Unless there’s a Scarlet Witch in play, Marvel Snap players are always beholden to the locations that present during the first three rounds of every match. These themed areas can take upend tried-and-tested decks, making your most powerful cards look like children’s playthings. This guide will run through what locations are, detail the effects of every location we’ve found so far, and offer some handy tips and tricks for dealing with some particularly tricky locations.
How Marvel Snap locations work
During every game of Marvel Snap, three random locations will reveal themselves, one round at a time, across the centre of the game board. Each location offers a modifier that affects that particular lane of the game. Some are pretty simple to deal with — take Central Park, which adds a Squirrel card to each location, or Lemuria, which prevents cards from getting revealed for a turn.
Some, however, can offer more of a challenge. On Crimson Cosmos, for example, you can’t play cards that cost 1, 2, or 3 energy. Not great if your deck is stacked with lower-cost cards. The Nexus, meanwhile, applies its score to all other locations, turning the lane into a high-stakes battleground.
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Image: Second Dinner/Marvel
Each location also has a rarity; some will appear more than others. However, these rates are exceptionally difficult to predict. Plus, Marvel Snap regularly cycles in a “featured location,” which spawns with higher frequency. As a result, it’s best to prepare a dynamic deck than plan for zones with complex effects. It’s also worth noting that, on some occasions, the same location can show up twice in a match, making for some interesting challenges. Here’s the full list of every location we’ve found so far in Marvel Snap.
Marvel Snap location list
Marvel Snap locations list
| Location | Effect |
|---|---|
| Location | Effect |
| Asgard | After turn 4, whoever is winning here draws 2 cards |
| Atlantis | If you only have one card here, it has +5 Power |
| Attilan | After turn 3, shuffle your hand into your deck. Draw 3 cards. |
| Avengers Compound | On turn 5, all cards must be played here |
| Bar Sinister | When you play a card here, fill this location with copies of it |
| Baxter Building | Whoever is winning this location gets +3 Power at the others |
| Bifrost | After turn 4, move all cards one location to the right |
| Central Park | Add a Squirrel to each location |
| Cloning Vats | When you play a card here, add a copy to your hand |
| Crimson Cosmos | Cards that cost 1, 2 or 3 can’t be placed here |
| Daily Bugle | Get a copy of a card in your opponent’s hand |
| Danger Room | Cards played here have a 25% chance to be destroyed |
| Dark Dimension | Cards here are not revealed until the game ends |
| District X | Replace both decks with 10 random cards |
| Dream Dimension | On turn 5, cards cost 1 more |
| Ego | Ego takes over and plays your cards for you |
| Elysium | Cards cost 1 less |
| Fisk Tower | When a card moves here, destroy it |
| Flooding | This is the last turn cards can be played here |
| Flooded | Cards can’t be played here |
| Gamma Lab | After turn 3, transform all cards here into The Hulk |
| Grand Central | After turn 5, put a card from each player’s hand here |
| Hala | After turn 4, destroy all cards controlled by the player losing here |
| Hellfire Club | Cards that cost 1 can’t be played here |
| Hell’s Kitchen | Draw a 1-Cost card from your deck |
| Isle of Silence | Ongoing effects are disabled here |
| K’un-Lun | When a card moves here, give it +2 Power |
| Kamar-Taj | On Reveal effects happen twice at this location |
| Kyln | You can’t play cards here after turn 4 |
| Knowhere | On Reveal effects do not happen at this location |
| Lemuria | No cards are revealed this turn |
| Lechuguilla | When you play a card here, shuffle 3 rocks into your deck |
| Limbo | There is a turn 7 this game |
| Los Diablos Base | After turn 3, ruin a random location |
| Luke’s Bar | When you play a card here, return it to your hand |
| Machineworld | When you play a card here, add a copy to the opponent’s hand |
| Mindscape | At the start of turn 6, swap hands |
| Miniaturized Lab | On turns 3, 4, and 5, no cards can be added here |
| Mirror Dimension | On turn 4, transform into one of the other locations |
| Mojoworld | Whoever has more cards here gets +100 Power |
| Monster Island | Add a 9-Power Monster here for each player |
| Monster Metropolis | The card(s) with the highest power here get +3 Power |
| Muir Island | After each turn, give cards here +1 Power |
| Murderworld | After turn 3, destroy all cards here |
| Necrosha | Cards here have -2 Power |
| Nidavellir | Cards here have +5 Power |
| Negative Zone | Cards here have -3 Power |
| New York | On turn 6, you can move cards to this location |
| Nova Roma | Draw a card |
| Olympia | Draw 2 cards |
| Onslaught’s Citadel | Ongoing effects here are doubled |
| Oscorp Tower | After turn 3, all cards here swap sides |
| Project Pegasus | Get +5 energy this turn |
| Ruins | No effect |
| Sakaar | Put a card from each player’s hand here |
| Sanctum Sanctorum | Cards can’t be played here |
| Savage Land | Add two Raptors on each side of this location |
| Shadowland | Add a Ninja to each side with -2 Power |
| Sewer System | Cards here have -1 Power |
| Shuri’s Lab | When you play a card here, double its power |
| Sinister London | When you play a card here, add a copy to another location |
| Sokovia | Discard a card from each player’s hand |
| Stark Tower | After turn 5, give all cards here +2 Power |
| Strange Academy | After turn 5, move all cards here to other random locations |
| Subterranea | Shuffle 5 rocks into each deck |
| The Bar With No Name | Whoever has the least Power here wins |
| The Big House | Cards that cost 4, 5 or 6 can’t be played here |
| The Hub | Add a random card to each player’s hand |
| The Ice Box | Give a card in each player’s hand +1 cost |
| The Peak | Each card in your hand swaps its Power and Cost |
| The Raft | First to fill this draws a 6-cost card. It costs 0. |
| The Space Throne | Only one card can be here for each player |
| The Superflow | If you have no cards here, +1 energy each turn |
| The Triskelion | Fill each player’s hand with random cards |
| The Vault | On turn 6, cards can’t be played here |
| Tinkerer’s Workshop | Get +1 energy this turn |
| Titan | 6-Cost cards cost 1 less |
| TVA | After turn 4, end the game |
| Wakanda | Cards here can’t be destroyed |
| Wakandan Embassy | Give +2 Power to cards in players’ hands |
| Warrior Falls | After each turn, cards here FIGHT! Destroy the weakest one(s) |
| Washington D.C. | Cards here with no abilities have +3 Power |
| Weirdworld | Both players draw from their opponent’s decks |
| Westview | Turns into a new location on turn 4 |
| Worldship | Destroy the other locations |
| X-Mansion | After turn 3, add a random card here for each player |
| Xandar | Cards here have +1 Power |
Tips for owning key Marvel Snap locations
New York
A hell of a location, New York lets you move cards into the zone on turn six. The trick is not to play cards into this space early so you can decide later whether it is something worth fighting over. Once turn six rolls around, it’s worth checking whether moving cards is still a viable option. Keep in mind that some cards benefit from moving as well; when tallying up opposing cards, it’s worth checking for any boosts from moves that they may gain.
Ego
The Ego location lets the AI take the wheel, playing cards for you against your will. The chances of coming toe-to-toe with this celestial being aren’t likely, but it’s still a good test of your deck’s versatility. While there isn’t a specific trick to dealing with this zone, it’s a reminder that building a deck with a cohesive theme can, more often than not, be your saving grace.
Sanctum Sanctorum
Sanctum Sanctorum doesn’t allow players to place cards, but don’t worry, that doesn’t lock you out completely, as cards like Nightcrawler can still be moved here. Options for cards that add extra power to the table, like White Tiger or Squirrel Girl, can also be beneficial here. Mr Fantastic is also a great play, as he can add +2 to adjacent locations.
Gamma Lab
You’d think turning everything into the Hulk would be a blessing, but it can also be a curse. With Gamma Lab, all cards played at the zone turn into the Hulk after turn three.
The instinct might be to offload all of your low-cost, low-power cards here to fill the space, giving you a hefty sum of power and sealing that location as a win. However, there are many outcomes to this puzzle.
If both players fill the space, it could end in a draw for the location, meaning you’ll need to have more power on the other two. Alternatively, the opposing player may buff the total card score with Iron Man or Ironheart. With Gamma Lab, committing to the spot but leaving tactical wiggle room is a safe move. Marvel Snap is all about forward planning, whether it’s leaving a card spot for your own Iron Man vengeance or having some buffing cards in your hand that can add extra power.
TVA
Did I just mention forward planning? If you see the TVA show up, scrap that. The TVA ends the game at turn four, meaning you have to adapt — fast. If you get caught by the TVA, and your deck has no low-cost cards, you’ll be in a bit of trouble. The TVA serves as a reminder of the dynamic nature of Marvel Snap more than anything. The best option here is to try and use the other locations to your advantage and get as much power out of them as you can. If accessible, Elektra would be a great option here, as her ability allows you to put a card out while taking away one of your opponent’s.
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