Marvel Rivals Season 9.5 The Hood Release Date & Start Times

The content mill never slows for Marvel Rivals, and Season 9 is already well underway. Jubilee was the latest to join the roster, but all eyes are starting to turn towards the next character to enter the fold: The Hood.

Of course, Season 9 has been a monumental season for Marvel Rivals, with it being the biggest update the game has ever seen. That was all thanks to the Team-Up overhaul, as well as changes to health regen and a nifty Black Widow rework.

Whilst there was a period of getting used to the seismic changes, things are starting to settle again, meaning we’re more than ready for what’s next in store for Marvel Rivals. With that in mind, here’s when Season 9.5 kicks off, including a closer look at what The Hood could bring to the game.

When Does Marvel Rivals Season 9.5 Start?

Marvel Rivals Season 9.5 will officially begin on August 7, 2026, as was revealed in the Season 9 roadmap.

It’s common knowledge now that each season is split into two, with each half lasting around four weeks. In that time, we can expect new characters, maps, updates and of course, fresh cosmetics.

It’s a busy schedule, but NetEase shows no signs of slowing down; if anything, Season 9 just ramped up the pace! With all of the new Team-Ups, it’s been a season of relearning the game to some degree, with the meta shifting drastically. Will Season 9.5 maintain the hype? Time will surely tell, but we don’t have to wait too long to find out.

Marvel Rivals Season 9.5 Exact Start Times

Judging by previous Marvel Rivals seasons as a guideline, expect Season 9.5 to begin on August 7, 2026, at 3 AM PT.

There’s no denying that a new season is the most exciting time to play Marvel Rivals, even if there aren’t immense overhauls to the game’s foundational systems! Just a new character alone and the buffs and nerfs that come with it shift the meta in drastic ways, and The Hood is teeing up to be a prime example.

If you want to be there the moment Season 9.5 goes live, here’s when the update is due across the world:

Marvel Rivals Season 9.5 The Hood Details

As things stand, we don’t know too much about The Hood and how he will play in-game, but we do still have some notable details.

The most important fact is that The Hood will be joining Marvel Rivals as a Vanguard, as we finally go a whole season without a new Duelist—even though the Black Widow rework feels like a new character entirely.

How he plays remains a mystery, though it’s likely he will provide some long-range poke with his twin pistols. Hopefully that’s the case, as there aren’t many tanks that offer such range at the moment, though he’s bound to have other abilities to round him out.

One thing that’s for certain, though, is that Jubilee’s Team-Up with him is bound to be broken, as it’s already strong enough without the Enhanced Effect, and Magik’s isn’t too bad either.

As for what the future looks like past Season 9.5, we already know a fair bit. There’s a bunch of leaked characters on the way, and it seems like each addition up until Season 11 has been leaked. The Death of Apocalypse Event pays further credence to the leaks, all but confirming at least one major addition that should ease complaints of no new villains in the roster.

In the meantime, it’s time to hop into some matches, so why not give Jubilee a shot? Check out her trailer below:

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