Following on from its Fantastic Four and Dracula-themed season,Marvel Rivalsis getting ready to set its sights on the Mutant side of the Marvel universe.Marvel RivalsSeason 2 will be themed around the Hellfire Gala, an in-universe annual event that kicked off theReign of Xrun in 2021. The Hellfire Gala is a night intended to celebrate Mutantkind and all its achievements, and if the teaser trailer is any indication,Marvel RivalsSeason 2 is fully embracing that theme.
Both Mutant and non-Mutant heroes alike are dressed to the nines, and Omega-Level telepath Emma Frost is leading the ceremony inMarvel Rivals' Hellfire Gala trailer. This teaser also confirmed that a new Krakoa-themed map is coming to the hero shooter this season, an addition that could lay the foundations for one of the X-Men’s most important members to join theMarvel Rivalsroster.
Marvel Rivals' New Krakoa Map Lays the Groundwork for a Playable Professor X
Marvel Rivals' New Krakoa Map Explained
Introduced all the way back in1975’sGiant-Size X-Men #1, Krakoa is a living, sentient island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. In this original arc, Professor X sends a new team of X-Men to find the previous squad, who have seemingly gone missing on Krakoa. Krakoa attacks the new team, but is eventually defeated by being pulled from its roots and thrown into space.
But Krakoa’s most well-known appearance comes from Jonathan Hickman’s renowned2019House of X/Powers of Xminiseries. In these alternating stories, the X-Men and a plethora of other Mutants have formed a sort of symbiotic relationship with the sentient Krakoa. Krakoa allows Mutantkind to live on it freely, and gives them access to astounding technological advancements, including the use of organic teleporters (Gateways) that are connected via Habitats that Mutants have planted around the globe. The Mutants claim Krakoa as their home, and fight to have it be recognized as an official sovereign nation by the rest of the world.
InMarvel Rivals, Krakoa will take the form of a Domination map in Season 2. At the time of writing, little else has been officially revealed aboutMarvel Rivals' version of Krakoa, though a brief overview trailer does show that the map will include the Gateway portals seen in theHouse of Xseries, along with plenty of Easter eggs and references to the wider world of Mutants.
Charles Xavier’s Connection to Krakoa Paves the Way for His Marvel Rivals Debut
In theHouse of X/Powers of Xrun,Charles Xavieris shown to have a very strong connection with Krakoa. Before the main events of the book begin, Xavier finds Krakoa and manages to converse telepathically with the entity within. Xavier forms a strong bond with the island, and that bond is the primary reason why Krakoa allows Mutantkind to live in its lush forests.
Prior to theHouse of X/Powers of Xrun, Charles Xavier constructs himself a younger body, which is why he’s seen walking in the miniseries.
With Charles Xavier having direct ties to Krakoa and Mutantkind’s presence on the living island, it would feel strange if the hero was left out ofMarvel Rivals' future completely. Instead, Krakoa’s appearance inMarvel RivalsSeason 2 should pave the way for Professor X to join the roster, and that outcome seems fairly likely given that Xavier has been one ofMarvel Rivals' leaked charactersfor a few months now, and that his statue appears on the Krakoa map.
