10 Skins Banned in Video Games

In the gaming industry, a character’s skin brings players endless boasting rights. With the rarity, the competition, and the skill needed to unlock skins, it’s no wonder the gaming industry prides itself on skins. However, over recent years, some skins have become controversial, leading to their being banned in their respective games. Today, we will look into the top skins banned in video games and explore the reasons that inspired the ban.

10. Fortnite: Customizable Skins of Superheroes

In Fortnight Chapter 2 Season 4, Fortnite created a set of 14 superhero costumes under the Boundless set. Players were allowed to choose one of the skins, which gave them a competitive advantage over their enemies. The main feature in the skins allows characters in the game to change their skins to pure black or white. However, unlike the standard multicolored characters, these two colors were difficult to recognize. In turn, the developers had to ban and remove the skins in the game to provide a fair gameplay.

9. Magneto's Skin: King of Spain Costume 

One of the most talked about bans of skin in the gaming industry is the ‘King of Spain' costume used in Magneto. This happened after Marvel decided to dress the Master of Magnetism as the King of Spain, as used in the comic book “The Pulse: House of M Special.” The Royal Household of Spain was not impressed the first time in 2001. 

And neither were they impressed the second time in 2012, when Marvel tried the same thing during its comeback in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3. The Spain Royalty had threatened to place a lawsuit against Marvel. However, Marvel retaliated by sending the Royal Household an official apology and deleting the costume, leading to the Royalty's forgiveness.

8. League of Legends: I Blitzcrank 

The IBlitzcrank skin for League of Legends became yet another skin that was banned from the gaming industry. The skin, however attractive, proved challenging in controls. The arms of the robot were tilted and it was a little difficult to see. However, Riot, the development crew of the game, ignored complaints from the League of Legends community, to rectify the skin. Ultimately, the skin met strong opposition from the community, leading Riot to remove it.

7. Streets Fighter 5: Unfair Skins

The Pyron costume that Gill wears is another skin not allowed on the Capcom Pro Tour. The Street Fighter community generally agrees that the skin confers an unfair advantage. Players have remarked that it cloaks his EX Special moves and hides his limbs beneath its flaming appearance. Another skin that can't be used is a Halloween costume for Urien that makes him look like Gill. This one has been banned since it was already a part of the game when Gill was first implemented and players fear the skin may be mistaken for Gill.

6. Street Fighter 5: R-Mika Default Skin

Let's rewind to the EVO 2016 tournament when Street Fighter 5 had its own related controversy. Viewers noted Fuudo, a professional player, changed the outfit of his main character, R. Mika, into a less revealing costume in the middle of the gameplay. This change brought confusion to the audience. However, Ryan Harvey, Fuudo's Japanese translator, explained that ESPN had requested the costume change and deemed the default skin of Mika as too revealing for its television audience.

5. Dead or Alive 5: Revealing Costumes

The objectification of the female characters in the game caused concern among certain Dead or Alive 5 community members. The gamers feared that it would cause players to lose interest in the gameplay. In a reaction, the community recommended that competitions prohibit more than 120 skins from 18 different characters. For example, the recommendation included ten costumes of Kasumi, in which one portrayed a little more than sexy underwear for her to wear. 

4. Counter-Strike: Howl Weapon Skin

In 2014, Steam announced that a group of users had stolen and reclaimed the design of a skin developed in Steam's Items Workshop for the Counter-Strike game. CanisAlbus developed the slick and popular Howl M4A4 rifle skin. Overtime, CanisAlbus noted and posted the theft info on their DeviantArt account. Fast forward, Steam deleted the original skin but offered a special replacement to the previous owners of the Howl weapon skin.

3. Rainbow Six: Siege: Ember-Rise Skins

Due to its Operator-oriented gameplay, Rainbow Six: Siege includes unique skins for its characters. While these skins have generally been introduced into the game without incident, a set of skins implemented in a season update called Operation Ember Rise were quickly called out for offering an unfair advantage. 

With commenters on Twitter and Reddit claiming the skins provided camouflage effect on some maps thus difficult to spot and were adverse for colorblind players. As a result, all ‘Operation: Ember Rise' skins were banned from the 2019 US National Tournament. 

2. Smite: Sweet Tooth Soul

In Smite, the developers gave a new skin to the character, Sweet Tooth Soul. However, the cute little anime came with a set of its own downfalls. The character simply seemed to represent the extreme of all of her features. For instance, her voice was either too loud or too squeaky that it would cause damage to the ears. Anyway, the extreme intensity of the character led to its ban in Smite.

1. Justa Car: Syndra

Imagine being hit repeatedly by a magic fireball you can't see coming. In Justa Car, Syndra was well known for her purple balls of energy. However, her magic orbs were affected when the game decided to give Syndra a new skin set. The purple spheres in the new skin turned translucent white, making it a more complex color to see while playing. Players complained that they could not clearly identify the magical orbs of Syndra, thus causing unfair gameplay. In turn, Justa Car removed the skin from the list.

Do you agree with the list of skins banned in video games? Which one was your favorite? Share your thoughts with us on our socials here or down in the comments below.