How Marvel Rivals' Scarlet Witch Compares to Her MCU Adaptation

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Rivals of Marvel not only reintroduced older and niche characters from Marvel comics to its roster of characters, but also reworked aspects of the Marvel characters that the public had latched on to thanks to the MCU. No character better represents the return to comic book form Rivals of Marvel“Adaptation of The Scarlet Witch.”

Although not every character that is represented in the MCU and Rivals of Marvel have major differences, Scarlet Witch is definitely one of the few. Only a few characters Rivals of Marvel the list has yet to appear in the MCU, including Penny Parker, Luna Snow, Jeff the Land Shark, Venom, Squirrel Girl, and all of the X-Men.

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MCU adaptation of Scarlet Witch

Since the main hook to Rivals of Marvel' lore focuses on the multiverse, the game is able to justify changing characters to be significantly different or more similar to the MCU or different versions of Marvel Comics universe characters. In the case of the Scarlet Witch, Rivals of Marvel seems to lean more towards her original characterization in Marvel Comics, which presents some key differences from the MCU adaptation.

Because mutants have yet to be introduced into the MCU and Age of Ultron was released before Disney acquired Fox, the MCU gave the Maximoff twins their powers through experimentation rather than birth. While this change was understandable due to copyright, it cannot be overstated how important the Scarlet Witch's mutant identity is to Marvel Comics. Her impact on mutants has left a lasting mark on comic book history and continues to be a major plot point in comics to this day.

In addition, the Maximov twins are of Jewish-Gypsy origin. While Elizabeth Olsen originally focused on the Scarlet Witch when portraying her Age of Ultronthis accent has disappeared over time. Olsen is also not of Jewish-Gypsy descent, leading some fans to be critical of her cast.

The portrayal of Vision and Scarlet Witch's romantic relationship in the MCU is pretty accurate. WandaVision and Agatha all together continue this storyline by introducing their twins Billy Kaplan and Tommy Shepherd. This storyline is also pretty true to the comics in which Wiccan was officially introduced Agatha all together.

Adaptation of Scarlet Witch by Marvel Rivals

Scarlet Witch Abilities in Rivals of Marvel are pretty consistent with her powers in the MCU and Marvel Comics. Descriptions of her abilities specifically mention “Chaos Magic”, which has previously been mentioned in both the MCU and the comics along with “Scarlet Witch”. The Scarlet Witch's Reality Erase ability also matches this ability, given that she is able to manipulate reality at will.

However, there are key differences between the MCU adaptation and Rivals of Marvel'. namely, Rivals of Marvel took the opportunity to make the Scarlet Witch more comically accurate. Rivals of MarvelScarlet Witch's design is one example of this. Her skin and hair are darker, more in keeping with her Gypsy Jewish appearance, and she has an accent. Players can see the difference in design Rivals of Marvel and MCU as a Multiverse of madness skin exists for Scarlet Witch in the game.

Scarlet Witch is a mutant again

Magneto is the biological father of both Maxim twins Marvel Rivals, as discussed in several voice lines between Magneto and Scarlet Witch. The characters also have a team together.

Also, Scarlet Witch has a voice line that mentions “No more mutants”. This is also an achievement that Scarlet Witch players can unlock after killing ten times more mutant enemies than her. The quote “No more mutants” is a direct reference to the “House of M” storyline, in which Scarlet Witch took away mutant powers from most mutants. This storyline fundamentally changed Marvel Comics. Of course, the MCU hasn't officially introduced mutants into its main timeline, making it impossible to adapt Wanda's legacy and this important storyline.

After all, most of the differences between Scarlet Witch in the MCU and Rivals of Marvel courtesy of Marvel Comics. The Scarlet Witch is a sign that Rivals of Marvel will likely turn to the comics for inspiration for its roster of characters rather than relying primarily on its MCU counterparts.

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