Marvel Snap Patch Balance Update Analysis and Decks: Big Changes for Big in Japan

Typically, Season Pass cards tend to be popular and impactful enough to shake up the metagame a bit. Then, the start of a new season is when some players try to counter the metagame and beat everyone else in the race to the Infinite rank. For the start of the August 2023 season Big in Japan, we also get a monthly patch to shake things up even more.

August 8, 2023 Update
Patch Notes | Datamine | Balance Analysis

Big in Japan: August 2023 Season
Hub | Bundles | Cards | Spotlights | Variants

Daken: Season Pass Card
Details | Decks | Theorycraft

Granted, the patch isn’t massive this time. A lot of changes were already announced by Second Dinner, mostly to make some interactions more intuitive or fall in line with other similar effects. As such, Cable, Magik, Mister Negative, and Rogue could all be considered buffed; their abilities are now more versatile, or even stronger in some cases. Still, they should not feel particularly different from a game play standpoint.

However, there are two cards we have to discuss, as they got unequivocally changed. One of them represents the biggest change ever made to a card in Marvel Snap, and it will likely be the focus of this patch. That card is Spider-Man.

Without the change to Spider-Man, this patch could have been overlooked and considered litter more than a quality of life improvement. In the current metagame, it wouldn’t have been such a shocker to see a small patch, as the environment feels pretty balanced lately.

With Move getting a new tool, and Silver Surfer also getting a new and potentially scary card in its repertoire, this one big change might be enough to bring a bit of chaos to the start of the “Big in Japan” season.

Can High Evolutionary Survive Another Nerf?

The Thing is taking a minor, yet significant, nerf in the metagame. The developer note tells us to look at the bright side, as it will now let you know exactly how much energy you’ll save on Abomination. However, not being able to nuke a single card – notably Jeff the Baby Land Shark or another card you expect your opponent to abuse – has to be considered a nerf.

I think the recent direction the Pure Evolutionary build took should be fine with the change; the deck is trying pretty hard to discount Abomination. This was the latest build featured in our Tier List, and it seems to be a good starting point see just how impactful the change to The Thing really is:

Pure Evolutionary

Created by den

, updated 2 months ago

0

2x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

4x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

1x Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

5x Starter Card

2.8

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

3.8

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

In other archetypes using High Evolutionary, such as InSheNaut, Evolved Lockdown, and Evolved Lockjaw, The Thing was already seeing very little play, so I don’t expect these archetypes to be impacted too much. Overall, High Evolutionary shouldn’t feel that different from before the patch, although it might be a bit less flexible in its use of The Thing in the future.

Where to Test the New Spider-Man?

It’s safe to say Spider-Man is now a completely different card, and it needs to be considered as such. The cost is different, the power is different, even the ability is different. However, the decks it is used in might remain similar, at least at first. Why? Well, Spider-Man is now a 3-Cost card, and it was already seeing play in the Silver Surfer archetype.

Then, this new ability to be able to move an opposing card away from the location we play Spider-Man in looks pretty nice alongside Storm. It might even be stronger than it was before, as Spider-Man now beats Cosmo one on one with five power against three.

So, before we explore the new possibilities around the famous super hero, we have to consider the deck we already know is able to do some work in the current environment:

Silver Surfer

Created by den

, updated 2 months ago

0

1x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

2x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

9x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

2.8

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

2.8

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Silver Surfer is probably the easiest archetype to consider when trying to assess the power of a new 3-Cost card – especially when that card already has synergies in the deck. Storm, Goose, and maybe even Polaris are all trying to impact the opponent’s ability to play on various locations. Adding Spider-Man to that mix seems decent at the very least, even more so when you consider Silver Surfer lacks high power cards. Five power is a great number in that regard.

Kingpin could also become a consideration in the deck now. If we fill up a lane by Turn 6, we can guarantee Spider-Man moves to Kingpin‘s location, taking out the opponent’s card as well itself. It might be risky, but if you expect your opponent to play a big card, or you can take out one of their big 5-Cost cards, it could be worth exploring.

It also ends the discussion about Sera or Spider-Man as the de facto 5-Cost in the deck. We’ll see if another card rises to challenge Sera in the future.

Pure Lockdown

Created by den

, updated 2 months ago

0

4x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

2x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

3x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

2x Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

1x Recruit Season

3.1

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

3.4

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

The High Evolutionary build could also be considered, as the Storm into Spider-Man synergy should work there too and give additional options alongside Cyclops for a follow up to Storm. Still, I felt like the Pure Control build allowed for more flexibility, like Juggernaut or Enchantress to help against the ever popular Darkhawk.

Indeed, compared to the Evolved build, the ability to take Darkhawk out of Storm‘s lane allows you to disable it later, while High Evolutionary has to beat it on points alone. If you still want to try it, here’s a list:

Evolved Lockdown

Created by den

, updated 2 months ago

0

1x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

1x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

4x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

4x Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

2x Starter Card

3.3

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

4

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Let’s take a look at some more exotic options using Spider-Man. The Move synergy has gained another spider to bolster its arsenal. Now, compared to the other two archetypes, Move is obviously much lower in the rankings, so it might not be able to make Spider-Man a superstar. During the month of July, though, OwlGod managed the impressive feat of winning two tournaments back to back with a Move Control build.

Until we find a better way to build around the Move synergy, this looks like a good starting point to test the new Peter Parker in an out-of-the-box archetype:

Owl’s Move Control

Created by den

, updated 2 months ago

1

1x Collection Level 18-214 (Pool 1)

1x Collection Level 222-474 (Pool 2)

5x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

2x Series 4 Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 4)

3x Series 5 Ultra Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 5)

3.1

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

4.4

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Mister Negative Gains the Most Out of His QOL Change

Cable and Magik got slightly better with their change, while Rogue should be the same card (except for very specific situations most players will never encounter).

On the other hand, Mister Negative might have one of its builds become much more reliable as a result of this change. Indeed, having the Negative cards capped at six energy means we can use Jane Foster Mighty Thor on Turn 6, even when affected by Mister Negative. Combined with the change to Magik a few weeks ago, this should lead to an interesting dynamic around the archetype.

Jane Negative

Created by den

, updated 2 months ago

0

8x Collection Level 486+ (Pool 3)

2x Series 4 Rare – Collection Level 486+ (Pool 4)

1x Recruit Season

1x Starter Card

4

Cost

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

1.6

Power

0-
1
2
3
4
5+

Up until now, the dominant build of Mister Negative was the one built around Silver Surfer because it has more flexibility in how it executes its game plan. However, with the change to Jane Foster Mighty Thor now being playable even when it is hit by Mister Negative, there might be a bit of reconsideration around the archetype.

Closing Words

Looking at the early results on social media and our deck tracker, it seems like Silver Surfer is already going pretty strong thanks to Daken. With Spider-Man naturally fitting the archetype too, I expect to see a lot of that deck in the near future. Whether it can challenge the current momentum of Good Cards is yet to be seen, but it could lead to a solid battle for the top of the rankings.

Similarly, if the Destroy synergy picks up momentum with Daken and X-23 next week, Lockdown might have a good reason to come back. Professor X is already a staple, and both Armor and Cosmo aren’t very difficult to imagine in the deck, either.

In the same way as the July balance changes, there are a lot of interactions to consider to really grasp the aftermath of the new season and the monthly patch happening on the same day. In addition to the archetypes already in the spotlight, which are the easiest to think about, we also cannot dismiss the potential of having a new deck rise on the back of these changes and the new additions.

It should take a bit of time for these changes to appear. First, a new build needs to overcome the Good Cards archetype and a metagame built around tech cards that can quickly adapt to counter a hot and rising archetype. If one deck manages to take on that challenge, though, it’ll be my pleasure to let you all know about it through the various articles to come on this platform.

Until then, I hope you’re having a good time with Marvel Snap; may the new season be a successful one! To reach out, find me on the Marvel Snap Zone community Discord, or follow my Twitter page where I share decks and biased opinions about the game.

Good Game Everyone.