A Comprehensive Guide To Smite’s Weird Crossover Skins

Like most successful free-to-play games, Hi-Rez’s flagship MOBA Smite features a plethora of customization options that players can purchase to showcase their dedication to the game while flexing their personal tastes. While Hi-Rez rather eccentrically allows players of most, if not all, of their game to watch paid advertisements for free in-game currency, it’s obviously understood that Smite’s main source of income is from these cosmetics. Say what you want about Hi-Rez’s questionable business decisions (like the time they built an entire level for Dr. Disrespect in Rogue Company), but Smite’s skin game is off the charts. The sheer amount of bombastic, creative, and unhinged skins added on a constant basis gives both casual and pro players something to look forward to with each patch.

While much of Smite’s skin library is original content, beginning in late 2019, Hi-Rez started collaborating with other media companies and publishers to produce some of the most bizarre – and occasionally unwarranted – crossover events I’ve ever seen in a game, with the latest being a content collaboration with the VTuber company VShojo, released less than a month after their previous crossover event with G.I. Joe. With Hi-Rez ramping up the crossover roadmap to draw in both new players and potential customers, let’s take a gander at the mythological MOBA’s crossover history – and try to take a few guesses at what might come next!

Bob Ross – May 9, 2017

Skins:

• Bob Ross Sylvanus

Smite’s first foray into crossover collaborations came from a partnership with Twitch and Bob Ross Inc. to create the Bob Ross ® Bundle. Coming at a time that the legendary painter was a huge hit on Twitch, this bundle contained the Sylvanus skin, along with a Loading Frame and Jump Stamp, for only 700 Gems – which was a steal in hindsight! While this may have been the only official Bob Ross offerings added to Hi-Rez’s library, Smite and Twitch would later partner again in 2022 to release the Happy Little Painter Zhong Qui skin – which took obvious inspiration from everyone’s favorite artist.

Skins:

• Ruby Rose Thanatos
• Weiss Schnee Freya
• Blake Belladonna Amaterasu
• Yang Xiao Long Terra
• Classic Ruby Rose Thanatos
• Cinder Fall Morgan Le Fey (Added October 18, 2022)

Smite’s crossover career continued when Hi-Rez announced a collaboration with the animated web series RWBY. Team RWBY’s edition to the game was marked with celebration, coming alongside a Battle Pass where players could pay 750 Gems to eventually unlock all 4 members of Team RWBY, with players unlocking the Classic Ruby Rose Thanatos skin upon completion of the RWBY Battle Pass’s bonus Prestige Track. Paladins players may find these skins familiar for more reasons than one – when Paladins launched a RWBY event of their own in June 2022, players quickly realized that the Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang skins added to the hero shooter were just re-used Smite models, with minimal texture updates, if any. RWBY fans also got a little more content later in 2022, when Smite added a Cinder Fall skin for Morgan Le Fey.

Skins:

• Aang Merlin
• Zuko Susano
• Korra Skadi
• Avatar Aang Merlin
• Blue Spirit Susano
• Avatar Korra Skadi
• Azula Pele (Added May 18, 2021)
• Iroh Bacchus (Added December 21, 2021)
• Momo Ratatoskr (Added September 20, 2022)

Following Team RWBY’s debut, Smite fans would have to wait over 8 months for the next crossover, which featured characters from the Avatar franchise joining the Battleground of the Gods. Much like the RWBY event, this crossover featured a themed Battle Pass where gamers could pay 750 Gems to eventually unlock Zuko, Korra, and Aang for their skin libraries. Keeping with prior traditions, the Avatar Pass also offered alternate skins in the bonus Prestige Track, where Avatar forms for Aang and Korra, along with Zuko’s Blue Spirit persona, were available. RWBY may have been Smite’s first crossover to get a Battle Pass, but making a media deal with the television giant Nickelodeon was far loftier than collaborating with a single web cartoon, popular as RWBY may be. The Avatar event’s popularity and success drew Nickelodeon and Hi-Rez into further partnerships and deals, as Smite continues to pull characters from Nickelodeon’s historic roster of cartoon stars to this day. To make matters even better for Nickelodeon fans, Smite has continued to add more Avatar skins over the years, with Azula and Iroh joining in mid and late 2021, while Momo reuniting with Aang in late 2022. Who knows? Maybe we’ll finally get a Cabbage Merchant skin for Ah Puch down the line!

Skins:

• Leonardo Osiris
• Donatello Sun Wukong
• Michelangelo Mercury
• Raphael Loki
• Splinter Hachiman
• Shredder Ravana
• Radical Leonardo Osiris
• Radical Donatello Sun Wukong
• Radical Michelangelo Mercury
• Radical Raphael Loki
• Krang Xing Tian (Added October 14, 2021)
• Retro Raphael Loki (Added November 11, 2021)
• Super Shredder Ravana (Added May 5, 2022)
• Slash Kuzenbo (Added June 14, 2022)

Hi-Rez’s partnership with Nickelodeon proved to be strong, as the television giant gave Smite the green light to release a plethora of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles skins less than 4 months after the Avatar lineup debuted. Much like its’ crossover peers before it, all four Ninja Turtles were packed into a Battle Pass, with the old-school ‘Radical’ variants locked in the Battle Pass’ Prestige Track. New to the crossover format were the simultaneous releases of the Splinter and Shredder skins, both of which were simply purchasable in the in-game shop. While it seems insignificant, the Ninja Turtles event was the first time Smite released crossover skins outside of the Battle Pass. Fans of the turtles would get more and more content added in later years, with Krang and Slash being added to the store, while alternate Raphael and Shredder skins would later be offered as free Prime Gaming rewards.

Skins:

• Sullivan King Gilgamesh
• Slushii Hades
• Koven Chang’e
• Crab Rave Khepri
• Tokyo Machine Loki (Added December 13, 2022)

Roughly seven months after the Ninja Turtles entered the Battleground of the Gods, Hi-Rez would launch their next collaboration, this time with the electronic music label Monstercat. All four skins are inspired by four of Monstercat’s artists – Sullivan King, Slushii, EDM duo Koven, and Noisestorm, best known for his iconic song Crab Rave. Like the game’s previous crossover passes, these skins were locked behind a themed Battle Pass, though this one had no Prestige Track. After a slew of crossovers focusing on animated characters, the Monstercat collaboration proved to be a refreshing change of pace… and of course, the Crab Rave skin proved to be an iconic hit. Hi-Rez would continue collaborating with the music label in 2022, adding a Tokyo Machine skin for Loki after releasing a separate Monstercat Battle Pass in Paladins earlier that year.

Skins:

• Hopper Apollo
• The Demogorgon Bakasura
• The Mind Flayer Sylvanus
• Eleven Scylla
• Hopper, P.I. Apollo
• Starcourt Eleven Scylla

Less than two months after the Monstercat collaboration, Smite players around the world were shocked to learn that Hi-Rez was collaborating with none other than the streaming giant Netflix, bringing characters from the iconic Stranger Things series… into a MOBA. This was not the first time Stranger Things content was added to a game – Dead By Daylight added a slew of Stranger Things content back in 2019. While Steve Harrigan, Nancy Wheeler, and The Demogorgon made for great additions to an asymmetrical horror game, having Chief Hopper be your team’s AD Carry was jarring, to say the least! Like the events before it, the Stranger Things skins were locked behind a battle pass, but unique to this event was a completely redesigned arena map, set in the Upside Down! For many players, the Stranger Things event made it clear – predicting the theme for Smite’s next crossover event would be an impossible task.

Skins:

• Optimus Prime Geb
• Starscream Jing Wei
• Megatron Ra
• G1 Optimus Prime Geb
• G1 Starscream Jing Wei
• G1 Megatron Ra

Hot off the heels of their ambitious Netflix crossover, Hi-Rez’s next partnership was with toy giant Hasbro, releasing a number of skins from the beloved Transformers franchise. Much like previous events, Transformers fans could unlock Optimus Prime, Starscream, and Megatron through the Transformers Battle Pass, with retro “G1” variants unlocked in a Prestige Track. The Transformers event did not include a special Arena map like the Stranger Things event did, but this event does mark an interesting threshold – as of publication, the Transformers event was the last crossover event to lock their content behind a Battle Pass. Smite still releases Battle Passes for their non-licensed content, but it makes one wonder – did the Transformers Battle Pass not hit sales expectations, or did Hi-Rez just realize they could make more money by selling the skins individually? 

Skins:

• Rambo Ullr

The next crossover only contained one skin, and Hi-Rez fans could see this one coming a mile away. Hi-Rez had already included a Rambo skin for Paladins as part of a Prime Gaming deal in February 2022, and launched an entire ‘King Cobra’ event for Rambo’s arrival in Rogue Company in March 2022. In April, the Rambo train rolled into Smite, with Hi-Rez offering the skin for Prime Gaming subscribers, much like they did for Paladins. Unlike the RWBY skins, Rambo received a different model for each of his game appearances, with his Rogue Company skin looking far more polished than his Paladins and Smite skins.

Skins:

• Corey Taylor Poseidon
• Sid Wilson Poseidon
• Craig Jones Poseidon
• Jay Weinberg Raijin
• Michael Pfaff Raijin
• Clown Raijin
• Jim Root Chaac
• Alessandro Venturella Chaac
• Mick Thomson Chaac

In a natural progression after collaborations with Transformers and Rambo, Hi-Rez’s next event would be with none other than the metal band Slipknot. In a bizarre transition away from fictional characters, this event had the band’s nine members – very much a group of normal, adult humans – step into the arena to fight Cthuhlu and Zeus. What a world we live in! This event would have no Battle Pass, instead allowing players to either purchase skins and cosmetics individually, or pay a discounted price to get a random skin via loot box. Hi-Rez incentivized players and Slipknot fans alike to buy the skins fast, as all nine skins were initially released at a discounted price of 750 Gems, incrementally raising the price until it reached the cap of 1500 Gems. Releasing skins at a discounted cost and slowly raising the cost in the weeks following launch would prove to be the format Hi-Rez would stick to for its’ major crossover skin sales in the future.

Skins:

• Mizkif Thanatos

I couldn’t get away with not discussing the one controversial crossover event, could I? Hi-Rez partnered with YouTube and streaming personality Mizkif for a crossover event with a straightforward premise – Smite fans could earn cosmetics from watching Mizkif stream the game via Twitch Drops, while also having the opportunity to purchase a Thanatos skin voiced by the streamer for Gems. Additionally, Mizkif was hosting a tournament for the game at the end of the month, with a slew of content creators entering the fray as contestants. Ignoring any personal controversies surrounding Mizkif or his content, this event struck a nerve with the Smite fanbase. Mizkif rarely, if ever, streamed the game, meaning fans of the game rarely had an opportunity to earn the Twitch Drops. Mizkif’s apparent apathy for the game made many fans ask – why did Hi-Rez partner with him instead of one of Smite’s content creators who actually liked the game?

Skins:

• One True God Athena

After a highly controversial partnership with Mizkif, Hi-Rez dialed things back and partnered with the music label NIGHTMODE, releasing a sole skin inspired by the aptly named artist One True God. This skin was met with minimal fanfare, though with how the last crossover went, perhaps that was for the best. One True God Athena could be obtained by spending 400 Gems to roll the dice on the NIGHTMODE chest in hopes of unlocking her but was also available for individual purchase for 1500 Gems. 

Skins:

• Powdered Toastman Gilgamesh
• Invader Zim Cupid
• XJ9 Freya
• Rocko Danzaburou
• Danny Phantom Janus

Continuing 2022’s emotional roller coaster of crossover events, Smite returned to children’s media with a re-ignited partnership with Nickelodeon, bringing a slew of beloved animated characters to the game. While fans of the shows were disappointed to see the characters’ voice actors be replaced for these skins, letting Invader Zim fight alongside Poseidon, Optimus Prime, and Corey Taylor was a surprising – and hilarious – addition to the game. Much like Slipknot, the Nickelodeon characters were largely purchasable individually, but with an unfortunate twist. Fans who just wanted the Danny Phantom skin were disappointed to find that they needed to purchase the other four skins – Rocko, Powdered Toastman, XJ9, and Invader Zim – to unlock Danny Phantom. Despite that roadblock, Danny Phantom was available for purchase individually after the event – for the price of a whopping 2800 Gems. The skins came alongside the “Nickelodeon Flip Board”, an in-game event where players could complete quests to unlock “Flips”, which granted you free Nickelodeon cosmetics such as global emotes and announcer packs. 

Skins:

• Gnome Child Vamana
• Rune Armor Bellona
• King Black Dragon Cerberus 
• Wise Old Man Merlin
• Blessed Dragonhide Neith

Next on the Hi-Rez’s collaboration list was their highly-anticipated crossover with the beloved MMORPG RuneScape, a game that was a staple for over 300 million players in the early-mid 2000’s. First teased in June 2022, the event finally launched in November of the same year, bringing a slew of nostalgic characters to the Battleground of the Gods, including the King Black Dragon, the Wise Old Man, and the infamous Gnome Child. The skins were all sold individually for 900 Gems at launch, with the option to purchase all five for a discounted price of 2500 Gems. A unique feature for these skins was the addition of capes, a staple cosmetic from the classic RuneScape days. Capes could only be equipped on the RuneScape skins, and can be unlocked by grinding out quests, such as destroying 200 enemy Wards or by killing 15,000 enemy minions. 

Skins:

• Aurora Hel

To start the 2023 off right, Hi-Rez announced a smaller collaboration with computer hardware company Alienware, giving players the Aurora Hel skin for free if they created an Alienware Arena account. The Aurora Hel skin is not available for in-game purchase, and must be obtained through Alienware Arena – though a few skin keys are still available as of the date of this publication!

Skins:

• Karn Atlas
• Liliana Vess Nu Wa
• Chandra Nalaar Pele
• Atraxa Thanatos
• Jace Beleren Yu Huang
• Vivien Reid Artemis (Added February 21, 2023)
• Teferi Chronos (Added February 21, 2023)
• Nissa Revane Eset (Added February 21, 2023)
• The Wandering Emperor Mulan (Added February 21, 2023)
• Nicol Bolas Tiamat (Added February 21, 2023)

Hi-Rez’s next ambitious crossover would come with the widely popular card game franchise Magic: The Gathering. Partnering with publisher Wizards of the Coast, Smite would add 10 different Magic characters to the MOBA, releasing them in two groups of five. The skins could be bought individually for 1,000 Gems, or purchased in bulk for 5,600 Gems. The Magic: The Gathering event had plenty to enjoy for free-to-play gamers as well – each character released came with a character-specific questline that all players could progress through and unlock account boosters and announcer packs, free of charge.

Skins:

• Duke Hou Yi
• Cobra Commander Hou Yi
• Snake Eyes Susano
• Storm Shadow Susano
• Scarlet Neith
• Baroness Neith

With the highly-anticipated crossovers with RuneScape and Magic: The Gathering now past, Hi-Rez’s next steps would bring them back into collaboration with Hasbro. Released to a good mix of apathy and confusion, the G.I. Joe event added six new skins to the game – three members of G.I. Joe and three members of Cobra. The Joe skins shared the same character as their Cobra counterparts, making purchasing all the event skins more redundant than usual, especially with each skin being priced at 800 Gems. That being said, for the diehard G.I. Joe fans out there, a few cosmetic rewards were exclusively awarded to players who purchased every skin and bundle available for the event, which one could do for 2400 Gems.

Skins:

• Ironmouse Persephone
• Nyanners Serquet
• Silvervale Skadi
• Kson Nemesis
• Apricot Izanami
• Vei Nu Wa

Collectively catching both the Smite and streaming community off guard, Hi-Rez’s next partner was the VTuber company VShojo, bringing a number of VShojo streamers to the game as purchasable skins. Much like previous events, the VShojo skins can be either individually bought for 900 Gems, or all six can be purchased in bulk for the discounted price of 2400 Gems. To help promote this event, a virtual army of VShojo streamers began playing and streaming Smite, while fans of the game were able to earn exclusive avatars and announcer packs via Twitch Drops. Simply playing a few matches of Smite can help illuminate how much of a success this event was – it’s difficult to go through a single match without seeing at least one VShojo skin on the battlefield, if not more. As a side note on the VShojo skins – they are each voiced by their respective streamer, and while some of the voice lines may be off-putting for the anime-adverse, having the characters scream bleeped out profanity when they use their abilities will never not be funny! 

As of the time of publication, VShojo is the last crossover event Smite has announced thus far. I have to admit, spending time digging through all these events was more work than I expected it to be, but it is certainly fascinating to see how the way Smite monetizes these crossover events has changed as the years go by. Nowadays, I would say that there’s little appetite for short, seasonal battle passes like the ones Smite used to release, but Fortnite just released their Find the Force Quests for their latest Star Wars event… and it looks highly similar to a battle pass. In terms of crossover themes we could expect in the future, it’s hard to tell! I think expecting more Nickelodeon and Hasbro events is a safe bet… but will always hold out hope for a Fast and Furious crossover! Dom Toretto would make a great Vamana skin – you know I’m right!