Is Marvel Rivals alluding to the Hellfire Gala?

Marvel Rivals may be gearing up for a second season heavily influenced by the X-Men, if the Hellfire Gala teases come to fruition. This is an iconic instance in comic book history and could very well shape the future of the NetEase title.

Let's go over everything you need to know.

The Hellfire Gala debuted in June 2021 in the Reign of X relaunch. The gates of Krakoa, a sentient habitat for mutant peoples, were opened for non-mutants. The gala was held to showcase mutant culture to the rest of the world in hopes of bringing peace.

During the first event, a new team of X-Men were revealed and we saw Mars become Planet Arrako. Its success as a story led to it becoming an annual event with its own one-shot titles under the Hellfire Gala name.

A fan election was held in the lead up to each gala, three total at the time of writing, letting readers decide who would be on the next X-Men team. This was depicted in-universe, with the comic showcasing the vote among mutants to determine the new team.

It was meant to mimic the real life Met Gala, with everyone attending wearing outrageous costumes and a touch of wealth felt throughout. There were even depictions of real-life celebrities who attended, such as Steve Aoki, Eminem, Jimmy Kimmel, George R. R. Martin, and many more.

Of course, not everything was perfect during the initial gala. Hellions crashed the party, other programming was hacked to attack partygoers, and arguments over how mutants should be represented unfolded.

That makes us wonder if the Hellfire Gala in Marvel Rivals will be a civil or bloody affair? And will there be a new map come Season 2 where you travel down the red carpet while on Krakoa? All of this is just our wishful thinking, but there are clear signs pointing towards it in the game.

When you obtain the Season 1 Eternal Night Falls gallery card called Plans Within Plans, you can spot the tease. It shows Dr. Doom standing over a fallen Dracula. Choose to read it and the very last line is where you'll want to look.

Krakoa has been mentioned many times through voice lines of Magneto, Storm, and other mutants in the game. And while the Hellfire Gala isn't directly mentioned in Marvel Rivals, the gallery card mentioning a gala of any kind is too good not to latch onto.

Emma Frost was one of the main characters of the original Hellfire Gala. And she's been leaked to be a part of Marvel Rivals since before the game even launched. So have many other mutants and X-Men characters.

Which makes us wonder, what if? What if the long list of characters being added to the files is to set up a Hellfire Gala sequence much like in the comics? Where players can vote which heroes and villains will come to the game as part of the gala in Season 2?

That would be awesome, as we definitely expect Blade to arrive, but don't have a clue who else is joining the party past him. If the Hellfire Gala does take place, we will certainly see some X-Men members enter the game, but we've got to wait to find out who.

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