Your First Match: You’re Going to Die. A Lot.

You load into RIVALS. You have the default Assault Rifle, the default pistol, and Dash as your ability. The match starts. You die within 45 seconds. Respawn. Die again. End the match with 2 kills and 18 deaths.

This is the universal RIVALS beginner experience. The game doesn’t have skill-based matchmaking in casual. Your first lobby has players with 500+ hours who know every angle on every map. You’re not bad — you’re new in a game that doesn’t separate new from experienced.

Matches 1-3: Don’t Try to Win

Your goal for the first 3 matches is not winning. It’s learning the maps without dying instantly. Here’s what to do:

Match 1: Follow a teammate. Don’t engage enemies unless they’re already being shot at. Watch where your teammate goes, which angles they hold, when they retreat. You’re a spectator with a gun.

Match 2: Pick one map area and stay there the entire match. Learn every corner, every sightline, every piece of cover. On Downtown: pick the alley. On Warehouse: pick the catwalk. Don’t rotate. Just learn one zone deeply.

Match 3: Now engage. Take fights. You’ll lose most of them. After each death, ask: was my crosshair at head height? Did I peek an angle someone was already holding? Did I sprint into the open? One question per death. Answer honestly.

Matches 4-7: Pick Your Weapon

By match 4, you know enough about the maps to make a weapon decision. There are three paths:

  • You like holding angles and picking people off from distance → Heavy Sniper. Slow fire rate, one-shot headshot. Rewards patience and positioning.
  • You like getting in people’s faces → Tactical SMG. Melts at close range. Punishes you hard if you engage at the wrong distance.
  • You like versatility → stick with Assault Rifle. It’s not the best at anything, but it’s never wrong. Master the AR before branching out.

Spend matches 4-7 using ONLY your chosen weapon. Don’t swap. You’re building muscle memory.

Matches 8-10: Add Complexity

Now add your ability into the mix. Grapple Hook if you chose sniper (reach elevated angles). Wall Run if you chose SMG (close distance fast). Use the ability proactively — initiate with it, don’t just escape with it.

By match 10, you should be getting 5-8 kills per match instead of 2.

The Ranked Readiness Test

Before you click “Ranked,” pass these three checks:

  1. Map knowledge: Can you name all 7 maps and describe the best power position on each? (Rooftops = AC unit, Warehouse = catwalk, Bridge = under-bridge, etc.)

  2. Weapon comfort: Can you reliably hit headshots at medium range with your main weapon? Not every time — but more than half?

  3. Death analysis: When you die, do you know WHY you died, or is it still “someone shot me from somewhere”? If you can’t identify what went wrong, you’re not ready for ranked.