full volley. This is a devastating blow to the combo-reliant vanguard, preventing him from reaching elimination breakpoints with his fully-charged Maelstrom of Madness, which could leave enemies alive with very low health where they’d previously be reliably taken down.

Doctor Strange was also removed from Hulk’s Gamma Charge team up, which means the Gamma Maelstrom ability no longer exists. Strange’s dark magic is still a real threat but the extra damage that this team up afforded him helped him hit important breakpoints to eliminate key enemy threats, especially when paired with his group stun ultimate ability, the Eye of Agamotto. There’s also no way to negate Doctor Strange’s self-imposed anti-heal now, which means players will need to remain ever mindful of dark magic accumulation.

As one of the only main tanks in the game, Doctor Strange will still be incredibly useful to pick up and learn in Season 2 — in fact, Groot, Magneto and Strange are all pretty evergreen picks in different Marvel Rivals metas. But if you’re used to playing this mystical vanguard, you’ll probably find you have less individual agency when it comes to securing key eliminations this season.

Bucky

Bucky got hit with a one-two punch at the beginning of Season 2, receiving a handful of direct nerfs to his most powerful abilities and losing his infinite ammo team up with Rocket Raccoon. The Winter Soldier is still capable of some very scary burst damage but he won’t be able to take as much space this season.

The Bionic Hook cooldown has been increased to 12 seconds so vanguards won’t have to worry about getting yanked into the middle of Bucky’s team as often. The Winter Soldier’s Kraken Impact ability also does less damage this season, and now players will have to drop enemies to 15% of their health pool to instantly eliminate them after they’ve been hit with the ultimate.

Bucky gained a new team up that allows him to leap toward Captain America to slam his shield to attack nearby enemies, dealing 80 damage to and slowing enemies in a 10 meter radius while temporarily giving Bucky 30 bonus health points. I can’t imagine this will be useful outside of niche situations, as Winter Soldier just doesn’t have the dive capabilities that Cap does, and this ability could get players into a dire situation very quickly

The previous iteration of the infinite ammo team up was much more useful for Winter Soldier players, but the character is by no means terrible in Season 2 — he has just gone from being absurdly strong to being more in line with other duelists.

Namor

There’s no doubt in my mind that Namor will still see play this season. He might even remain one of the best characters in the duelist roster. But the king of the sea still lost one of his most important abilities as his team up anchor moved from Luna Snow to the Hulk, marking him out as one of the losers in this patch.

While Namor’s new Gamma Monstro team up ability is incredibly strong if you can keep an enemy pinned down, it takes five seconds of continuous fire for the damage to ramp up. The 20 meter range on the gamma beam is useful but a good diver will play around the ability before it can really start taking a substantial chunk out of their health pool.

The Ice Monstros that Namor lost this season were the easiest way to shut down divers in Marvel Rivals, functioning as auto-aim turrets that slowed down the escape of some of the most movement-dependent characters in the game.

Namor’s stats and base kit were left untouched, though, so he’s one of the characters that got hurt the least by an unfavorable change to his team up. This character will still be one of the most important picks against a dive team composition — and one of the most important bans for any Spider-Man, Black Panther, Psylocke or Magik mains looking to prey on strategists in the backline.

Adam Warlock

The golden boy is rolling with the punches this season. Adam Warlock got a small buff to his ultimate ability — he’ll now resurrect teammates with 30% of their maximum health pool, which should stop Winter Soldier players from clip farming their ultimate ability on poor strategist mains. But that’s all the good news there is for players in pursuit of embodying the perfect human.

With no real mobility options, Adam Warlock depends on careful cooldown management to be consistently effective during battle. The Season 2 patch introduces a 10 second increase on the cooldown of his health-sharing and heal-over-time ability Soul Bond, raising it up to 40 seconds, interrupting the flow of this character’s resource management. Dive team compositions will have a much easier time jumping on and eliminating Adam Warlock in this balance patch.

Players with impeccable aim and careful positioning will still be able to wring a lot of value out of an Adam Warlock pick, especially if they’re able to consistently land the entire Cosmic Cluster charged volley (his secondary fire). It’s just going to be much harder — and far more resource intensive — to stay alive against certain teams.

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Technologies

Apple Foldable iPhone May Have Face ID Embedded in the Screen

Apple is planning to put its facial recognition technology into the long-rumored folding iPhone, according to a new leak this week.

Apple has long been rumored to be working on a foldable iPhone and a new leak this week suggests it’ll have another feature that has yet to appear in any Apple phone: a camera embedded under the screen for Face ID.

The latest rumor offers possible dimensions for the anticipated iPhone Fold and indications that it could have under-screen camera technology. Leaker Digital Chat Station, as reported earlier by 9to5Mac, suggested a 7.76-inch inner screen with a 2,713×1,920-pixel resolution and a 5.49-inch outer screen with a 2,088×1,422-pixel resolution. 

Previous rumors have estimated a potential 2026 or 2027 release for an iPhone that folds like a book. A 2027 release would tie into the iPhone’s 20th anniversary. The dimensions in this leak align with those in this previous rumor, with an expected price tag between $2,000 and $2,500.

Rumors have been split on which format of foldable Apple is releasing or even releasing first. This report suggests a book-style foldable is coming akin to the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6, while older ones suggested Apple was working on a clamshell foldable like the Motorola Razr. 

Read more: Why Apple Needs to Launch the Foldable iPhone Flip This Year

Apple remains the only major smartphone maker not offering a folding phone. Challenges with the hinge and the display screen have reportedly held up the development. 

Apple has also reportedly been working on a giant folding iPad. That product is rumored to open to the size of two iPad Pros and could be eyed for a 2028 debut. 

If Apple does move forward with a folding iPhone, CNET’s Andrew Lanxon has some suggestions, namely that the software needs to take advantage of the folding ability and that the company should offer high-end models alongside more affordable options. «A foldable iPhone needs to be more than just a regular iPhone with a screen that can bend,» Lanxon wrote last month. 

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