Top 10 New Video Game Weapons of 2021
Each year, video games deliver more and more characters we grow to know and love. Whether it's their personality, cool character designs, or snarky remarks, every year, the list of video games most beloved characters keeps growing. 2021 was no exception, as many new characters became fan favorites, and will be capturing gamers' interests for years to come. These 10 characters are just some of 2021's great characters that stood out to me in the games I played and enjoyed. I picked them for a variety of reasons, but if your favorite new character didn't make the list, make sure to tell us your favorite in the comment section on social media!
RULES for our List:
- December 1st 2020 to December 1st 2021 games elligible. (ie. No Halo Infinite Weapons)
- If weapon debuts in a previous year game for the first time in 2021, it is eligible.
- List focuses on NEW weapons, therefore weapons introduced in previous years games that made a reappearance in a 2021 game may be left out.
- Weapon itself doesn't have to be unique, but a make a unique appearance, be used in a unique way, or provide a unique experience to players.
- To be a "Weapon" it must cause damage, hence no "tools" (ie. Portal Gun)
- To be a "Weapon" it must have form and shape and be wielded, hence no "powers or abilities"
These weapons are ranked here not necessarily by just how "powerful" or effective they are, as that is significantly relative and debatable; more mores or ranked by their fun factor and uniqueness. These weapons either had cool or unique concepts, were fun to play as.
10. Baseball Bat - (Back 4 Blood)
Back 4 Blood, somehow manages to take concepts that have been done far too much, in a genre that has been done to death, and somehow, against all odds, deliver a game that still feels fresh and fun. I honestly don't know how they did it. This game could have been the most bland boring thing ever, and it really was just a fun experience to play. The Baseball bat is a perfect example. Something as common, and every day as a bat, could be just a boring forgettable melee weapon, that you only use when you run out of ammo. It could be something you quickly forget about as soon as you get a good gun. But even the Bat in Back 4 Blood feels fun to use. It is a great way to conserve ammo when you aren't feeling overwhelmed. It is a great last ditch, "Swing Away Merril" moment when your out of ammo, low on health, about to die, and you just need to swing for your life. The baseball bat isn't even all that unique or special in this game, it's literally just a bat. But it just feels rewarding and satisfying to use, even when you find more powerful melee weapons in the game.
9. Mr Fungi - (Ratchet and Clank Rift Apart)
Ratchet and Clank Rift Apart has a LOT of weapons to choose from. It can be a little Doom Eternal level in terms of gun variety and complexity. Ratchet seems to be able to carry an insane amount of weapons at once, that each are all able to be customized and have variations. My favorite one is the goofy Mr Fungi. It is a great gun to use when needing to catch a breathe. All the weapons, ammo types, ammo conservation, ground healing items, and strategy in combat, sometimes you just need a second to think about what to do next. Mr Fungi is a mushroom character that the gun launch that damages and attacks enemies. It is a great way to buy you a few precious seconds to heal or plan your attack. Not to mention, it's a floating mushroom, and I just think it's hilarious.
8. Bocek - (Apex Legends)
Apex added a handful of new guns to the game this year, and some were returning Titanfall era guns like the CAR SMG. The most surprising one added, is the one for this list, is the Bocek Bow and Arrow. I honestly never would have thought to add a Bow and Arrow to Apex Legends. I probably would have argued against its addition. However, I am surprised how much I liked it. It is fun to have a silent weapon option in the game, as it can aid in third parties or sneak attacks. It is also versatile in that it offers two hop-ups, with scatter arrows being really fun to use. At first launch, I think it was a little OP, but it's current state makes it more balanced. Currently, It is a weapon that can take a little time to get good with. It's loot pool also needs to be re-balanced as it can be hard to find arrows, making a sniper rifle a more statistically better pick. That being said, it is the most unique weapon we've gotten in the game in a long time, and I hope Respawn keeps experimenting with new hop-ups (Explosive Arrows PLEASE?) and more unique atypical weapons. Perhaps Apex could introduce a melee weapon, or a launcher weapon next.
7. Blazing Sword - (Tales of Arise)
Tales of Arise is a Fantasy RPG that has its fair share of beautiful vistas, amazing characters, and great story. It is just an over all fantastic game, and at the heart of its story is the Blazing Story. It makes it on this list for it's importance to the story. It is the reason the two main characters must work together. Shionne owns and powers the the magical sword but the sword is so powerful, literally burning with magical energy, it burns and damages the wielder. Only Iron Mask (name censored for story spoilers) is capable of wielding the sword because he feels no paint. He can be injured, but Shionne can heal. It takes their unique complementary powers to wield the powerful magical sword. Not only it's unique nature give it cool narrative implications, the sword also just looks really cool. It is burn with molten metal, and flames up when in use. Between it's unique cool design, and how it impacts the story, makes it a Sword worthy of this list.
6. Kena's Staff/Bow (Kena: Bridge of Spirits)
Kena Bridge of Spirits has done something with it's protagonist of the same name, Kena's main weapon. Her staff starts off the game as a typical fantasy RPG magic mage staff, with melee and minor range. However, part way through the game, Kena unlocks her Bow, and rather than it being a separate weapon, it is actually a magic bow that shoots magical energy, and her staff acts as the bow. While a wood staff, that looks more like a staff then bow, it "bends" and a magical energy "String" forms to shoot the magical arrows. It just looks cool, and I've never seen a Staff/Bow transform like that before. Kena is one of the most visually impressive games of the year, and with it such an ingenious and creative weapon design really takes it to a new level.
5. Starlord's Duel Pistols "Element Guns" - (Guardians of the Galaxy)
Star Lord's Element Guns in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, 2021's biggest surprise, are just fantastic, especially if you play on a PS5. The guns take advantage of the duel sense PS5 controllers adaptive triggers. They just feel so good to hold down that new trigger and charge, or time shots. They are more than just duel pistols, but also give access to a satisfying array of unique special abilities. They have reload quick time that let's you be strategic on reloading and charging blasts. They have freezing and other special "ammo" types. They bring complexity to combat without overwhelming the player who also has to think about giving orders to a squad.
If you skipped Guardians because of the critical failure that was Avengers, don't. Guardians is ridiculously good, and these guns really make the player's journey in a lot of fun gameplay ways.
4. Severed Steel Arm Cannon - (Severed Steel)
Severed Steel is an experience that all gamers need to try. It is a phenomenal game, and is included on our Top 10 Indie Games list. It you ever played Super Hot, a game that makes you feel like a GunFu Matrix Soldier, Severed Steel evolves on that concepts, but let’s you control the flow of time in a way that makes you feel even more badass. The game has a list of weapons but it’s most noteworthy, is the arm cannon that the protagonist has mounted to their arm. It is a massive blasting beam, that can actually melt through the destructible environment. The beam melts through walls and floors, sometimes being the way to actually traverse through the map or reveal hidden enemies. There is just something satisfying about melting a hole in a wall and shooting the bad guys on the other side. Near the end of the game, the beam is used to drill a tunnel through multiple rooms. It makes you feel like Ironman, and feels powerful enough for you to drill to the center of the earth.
3. Ray Gun - (Fortnite)
It was a laser, a sniper rifle, an assault rifle, all rolled into one fun goofy package that really brought some fun times to the alien infused season. When you weren’t dodging OP UFO’s and getting caught in dark, red, inhospitable zones with monsters, the Ray gun felt like a powerful and yet not too op weapon to main. For a seasonal weapon to still feel reasonably balanced, but powerful enough to replace your trusty assault rifle in a multiplayer game, that is saying something.
2. Light Blade - (Bright Memory Infinite)
In games where you have multiple projectile weapons: snipes, assault rifles, shotguns, etc..., It is easy for a melee weapon to feel like the boring, never used back up weapon. Melee weapons can feel second class in a game when you also have guns. To solve this, sometimes developers sometimes make the melee weapon feel OP and broken, or ammo be scarce, which can also be less fun because it feels like you "have" to use to melee to save ammo.
Bright Memory Infinite is a beautiful gorgeous game that more outlets need to be talking about, and it could easily have fallen to this issue. The main protagonist Shelia not only has an impressive assortment of powers and fun satisfying guns, she also carries a sword. With so many fun powers and guns to choose from, Bright Memory Infinite could have felt like "why bother using the sword". However, not only does the game have ammo and powers play off of each other, incentivizing you to alternate between powers, sword, and gun in a way that feels rewarding rather than punishing, the swordplay is just so fun.
Shelia's light blade is not only incredibly fun to watch her whip is around like a ninja, it can be used as a shield to heal, and when upgraded nicely can be uber powerful. If her sword was unlimited in power and energy, you could play the whole game with just the sword and it would be fun. I especially like how the blade is balanced nicely in a world of projectiles, by giving it the ability to blast energy waves at enemies. I absolutely love swords that can also shoot things.
1. Battle Rifle - (SplitGate)
Splitgate is one of my absolute favorite games of the year, and one of the things that makes it super fun, besides the obvious Portal infused combat, is its solid and quality gunplay. I considered the rail gun or carbine for this list, but I have to admit my absolute favorite gun is the Battle Rifle. I have never enjoyed a burst fire weapon as much as I have enjoyed this gun, in fact, it made me want to main Halo's Battle Rifle in Halo Infinite upon it's release. Battle Rifles are just a beautiful balance of punch, capacity, and range. I picked it for my number one slot, because this gun has my highest kill count of the year. I've slayed more enemies with this thing than anything else on this list. There is something about it's three round burst that makes it super fun and reliable. It doesn't feel slow against full auto guns, and it doesn't feel weak against full sniper rifles. I really enjoy and mostly play SWAT, and the Battle Rifle is deadly in Swat, as you need to be quick and take those headshots. Splitgate is also the game I was the best at this year in terms of multiplayer, and when you plan your strategy, utilize your portals, and bring the battle rifle, you can rack up quite the body count.
