So, Marvel Rivals has conjured up this wild summer theme for The Punisher, and internetheads are seemingly losing their collective minds! Frank Castle going to the beach to have some water-gun fun? That’s so bizarre!
The Aqua Arsenal Punisher skin makes its debut in Season 4, launching on September 18 at 7 PM PDT. Judging by the comments, it truly has to be one of the most talked-about skins ever. The official description reads: “Embrace the tide and make waves on the battlefield, Punisher says that, ‘It’s been a while since I felt this warmth, far from the smoke and bloodshed. Maria would’ve loved this place… I can almost hear Lisa and Junior laughing in the sand.'”
That sounds too deep for a mere beach skin, doesn’t it? But I guess that’s the Punisher for you.
Funny-to-downright-sexually-charged comments started flooding in from players. One read “Officially a new Punisher main 🙃😂” (thanks, @ThaBamboo), and another simply stated “he needs to punish me” (@ghostlxvr), which… okay then.
Everyone is hyped about water effects. Player @richel_renan said, “water effect ult????????? can we pls have this on Sue too? Or even rocket??? OMG insta buy.” It seems the players are so fond of the aquatic theme they want it extended onto other characters too.
The bandeau community floats creatively atop this water-gun wave. “@Solid_Skullz: Punisher really brought out the nerf guns lmao I love it,” and @CoachCucharas said “this is fucking hilarious,” summing up the general reaction toward the skin.
The interesting comments just keep pouring in as well. @Miko_Macc called it “finally some girl/gay gooner bait,” while @peppedapir remarked “They say they only sexualize women…” which, to some degree, is true. The skin does show quite a bit of Punisher’s… assets.
Well, with every new skin release comes demands for even more content. More players want ultimate VFX effects, with @CamponesaSafad4 saying, “dont be shy, add more and more and even more ultimate vfx” while the other comment asked for color variants for older skins.
They’re begging for more characters to get the same treatment. @anthony_gummy stated: “Love the skins but begging for a Reed skin next time pls 🥺,” while @vieuxnail said: “Third time thing skin in mini pass + second thing summer skin??? and no magik Emma swimsuit??” So it is clear: the players want summer fun for the entire roster.
Some responses were pure comedy gold. @Proxysamurai joked, “Dam Reed get out of the building, guess Sue likes them big and punisher was the only one available,” while @reliaarts wrote, “We all goon to Punisher baby,” which basically sums it up.
Inter-game cross-over activities are held within the comments as well, @uhlalaaueaueaue compares it with “Omg the murro in Overwatch with that ugly af summer skins,” basically meaning that the players are already drawing parallels between hero shooter genres.
One of the neat cool things is how players love the attention to detail shown in it. @MMingy50045 said, “Awesome!!! Water gun ultimate and his mvp is hilarious 😂,” while @KatebyDaylight commented, “I love these intros and MVP’s that brings characters together, it’s absolutely fantastic!!!!!! Thank u Rivals” with lots of heart emojis.
But there’s still some criticism in sight. @CtznKn_ demanded that, “REMOVE THE SKULL YOU COWARDS,” versus @MikesChannel2, who called out, “Bruh y’all hoe’d BP by not changing the color of Bast to Gold on his legendary skin,” which means players have really defined expectations as to skin quality and consistency.
But by outright a majority is the good stuff. @cendriel_ nailed it: “Good day to be a punisher main,” while @Jay3OW admitted, “Guess I’m a Punisher main now for no specific reason,” and probably just what the devs wanted to begin with.
What a funny little path that opens for Marvel Rivals – back from the one of the most mature, gritty characters, just put this punishingly offbeat summer rejection on him. Also, this shows they’re not shy about poking the IP a little, to the game’s own enjoyment.
Judging from the responses, it would seem that they’re quite on the money. Excited? Yes. Talking? Shade is not cast. And almost certainly ready to throw down whenever and whatever currency it takes to buy this skin on the 18th. I think most would say the water gun ultimate alone is worth the price of admission.
This is also sparking conversation as to who else could receive this type of treatment. The community is already salivating for swimsuits for Magik and Emma Frost, along with a load of Reed Richards content, so perhaps this is just the launching pad for an entire wave of summer-themed content for Marvel Rivals.
Looks like Devs have heard the players, too, with all that talk about ultimate VFX and color variants indicating that they probably have a pretty good idea of what the community wants moving forward. That always comes in handy, especially with a live-service game.
So yeah, Marvel Rivals Season 4 will definitely bring the heat with the Punisher skin, and the players couldn’t be happier. Whether they are in for the hilarious concept or the water effects, or just wish to see Punisher in a new light, this could very well be one of the most successful cosmetics.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I gotta go main Punisher for… reasons. For obvious reasons, no specific ones.
