Verithiathe honest score on any app
Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
The verdict on

Marvel Contest of Champions

55
User verdict / 100 High confidence Divided

Marvel Contest of Champions is a visually appealing fighting game with a large roster of characters, but recent reviews highlight significant issues with its pay-to-win progression, unfair AI, and frequent technical problems like crashing and loading failures.

4.7★ lifetime (703,566) Free + in-app purchases since 2014 by Kabam Games, Inc. updated 0.1 mo ago recent negative 31% 120 reviews across 4 regions
Pay-to-Win Technical Issues Unfair AI & Balance Progression Difficulty Graphics & Characters
5★483
4★102
3★66
2★48
1★239
recent reviews across 4 regions, vs the 4.7★ lifetime average

Marvel Contest of Champions is a long-standing mobile fighting game praised for its graphics, character designs, and engaging gameplay, attracting a dedicated Marvel fanbase. However, recent user feedback frequently criticizes its aggressive monetization, unbalanced AI, and persistent technical glitches that hinder progression and overall enjoyment.

What users like

  • Engaging gameplay and cool character designs appeal to Marvel fansR3R5R13R15
  • Good graphics and unique mechanics for a Marvel gameR15R32R51R101
  • Can be played for a long time without spending money, according to some usersR33R47
  • Absence of ads enhances the user experienceR43R219

What users complain about

  • Aggressive pay-to-win mechanics make progression difficult without spending moneyR1R9R11R14
  • Unfair and cheating AI makes fights frustrating and unbalancedR16R17R19R42
  • Frequent crashing, loading issues, and bugs prevent gameplay or cause loss of progressR1R4R21R22
  • Progression is slow and difficult, especially for free-to-play usersR48R49R57R63
  • Lack of controller support is a common requestR7R92R604
  • Repetitive gameplay and boring content after completing the storyR101R184R217R248
  • Customer support is perceived as unhelpful or deceptiveR68R88R312R560

Latest update · v57.1.0

What the developer says changed (the verdict above weighs this against what reviewers report):

NEW CHAMPIONS Hobgoblin (Phil Urich) After discovering his uncle Roderick Kingsley’s Goblin legacy, Phil Urich became Hobgoblin, tearing through New York on a screaming glider, his pumpkin bombs and razor bats fueled by rage rather than control. Black Tarantula Carlos LaMuerte is not the first Black Tarantula, and he won’t be the last. After his wife fled to New York with their son and his heir, Carlos followed, bringing his strength to a world of superheroes, supervillains, and ninjas! NEW FEATURES Improved Double Track UI for easier view of content and navigation. “Find Catalysts” functionality can now look for Class Catalysts. NEW QUESTS AND EVENTS New Saga - Web Of Corruption This Battlerealm isn’t always a friendly place, the name itself is hardly welcoming. Behind every dark corner is another thing waiting to change you, and another mystery waiting to be solved. Get y

Recurring themes

Pay-to-Win negative
Many reviewers feel the game is heavily pay-to-win, requiring significant spending to progress, acquire desirable characters, or compete effectively, especially in later stages or PvP modes. They describe rewards as insufficient for monetary value and criticize the constant push for in-app purchases. This contradicts the experience of some users who claim to have progressed far with minimal spending.R1R9R11R14
Technical Issues negative
A significant number of recent reviews report persistent technical problems including the game not loading, getting stuck on loading screens, frequent crashes, and connection issues. Some users also report losing game progress or characters after updates or crashes. The developer's notes for v57.1.0 did not mention any bug fixes, which aligns with the continued user complaints.R1R4R21R22
Unfair AI & Balance negative
Many players are frustrated with the game's AI, describing it as 'terrible,' 'rigged,' and 'cheating.' They report AI opponents having frame-perfect reactions, activating defenses during player ultimates, taking minimal damage, or having disproportionately high stats and abilities that players cannot replicate. This leads to an unbalanced and unenjoyable combat experience.R16R17R19R42
Progression Difficulty negative
Reviewers frequently mention that progression, especially leveling up champions and obtaining necessary materials (like catalysts or high-star characters), becomes extremely difficult and slow without spending money. The difficulty scaling is seen as inconsistent or too steep, making it hard for free-to-play players to advance beyond early stages.R48R49R57R63
Graphics & Characters positive
The game is consistently praised for its cool characters, designs, and graphics. Many players, especially Marvel fans, appreciate the wide roster and the visual quality of the game, including fighting animations and finishing moves. Some long-time players, however, dislike recent changes to classic character designs.R3R5R13R15

Who it's for

This game is for Marvel fans and players who enjoy fighting games with a large character roster and good graphics R5R15R32. It might appeal to those willing to invest significant time or money to progress R30. It is not for players who dislike pay-to-win mechanics, unfair AI, or frequent technical issues R1R16R23.

Evidence note: The recent reviews skew negative, with a 30.6% negative sentiment. This contrasts with the lifetime rating of 4.71, suggesting a downward trajectory in user satisfaction. While many positive reviews are short and general, the negative reviews provide detailed accounts of specific issues, indicating a growing dissatisfaction among the player base, especially regarding monetization and game balance. The developer's notes were minimal and did not address any of the common complaints.

Frequently asked

Is Marvel Contest of Champions a pay-to-win game?
Many recent reviews indicate that Marvel Contest of Champions is heavily pay-to-win, with progression and obtaining high-star characters becoming extremely difficult without spending money R1R11R63.
Does Marvel Contest of Champions have controller support?
No, several users have requested controller support, specifically for devices like Backbone, indicating that it is not currently available R7R92R604.
Are there frequent bugs or crashes in Marvel Contest of Champions?
Yes, many recent reviews report frequent issues such as the game not loading, getting stuck on loading screens, crashing, and connection problems, sometimes leading to lost progress R4R21R23R54.
Is the AI in Marvel Contest of Champions fair?
Many players describe the AI as unfair and rigged, reporting that opponents have unrealistic advantages, perfect defenses, and disproportionately high stats, making fights frustrating R16R17R42R64.

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 120 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

  1. [R3] 5/5 · US Best game ever: This is the best of all time
  2. [R5] 5/5 · US Cool characters and designs: They make cool characters and cool designs of them, kids and teenagers well like this game and especially Marvel fans
  3. [R13] 5/5 · US AMAZING GAME: This game has got to be one of the best mobile games in history (in my opinion). Even though the game is semi-difficult to traverse it is SUPER fun to play for almost everyone, as well as a great story to it, I just wish personally that some of the materials were easier to gather. Overall though it’s five stars all the way around!
  4. [R15] 5/5 · US Peak: The graphics are amazing the gameplay is great and it’s. Just absolutely peak
  5. [R32] 5/5 · US Amazing game: Great game love it one of my new favorite games a bunch of characters and great graphics and you can unlock a much of characters like my favorite so far is the red hulk but just great game I would definitely play it again 10/10 definitely would recommend
  6. [R51] 5/5 · US Amazing game!: This game is so good! The graphics are good, and the gameplay is not bad at all! Even my dad plays this game for 7 years and he never gets bored! I would definitely recommend this game!
  7. [R101] 3/5 · US Great Graphics and fighting game but campaign mode is not simplified as other fighting games.: I’m a huge marvel fan and love fighting platform games. Graphics are great and the characters to obtain are great. Only thing I could suggest is making campaigns more simplified without having to replay quest mode over and over to navigate entire maps to obtain 100% on campaign mode story maps. Other th
  8. [R33] 5/5 · US Amazing game !: Amazing game not going to lie , it actually lets you play for a longgggg time without spending money ! Try it , for sure
  9. [R47] 5/5 · US Great game: One of the funnest games ever. Not very pay to win. I’m on act seven, and only spent $31 dollars on the game. There’s so many cool features of this game. I love it. I’d give it ♾️ stars if I could.
  10. [R43] 5/5 · US Download: No adds ( I think ) really fun and easy to learn
  11. [R219] 3/5 · GB No ADD’S three stars: Amazing game but it does not regenerate your health after a battle
  12. [R1] 1/5 · US DO NOT SPEND MONEY IN THIS GAME: Not only are the rewards not even close to the monetary value but the game is always sub buggy and crashing. I've been through all the highs and lows and it's time to retire the game.
  13. [R9] 3/5 · US Great but need consistency: I have been playing the game and i can see its good in ideas and how characters are originally. However, as you progress even when you over power some characters, no life is taken consistency as if they lower your health. That makes me money upgrades which is cool to make profits but not all have the possibility. I suggest to make it consistent to keep it enjoyable and
  14. [R11] 1/5 · US Rip off: You spend your money to move ahead, but it’s never enough. They always want more money. Marvel is the greedy company in the world. Hope they rot in hell.
  15. [R14] 3/5 · US Veteran without the title: I have been playing since the game released. Mcoc has so much to enjoy and clearly Kabam does a lot well to keep a mobile game successful for 12 years. This game would be in the hall of Fame if Kabam actually worked on the enemy a.i., put less emphasis on pay to win business strategies, respected players time with in game content, and listened to player feedback more. I
  16. [R16] 1/5 · US Garbage AI: The AI in this game is terrible and you developers know it. I’ve been playing this game for 10+ years and the way these AI fight now is laughably bad. Frame-perfect, flawless gameplay from these overpowered champions you create nowadays. What else would we expect from you greedy losers though? Game has been pay to win for every single year it’s ever been out. The way the AI plays now i
  17. [R17] 1/5 · US The worst fighter: The worst fighter I've ever played. How can your opponent activate defense during your ultimate, and why can't I do the same? The game doesn't register your commands. I tap for an upper attack, but the character does a lower one. They inflated the reviews but forgot to make a decent game. It sucks 👎 · translated
  18. [R19] 1/5 · US Horrible game: This game is so dumb they give the defenders buff and debuff you can never use even if you have that character it to hard to beat characters it just stupid no reason why I can’t use the same buff fix it
  19. [R42] 1/5 · US So ******* rigged!!!!!: Literally everything about this game is rigged, the bots always get power ups that you could never get and the system always puts you against other fighters that are triple the power of your team and they nonstop always bug you with offers to take your money. Whoever created this game either needs to fix this rigged system like they’re actually supposed to do if they actual
  20. [R4] 3/5 · US Isn’t working: I get on every single day but like 5 days ago it wasn’t loading it still want load.
  21. [R21] 1/5 · US Saves keep deleting every update.: 👎🏻
  22. [R22] 2/5 · US i cant play: everytime i sign into an account with their website so i can save my account and progress it js goes to the loading screen and stays there
  23. [R48] 1/5 · US Continuation: It’s to hard to level up and progress. This game has a fun concept, but it’s pay to play system as well as the high level of difficulty to level up and progress make it hard to beat as well as want to play daily
  24. [R49] 4/5 · US Good but has flaws: Super hard to level up champions in later stages and get their specific catalyst I also think there is too many micro transactions but still an amazing game
  25. [R57] 1/5 · US Don’t do it: This game requires you to pay to get characters I been playing since launch I wouldn’t recommend they don’t help you get 6 starts and up or resources
  26. [R63] 1/5 · US One Star, Frustrating Pay-to-Win Progression: Contest of Champions has become extremely frustrating because the game feels heavily built around a pay-to-win structure. Progressing and leveling up champions, especially 7-star champions, is unnecessarily difficult unless you are willing to spend money. The game strongly discourages cheating and bans accounts for breaking the rules, but the actual
  27. [R7] 4/5 · US Request controller use: I would like to be able to use a backbone or any controller on this game
  28. [R92] 1/5 · US Ok: No controller support
  29. [R604] 3/5 · CA Not backbone compatible: Like game need controller capabilities
  30. [R184] 3/5 · US Fun game overall: The game is pretty fun the nodes give an interesting fight every time but once you finish the story everything else is super boring in comparison battlegrounds are super boring and you always get paired with some dude with 44 7 stars once you complete the story you can stop playing as Thats thr peak it only gets worse
  31. [R217] 3/5 · GB I’ve lost my love for this game: I have had this game for many years now. I’ve had it since the Guardians Of The Galaxy characters were first added. The only game I have never uninstalled through boredom or to free space. However, I literally these days, am just keeping the game and logging in every now and again just to keep my progress. I’m not a die hard player like some, I used to just simp
  32. [R248] 3/5 · GB It’s ok, but a bit boring: It’s ok but compared to other marvel games on the App Store it’s boring and repetitive and there isn’t really much to do. To improve: - Add a wider range of characters and make them look more MCU accurate - Give the option to star up *existing* characters rather than having duplicates of the same characters with different star levels (this is the MOST FRUSTRATING th
  33. [R68] 1/5 · US Scamming, bait and switch trashy Company: The developers of this game are truly horrible people. Offers are blatantly deceptive, buying items with mis clicks is happening by design. Customer support will cheerfully rip you off. Do not give this company money. Do not download this game. You will be cheated and scammed. Kabam and it’s employees are filthy, lying, hateful garbage. Karate Mike in part
  34. [R88] 1/5 · US Worst gaming company in history: If you like your money being stolen and being cheated at every turn, this is the game for you. Kabam is absolute and utter garbage.
  35. [R312] 3/5 · GB Great job: The game itself is pretty good and the mechanics are unique for a Marvel game and to be honest the summonings animations are pretty balanced as as well as the team and story but one of the managers Chris does not seem to understand that people can sometimes face financial crisis and refuses to help when purchases are not made by the main account holder by a member of their family that i
  36. [R560] 3/5 · CA Help: Hello i love playing the game but my game is bugged. I am currently level 12 and cant unlock the fourth hero slot. I dont want to reset my account because i have many heroes and bought things. Please help devs. My customer support tickets keep getting closed. I dont want to make a new account
  37. [R30] 5/5 · US This is such a good game: Tbh it’s a little bit of paid to win but everything else is good
  38. [R23] 1/5 · US Connection issue is ridiculous: Don’t invest your time in this game. Too many lags and connection issues ruin your experience. It’s rubbish! Can’t believe it hasn’t been fixed!
  39. [R54] 5/5 · US Hero gamer: Ok I’m stuck on the loading screen and it’s super annoying can you please fix the issue please but take your Time
  40. [R64] 1/5 · US AI in arena Cheats: Have a character with a 6000 attack rating matched against one with a 8000 rating? Tough but doable until the match starts and their attack rating jumps up to 12000. Hit them 75 times and their health drops 25%. They hit you 3 times and you’re dead. The AI must have some special synergy boost right? Nope. Pick the same characters in your roster and you don’t get a magical 50% b

Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store