Marvel Rivals Season 9.5: The Mystery of Thebes went live on 7 August at 09:00 UTC, bringing the game’s latest Vanguard — Parker Robbins, The Hood — into the roster alongside a sweeping texture compression update that frees up 40GB on PC and 15GB on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. If you’ve been holding off on installing, now is a good time to reconsider.
Who Is The Hood?
Parker Robbins has been a thorn in Marvel’s side since he found a mystical crimson cloak and a pair of enchanted boots — tools that turned a small-time Brooklyn crook into a significant underworld threat. He’s led the Hood’s Crime Syndicate, brokered power with the Cabal, and gone toe-to-toe with heroes and villains alike. He’s an unusual pick for a hero-shooter roster, which makes him interesting: less icon, more dangerous wild card.
In Marvel Rivals he’s voiced by Damian Priest — yes, that Damian Priest, the WWE SmackDown heavyweight — which gives him an unmistakable presence in the trailer.
The Hood’s Kit
The Hood plays as a Vanguard — the game’s tank-support class — which is an interesting fit for a gunslinger villain. His playstyle runs on the tension between his two states:
- Human form: relentless dual pistol fire providing consistent frontal pressure
- Demon form: pistols become assault rifles; the mystical cloak channels the energy of Oblivion, letting him manifest protective barriers for teammates and hurl dark magic orbs that warp into damage-absorbing shields on impact
- Ultimate — Full Demon State (Gun Demon): high-impact piercing rounds that punch straight through shields and enemy bodies, while radiating dark energy that grants bonus HP to all nearby teammates
The switching between forms is the mechanical core — he can hold a line and protect allies while applying damage, rather than purely absorbing it like a classical tank.
Character Reveal Trailer
Season 9.5: What Else Is New
The season’s Egyptian backdrop — the Thebes setting introduced in Season 9 — continues into 9.5, with Apocalypse as the lurking threat behind the mystery. On the cosmetics side, Summer Festival Vol. 2 launches with swimsuit skins for Star-Lord, Winter Soldier, Scarlet Witch, Black Cat, Storm, and Magik — and a new customisable animation set for Lady Loki.
The new PYO (Pick Your Own) bundle system is a notable store change: rather than fixed bundles, you select the specific skins and emotes you want and the price adjusts to match. It’s a fairer format than a take-it-or-leave-it package for players who only want one or two items from a set.
Free rewards this update:
- Creed of Akabba event: earn a free Punisher Sandstorm Soldier costume
- Twitch Drops (now through 4 September): the Elsa Bloodstone Will of Galacta costume — watch any participating stream for eligibility
The 40GB Storage Reduction Is Real
The patch’s texture compression overhaul is genuinely significant for anyone managing drive space:
- PC: ~40GB freed (~30% reduction)
- PS5 and Xbox Series X|S: ~15GB freed (~20% reduction)
- PS4: ~7% reduction
That’s a meaningful reclaim on both SSD and HDD setups, and it comes with no visual quality trade-off according to NetEase. If you deleted the game to make space, it’s worth re-downloading now that it’s leaner.
Season 9.5: The Mystery of Thebes is live now on PC (Steam and Epic Games Store), PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and Xbox Series X|S.