The Punisher

About The Punisher

The Punisher (1993) is Capcom's violent arcade beat 'em up starring the Marvel vigilante and Nick Fury against the Kingpin, the start of Capcom's partnership with Marvel and widely ranked among the best comic-book games.

The Punisher in Depth

The game follows the formula Capcom set with Final Fight and Captain Commando: the heroes fight through waves of henchmen to the boss of each level. As with the limited roster of the first Street Fighter, the Punisher and Nick Fury are essentially interchangeable, sharing the same punches, kicks and throws, which chain into combos, and similar special attacks. The presentation imitates comic books, with on-screen sound effects such as "BLAM!" for gunshots. Players pick up melee weapons such as baseball bats and Japanese swords, thrown weapons such as knives and shuriken, and improvised ones from lead pipes and car tyres to a crude flamethrower, each with a durability meter shown beside the player's health. Food restores health, containers hold treasure, and hand grenades can be saved for the right moment. It stood out for its violence and frequent firearms, including an Ingram and an M16, and when gun-wielding enemies appear, the heroes draw their own handguns.

After his family are murdered for witnessing a mob killing in Central Park, Marine captain Frank Castle becomes the Punisher. He chases Mafia enforcer Bruno Costa from an illegal casino through New York to a Florida resort, where Bruno is killed by the Kingpin's robot Guardroid, then raids a drug ring, a poppy field in Arizona and a freight train before fighting through Jigsaw to the Kingpin in the King Building, which collapses at the end.

Making The Punisher

Capcom released The Punisher in Japanese arcades in May 1993 and in North America that July, beginning the partnership with Marvel that led to Marvel vs. Capcom. Play Meter listed it as one of the most popular arcade games of May 1993, and GamePro praised graphics that captured the comics' dark, sombre mood. A Genesis port by Sculptured Software followed in 1995 with downgraded graphics and sound, fewer enemies and objects, and censored violence; it was panned, Next Generation saying "not much good can be found" in it, and sold so poorly it became one of the rarest PAL Mega Drive games. A Capcom Power System Changer version and a PlayStation port by Crystal Dynamics were never released.

The arcade original has since gained cult status. Retro Gamer called it "a forgotten gem in Capcom's back catalogue", suggesting it was lost in a market flooded with beat 'em ups, IGN ranked it the tenth greatest superhero game in 2010, and WhatCulture! named it the best comics-based arcade game.