'Marvel Rivals' players face 100-year ban for play on macOS

Gamers are finding themselves banned from "Marvel Rivals" for 100 years, after finding ways to play the Windows version of the game on macOS.

Marvel Rivals is a free-to-play first-person-shooter that is currently very popular among gamers. However, it does not currently have a macOS client, which has caused problems for some players using workarounds to do so.

Posts to Reddit reveal that players desperate to play the title on macOS are playing using Windows emulation. However many of those same players are discovering that their account has become part of a mass blocking effort affecting macOS users.

Affected players join the game and are greeted by a message that there has been a "Penalty Issued" and that a violation has been "detected." Claimed to be "cheating" by the game, players are penalized by having their login details suspended, sometimes for over a century.

Reddit users have determined that the block is hitting players who use Crossover on their Mac to play the Windows client of the game, in lieu of a dedicated macOS client.

Aside from Windows, the game is also available for the Sony PlayStation 5 as well as the Microsoft Xbox Series X and S consoles.

It is very likely that the problem is anticheat software that is used by Marvels Rivals is detecting an issue with the use of macOS. Anticheat software is designed to spot cheating software tools that players may use in games, as well as other abnormalities that could be a result of a more sophisticated cheating process.

Since it's Crossover running on macOS instead of Windows, this may have tripped the anticheat software into logging possible cheating activity.

Seeking a fix

CodeWeavers CEO James Ramey said the company is reaching out to NetEase Games on the matter, asking if there can be anything done to allow macOS players to play the game. Ramey explains that this is ultimately NetEase Games' decision to make, but he assures the developers that Crossover is being used legitimately, not for cheating.

"I am sure that if we are successful that this will be widely announced," said Ramey. "Otherwise we will continue to plead our case."

NetEase Games, the operator of the game, has yet to comment on the incidents. AppleInsider has also contacted NetEase Games for clarification on its policies.

It is plausible that, if the game continues to be popular for a long period of time, a port to iOS could occur in the future. That port may open the door to a full macOS port as well, but that would still depend on the game's popularity.

For the moment, AppleInsider strongly advises prospective players of Marvel Rivals to not be tempted to run the game on Mac via emulation, until a developer-sanctioned method to play is available.