It’s unusual for a half-season of hit 6v6 third-person free-to-play shooter Marvel Rivals to pass by without a new character (or characters) being introduced. Well, they’re making up for it now! Along with Dracula, Nightcrawler will debut in the game on the ever-so-lucky Friday, November 13. Folks are understandably excited to see the longtime fan-favorite character, especially with his relative absence in Marvel media for quite some time. Of course, we know we’ll see Alan Cumming reprise his role as Nightcrawler in Avengers: Doomsday. But who voices him in Marvel Rivals? As it turns out, the new Nightcrawler will be none other than Critical Role legend Matt Mercer.
Nerdist’s Take: Matt Mercer Will Bring a Youthful Energy to Nightcrawler That Fans Will Enjoy
In the character trailer, Nightcrawler is bamfing to and fro—bamf here meaning not ‘badass motherf*cker’ but rather referring to the onomatopoeic sound of Nightcrawler’s teleportation as air rushes into the spot he previously occupied—and being very friendly and German while he’s at it. Matt Mercer is bringing a youthful exuberance to the character that I think fans will really enjoy. I think fans will also enjoy playing as Nightcrawler. He’s shaping up to be an excellent support character, slotting neatly into the Strategist role in Marvel Rivals. He’s definitely not your typical Strategist healbot, either. Nightcrawler can both warp around the map, and warp others to him. We love to see a Strategist that actually requires some strategy!
The Season 11 official trailer is all about Nightcrawler, with a brief appearance from Vlad. Doomsday is coming to Marvel Rivals, and Nightcrawler is trying to save everyone he can. The trailer opens with him saving a child from the chaos of the Incursion. Nightcrawler makes a cute funny face at him, and then warps a lollipop into his hands to give to the little boy. Welp, this version of Kurt Wagner definitely passes the ‘in-character’ test for me.
As the barriers between universes disintegrate, a massive ocean wave swallows New York City. The next thing we see is the city burning. Nightcrawler takes a bad hit that sends him flying, and when he looks up, he whispers, “Lord…save us…” as he gazes up at New York City and the futuristic 2099 Nueva York City colliding in catastrophic fashion. Nightcrawler has long been one of my very favorite Marvel characters, and I’m psyched to see how he fits into the meta and world of Marvel Rivals.