List of video games featuring the Punisher

The popular Marvel Comics anti-hero, The Punisher has made several appearances on numerous electronic and gaming platforms, including mobile games on cellphones.

1990 NES Game

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Box art of the NES version.

A Punisher game for the Nintendo Entertainment System was produced by LJN Toys in 1990. The player can control the Punisher character from a first-person perspective through various New York City locations, shooting various thugs, and battling various supervillains as bosses. The final boss was The Kingpin of Crime, who was almost impossible to defeat without the aid of a special rapid-fire joystick.

Game Boy Game

A similar port of the NES game was also released for the original Game Boy. Spider-Man makes a cameo appearance in this game as he swings down on a web to free the hostages. Also in Gameboy version Jigsaw is featured as the final boss instead of The Kingpin.

Computer Game

In 1990, MicroProse produced a Punisher computer game for DOS and Amiga that was unique when compared with the NES game, as it featured three different modes of gameplay: driving the Punisher's "Battle Van", walking through NYC's streets and select buildings, and scuba diving.

1993 Arcade Game

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The Punisher arcade game

A side-scrolling beat 'em up Punisher arcade game was released in 1993. The game is in the vein of Double Dragon, where the player can control the Punisher and/or Nick Fury, and would engage on various foes in a hand-to-hand combat, occasionally drawing firearms in lieu of melee combat.

The original music for this game was composed by Yoko Shimomura, an employee of Capcom's in-house band Alph Lyra.

Sega Mega Drive/Genesis Port

The arcade game was also ported to Sega Mega Drive/Genesis in 1995 by Capcom. While the arcade version was popular, the Sega version was felt to be poorly translated.

2005 Action Game

In 2005, a brutal Punisher action game exclusively designed for adult players was released by Volition, Inc. Players take control of the vigilante hero to track down criminals and make them pay for their cruel deeds. The game's story is a loose mixture of the 2004 film, as well as the 2000 mini-series, Welcome Back, Frank, written by Garth Ennis and pencilled by Steve Dillon, wherein the character has no aversion to committing acts of extreme (if not gratuitous) violence. A mobile phone game based on this series was also released. Thomas Jane, who portrayed the title role in the 2004 Punisher film also provides the voice of The Punisher in the game. I love this game

Appearances in other games

The Punisher has a cameo appearance in the 1999 Activision Spider-Man game. In the game, the Punisher helps Spider-Man find Mysterio's secret hideout in Warehouse 65. He offers to help, but Spider-Man declines, stating he wants to "keep the body-count low". The Punisher is then seen again in the last scene of the game playing cards with Spider-Man, Captain America and Daredevil. This is slightly humorous, as the Punisher does not usually fraternize with anyone, let alone known superheroes. The Punisher's voice was provided by Daran Norris.

The Punisher was mentioned by name at the beginning of the 2005 multiplatform fighting game Marvel Nemesis: Rise of the Imperfects. A reporter claims that the Punisher is "missing in action" and a torn piece of cloth from his trademark "skull" can be seen hanging on a post in the cinematic opening.

Trivia

The Punisher is one of the few Marvel Comics characters who does not apear in the game Marvel Ultimate Alliance because the videogame license for the character was with THQ at the time of the game's release.
At the beginning of the game Marvel Nemesis: Rise of the Imperfects, a reporter says that the Punisher is "missing in action".