The Printstream Collection: Story and Unreleased Weapons
Skin designs have evolved over the years and opposite to what Counter-Strike developers believed initially, the players enjoy the flashy colorful skins more than the military-themed options.
From the era of Laminates and Redlines to exploring a new spectrum of creativity and effects such as the pearlescent, which revolutionized the creation of skins with more artists using the effect to create masterpieces.
The pearlescent effect can be seen on one of the most popular skin collections; the Printstream.
As of now, the officially added skins from the collection are Desert Eagle | Printstream, M4A1-S, and USP-S. With its unique and clean design, we decided to look into “JTPNZ” workshop items and discover all the Printstream skins in addition to his other work.
The Story of Printstream
The original idea behind the design was to create a simple minimalist black and white skin, but later on, colors were added because JTPNZ felt as if something was missing.
The creator explained saying:
‘Printstream’ was the skin that made me think about skin designing as just another blank canvas to splash my artistic expression and interesting ideas to it and most of the time I unconsciously use it as a way to tell stories and express what I was feeling at the time. - JTPNZ
The shapes and lines on the skin are not random, but each shape has a meaning and easter eggs behind it. For instance, B42 can be noticed on the M4A1-S which refers to a command for buying the AK back in CS 1.6.
The heart on every Printstream skin is a reference to a song called Heart-Shaped Box by Nirvana, which he bumped his headphones to on repeat; more of the things implemented in the skin are from his childhood and memories.
I didn’t get to tell this stories to a lot of people but the elements I put in it, they all have meaningful stories to me personally. For example, there’s this Heart-shaped symbol in every weapons, I want to let the people know that once you get a hold of someone’s heart, you have to be careful with it. That’s why I put “HANDLE WITH CARE” tagline in the design. - JTPNZ
Back to the beginning of the skin, what sparked the idea behind one of the best-looking skins in the game was a broken PC case.
According to the creator in a different interview, his front LED was broken, so he bought reflective bicycle stickers to replace it.
While fiddling with the stickers, he had the idea to create a design, and that's how the "X" logo was born! This unexpected source of inspiration is a great reminder that creativity can strike anywhere, even from something as simple as fixing a broken LED light.
To him, the objective was to incorporate everything he favored, as indicated when saying:
3 years ago, I started the project with this thought “I want to combine every single thing I liked, everything I was excited about especially graphic designs, quirky themes, bold choice of colors into one.
Printstream Skins in CS2
It all started with the Desert Eagle back in August 2020 as part of the Fracture Case receiving a warm welcome from the skins enthusiasts, and was described as the perfect skin for crafts with its clean white design that makes stickers look exceptional.
Months after the Fracture Case update, we received the Broken Fang Operation which had the second Printstream skin; the M4A1-S which has tripled in price since its release.
The latest added Printstream skin was for the USP-S, two years later in the Recoil Case, which had other skins with the same pearlescent effect.
The time frame in which the skins dropped is relatively long, which makes us wonder when we will see a new Printstream in the game, and more importantly which weapons the artist made the skin for.
All Submitted Printstream Skins
The artist initially dropped the first collection containing the Desert Eagle, AWP, M4A1-S, AK-47, and P250, before dropping a second collection for the SG 553, USP-S, MP7, MP5, and M4A4 a few months later.
AWP
AK-47
P250
SG 553
MP7
MP5
M4A4
JTPNZ Variety Skins
Aside from the Printstream, JTPNZ has other incredible skins that tell different stories from his home country, including some of his early work from back in 2017.
M4A4 | Ghouls in Town
“Ghouls in Town” is inspired by Thailand's tradition, 'Phi Ta Khon' which is a festival that takes place in Dan Sai, Loei province.
The origin of this tradition came from the Jataka tale about the previous incarnation of the Buddha. When he went out into the woods, wild spirits and creatures came to lead him back to the town and travel alone.
'Phi Ta Khon' in the magazine refers to the belief that by playing the role of these spirits or dressing up like them, people can symbolically rid themselves of sadness and negativity. According to this tradition, individuals must then discard their costumes, as a way of letting go of their troubles and misfortunes.
The pattern is a typography design of the Thai word, 'ผีตาโขน' to match the overall aesthetic of the skin and have a deeper representation of Thailand.
USP-S | On Sight
This USP-S was originally submitted for the Dreams & Nightmares contest with a frightening design that was inspired by his nightmares.
According to the artist’s description, he had nightmares where he saw a wall of flesh and eyes watching and staring at him. “it was terrifying”- JTPNZ
It's certainly a scary nightmare to have which was successfully put into a skin design that fits the USP-S.