The Punisher (2005 video game)

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The Punisher

Developer(s)	Volition Inc.
Publisher(s)	THQ
Release date(s)	January 12, 2005 (NA)
Genre(s)	Action
Mode(s)	Single player
Rating(s)	ESRB:Mature (M) PEGI: 18+
Platform(s)	PlayStation 2, Xbox, PC
Media	DVD

The Punisher is a brutal action game which stars the Marvel Comics titular anti-hero the Punisher. After his family was brutally murdered by the mafia, Frank Castle devoted his life to the punishment those who do evil to others. 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 Punisher has no aversion to committing acts of extreme (if not gratuitous) violence. A mobile phone game based on this series was also released.

Somewhat similar to Rockstar's controversial Manhunt, gameplay in The Punisher offers a combination of exploration, stealth, and combat. When he comes across an enemy, who could help further the mission or one simply deserving of punishment, the hero can attack immediately, or sneak up to perform a one-button "quick kill." Depending on the villain, the current location, and a player-determined level of aggression, one of the many gruesome and fatal assaults will be performed. The game's environments also feature interrogation "hot spots", where the vigilante can commit violent and torturous acts on his enemies, coercing them to share information that may help him in his quest.

Unfortunately, it should be noted that all of the console ports (Xbox and PS2) saw Frank's torture sequences with the game's various villains censored to some degree (limited blood and gore, no finishing death scene, etc.). Much of this can be removed with a Codebreaker. Only the PC release includes the full uncensored game as originally intended by the developer.

The game is notable for several cameos by well-known Marvel Comics characters, such as Tony Stark (Iron Man), Nick Fury, Black Widow, Daredevil (seen only briefly as Matt Murdock), Bushwacker, The Kingpin, and Bullseye, and not to mention several memorable characters from the Welcome Back, Frank storyline such as Detectives Martin Soap and Molly Van Richtofen, the Punisher's neighbors Joan and Spacker Dave, Ma Gnucci, the Russian and General Kreigkopf. The game is a surprisingly faithful treatment of the characters, if not the storyline itself. This fact has won the game uncommon approval from the very discerning comic book fan community. One month after the game's release, it sold over 2 million copies. ^{[citation needed]}

1 Other Characters
2 Weapons
3 Trivia
4 See also
5 External link

[edit] Other Characters

Jigsaw - He is the archenemy of the Punisher. His real name in the comic books is Billy "The Beaut" Russo; however, in the game his character and name is changed and is called John Saint, after the villain in the movie.
Detective Martin Soap
Lieutenant Molly Von Richtofen
Spacker Dave The Punisher's neighbour, and technical wiz who helps him during the raid on Stark Towers.
Joan - The Punisher's next door neighbor.
Bushwacker - Real name is unknown. A former CIA agent and one of the most dangerous foes of both the Punisher and Daredevil. Cybernetic weaponry implants make him a dangerous adversary.
The Russian - He is a hitman hired by General Kreigkoph and an old foe of the punisher from the comic book.
Damage - The leader of the Crackhouse where everything begins.
Tom & Larry - Two crackhouse thugs who trash talk The Punisher in the first level of the game.
Ma Gnucci - The matriarch of a mob syndicate. Her sons serve as her lieutenants in her operations.
Bobby Gnucci - Ma's favourite son and the boss of the Lucky's Bar scene.
Eddie Gnucci - Son of Ma Gnucci, encountered in Gray's funeral home.
Lou - A Ma Gnucci member in charge of the operations in the Meat Packing Plant.
Carlo Duka - Another Ma Gnucci lieutenant who is in charge of the Chop Shop operations.
General Kreigkoff - A former US military general, now heading an organization of Russian Mercenaries. Plots to steal a nuclear missile and fire it at New York.
Russian Boat Captain - Brings in slaves to feed prostitution rings.
Russian Tank Commander
Takagi - The leader of The Yakuza gang called "The Eternal Sun".
Takagi's brother
Yakuza Helicopter Pilot
Black Widow - Also known as Natasha Romanoff. She helps the Punisher take down the first of the Russian Mercs.
Nick Fury - Leader of S.H.I.E.L.D., aids the Punisher on Kriegkoff's island.
Matt Murdock - The appointed lawyer for the Punisher, he is the secret identity of Daredevil, but does not appear as the superhero.
Iron Man - A small cameo during the raid on Stark headquarters.
Bullseye Attacks The Punisher during the raid on The Kingpin's headquarters.
The Kingpin - Runs most of the illegal activities in New York. The Kingpin does not appear to have a vendetta against The Punisher until the end of the game.
Crackhouse elite members
- Poker Players (names unknown)
- Interrogator of the woman in the Crackhouse (names unknown)
- Tony
Gnucci Family elite members
- Joey
- Jimmy
- Danny
- Tommy
- Tony
Russian Mercs elite members
- Yuri
- Igor
- Ivan
- Sergei
Fisk Industries elite members
- The guys in Kevlar (names unknown)
The Eternal Sun elite members
- Sato
- Kenji

Voice actors and actress were named, but as to who they voiced for is unknown.

[edit] Weapons

Primary weapons

.40 CAL SMG (miniature Heckler & Koch MP5/40)
5.7 mm SMG (FN P90)
5.56 mm assault rifle (Colt M16)
7.62 mm assault rifle (AK-47/AK-103)
Pump-action shotgun
Automatic shotgun (USAS-12)
Battle rifle (XM29)
Machine gun (M60E3)
Sniper rifle (Barrett M95, a bolt action rifle that fires .50BMG rounds in real life)
Flamethrower
Anti-tank weapon (An M72A2 anti-tank rocket)
Grenade launcher
Grenade
Flashbang (grenade class)
RAMS (grenade/mine class)

Side arms

.45 CAL semi-automatic handgun (Colt M1911)
.50 CAL semi-automatic handgun (Desert Eagle)
.50 CAL revolver (Smith & Wesson 500)
.45 CAL machine pistol (MAC-10)
5.56 mm machine pistol (XM29) - Without The Attached Grenade Launcher, Verified by the Ingame model.
Hand cannon (Large revolver capable to blow heads off in game)

[edit] Trivia

The Punisher character is voiced by actor Thomas Jane, the same person who portrayed the title role in the 2004 Punisher film.

A famous quote by Leonardo da Vinci can be seen in the game’s playback trailer: He who does not punish evil commands it to be done. In the past the fan base has used this quote to identify the Punisher’s character.

During the Iron Tech raid, when the Punisher uses a special kill on one of the yakuza members the line "Oh my God! They killed Kenji!" can be heard. This is a parody of a popular line from the TV series South Park

One of the scientist in Iron Tech is called Dr. Freeman, who talks about extra-dimensional portals during the alarm sequence. This is all a reference to the Half-Life game series. However, this is not the same character from that series and is not considered a cameo.