How Marvel Rivals Created a Winning Discord Strategy

Background

On December 6, 2024, Marvel Rivals seemed to come out of nowhere. Launching with little fanfare, they racked up 10 million players in just three days. Popularity only continued to skyrocket, hitting 40 million players two months later. Today, they’re a mainstay at the top of the charts, boasting a 4.2 million-member Discord Server. 

‍Marvel Rivals’ explosive growth wasn’t by chance. The team had a strategy from the beginning: “We want to be where the players are.”   

The Strategy

What makes Marvel Rivals different? They know what most developers don’t: While Discord is where the players are, a Server is just one way to reach them.

The Marvel Rivals team treated Discord as a primary product surface, integrating it as their social layer from the get-go. This integration gave them access to the platform’s entire suite of developer solutions, which they use for reaching players in ways the competition doesn’t.

Here’s how they’re doing it:

1. They Designed With Intention
   Marvel Rivals had a long-term strategy in place before even starting. “Rather than treating Discord as a chat space to refine after launch, we intentionally designed it as long-term community infrastructure—built to support growth, evolving player needs, and the full lifecycle of the game.”‍
2. They Feed Their Community
   ‍The team launched their Discord Server long before launching the Marvel Rivals game, and fueled growth by directing players directly from the game launcher into the Server. It’s now a massive global hub that’s constantly active with events, giveaways, and seasonal updates that introduce new playable characters like Deadpool.
3. ‍They Make Every Season a Quest
   ‍To promote each new season launch, Marvel Rivals leveraged Discord Quests—a Discord-native, rewarded ad format that drives players directly into gameplay. Millions of players earned exclusive avatar decorations, in-game items, and Discord Orbs simply by playing Marvel Rivals on Discord. The campaigns successfully increased engagement among active players, converted new users, and pulled lapsed players back into battle.‍
4. They Keep Conversations Going
   The team integrated Discord-powered social features directly into the game UI so that players could see their friends and join squads with one click. Conversations that started in Marvel Rivals could continue in Discord (and go back to Marvel Rivals), and invites could be sent without leaving the game. This seamless flow resulted in a 31% increase in 28-day retention* for players who linked their game accounts to Discord.

5. The Gifting Game Changer
   Rivals signed on as the launch partner for Discord Social Commerce. By letting fans wishlist and buy items directly from the Server’s Game Shop, Marvel Rivals tapped into Discord’s highly engaged 90+million DAU. 41% of all purchases were gifts**, and 12% of those gift buyers didn’t even play the game**. They turned non-players into revenue generators through their social circles. 

The Bottom Line

Marvel Rivals was able to gain a massive advantage with their Discord strategy of “being where the players are.”  When making decisions, planning for the future, or new opportunities arise, they simply follow the strategy: As long as it gets them in front of players, Rivals is game. 

_{* Source: Discord Internal Data, September 2025
** Source: Discord Internal Data, February 2026}