Marvel Rivals Terms of Service contains a “non-disparagement” clause to prevent players from giving “negative reviews”

Updated at 6 p.m.: Netease has apologized for “inappropriate and misleading terms” in its content creator agreement.

In a statement posted to Discord shortly after the contract began making headlines, the Marvel Rivals team of content creators said they “sincerely apologize” for “the poor communication and your unpleasant experiences.

“We are aware that there is inappropriate and misleading language in the engagement regarding the sharing of non-disparaging content,” the full statement said. “We sincerely apologize (sic) for the communication problem and your unpleasant experiences!

“Our booth is absolutely open to suggestions and criticism aimed at improving our game. And we (sic) our mission is to enable Marvel Rivals to better satisfy players through these constructive suggestions.

“We are currently working to revise the conditions of poor communication of our commitment,” he continues. “Progress will be shared with each creator in a timely manner. Marvel Rivals always welcomes creators to join our community and create incredible content with us. Content creators are respected not only as players, but also as a part Speaking of which, a suggestions form for the Content Creator program is about to be posted on (Discord) and open to all opinions. I can’t wait to hear your feedback!

At the time of writing, it is unclear whether previously signed contracts are now null and void, but NetEase states that “all terms will only be brought into effect once both parties have discussed and agreed.” terms.

In a press statement, NetEase said: “The contract is a preliminary version aimed at long-term cooperation with creators interested in Marvel Rivals. The development team hopes to have more meaningful and consistent feedback, suggestions and criticism. through deeper cooperation.

The original story follows.

Original story, 1:50 p.m. BST: Players and content creators have hit back at Marvel Rivals by signing a terms of service agreement that prohibits players from making “statements damaging to the reputation of the game.”

As former professional eSports player and Twitch streamer Brandon “A_Seagull” Larned shared, the contract “means your right to negatively criticize the game.”

In section 2.1 of the agreement – ​​subtitled “Non-disparagement” – content creators are required to “agree not to make public statements or engage in discussions harmful to the reputation of the game” .

This “includes, but is not limited to”, “making derogatory or satirical comments about anything related to the game, such as game features, characters, or music”, and “engaging in malicious comparisons with competitors or belittling gameplay or differences from Marvel.” Rivals or providing subjective negative reviews of the game.”

As Larned notes, “many streamers signed (the contract) without reading it just to play.”

Interestingly, the FAQ posted to the game’s Discord community states that there is “no NDA for our closed alpha testing” and that players are “encouraged to share their experience and all types of content on all platforms.” platforms”.

A few players have also raised concerns about the terms of service of the official Discord server, but as of yet, no answers to their questions have been received.

Others on Twitter/X claim that the developers agreed to “revise” the contract, but apparently have not yet done so.

At the time of writing, the hero team-based PvP shooter – published by NetEase Games – has yet to publicly comment on the matter. We have contacted NetEase and will update if and when we know more.

Marvel Rivals is an upcoming free-to-play team-based PVP shooter for PC with backing from Chinese publishing giant NetEase.

Described as an “exciting, fast-paced cooperative gaming experience,” Marvel Rivals will pit teams of six against each other in a variety of destructible environments with characters from across the Marvel Universe. This includes Iron Man, Groot, Scarlet Witch and more.