Okay, Soul Calibur has a lot of neat weapons, like Tira's giant hula hoop of death or Setsuka's umbrella/short katana combination. But none of them can compare to Ivy's sword, Valentine. Valentine is a magical sentient sword created by Isabella Valentine when she sought to destroy Soul Edge, and that means it can react out of its own accord to protect its owner (it's perfectly loyal to Ivy). But it doesn't stop there, because as cool as the idea seems, it's the actual design of the weapon that sets it apart; Valentine has the ability to switch between being a regular sword and a segmented sword/whip hybrid of unimaginable power. It gives Ivy an insane amount of range, vertically and horizontally, which is crucial when playing a fighting game like Soul Calibur where the stages are the size of a pinhead and you can win fairly by "Ring Out." The sword has many uses on top of that and it's versatile when it comes to your options: it can be used to cut, smack, whip, and even grab opponents from a distance. It also sort of lends Ivy a whole dominatrix dimension when she wraps Valentine around an enemy's neck, puts him or her on all fours, and pulls on the sword like it was a leash. Both the sword and its owner are kind of...intense...
It was difficult picking one weapon from the Soul Calibur series, but Valentine won out because it's just cool and completely unique. No other character in SC has anything even remotely like it and no one character plays like Ivy because of that reason. Ivy is probably the most difficult character to play in the Soul Calibur games, but it's worth it when you manage to work out the quirks of this awesome and deadly blade.
This one is going to surprise people after my comments of how the joy wears off after a while and how the gravity gun isn't really all that integral to Half-Life 2's gameplay. I still stand by those statements. But see, for what it was worth, it was actually a lot of fun during the first few hours of getting your hands on it. Issues aside, it was cool to try and figure out what I could and couldn't pull off with the gravity gun. It's kind of just there for the sake of showing off the physics engine, but unlike annoying seesaw puzzles, it can actually be a source of entertainment. It's fun to pick up saw blades and toss them at enemies while subsequently watching them get sliced in half. Soon, you discover that the gun can pretty much interact with anything that isn't nailed to the floor. In retrospect, that's a pretty big achievement on Half-Life 2's part, because it makes the environment more interesting.
So for all my complaints against HL2 as a game, make no mistake that I do, in fact, appreciate certain parts of it. I certainly wouldn't mind have a gravity gun in real life.
Plasmids were pretty much the most enjoyable part of the combat system in both Bioshock games. The abilities gained by plasmids vary from really cool to really useful. Plasmids allow you to control the environment as you best see fit: from electrocuting enemies in Rapture's many puddles, to freezing cameras and turrets until you can safely hack them, to tossing items across a room with telekinesis, etc. you just never run out of fun powers to use. My personal favorite? The swarm of hornets you can shoot from under your skin. Sounds disgusting, right? It is...but it's also amazing. Even the angriest Big Daddy will be distracted with the hornets, giving you a nice chance to attack from a distance. See, the thing is that without plasmids, Bioshock would have just been another shooter. One with a great story, mind you, but still just another shooter. Plasmids provide not just fun, but variety and a chance for players to creatively dispose of enemies. Best of all, they are presented to the player with a lot of personality; just watch the video I linked above! The inclusion of plasmids in Bioshock and Bioshock 2 is probably one the neatest ideas added to a first person shooter in a long, long time.
Probably one of the coolest and one of my absolute favorite weapons in video games. It's a giant brush with paint that can be used to slash through enemies, rebuild worlds, cut through obstacles, etc. Amaterasu has a lot of weapons in Okami, not the least being the shield on her back, but it's the amazing Celestial Brush that steals the spotlight. And why should it not? It's the most fun part of the game. Ironically, I only just found out an hour ago that the brush is in fact Amaterasu's tail. My boyfriend pointed it out to me, resulting in several well place facepalms. But it's not where it comes from that matters, it's what it does that matters. It's crucial to the gameplay elements of Okami, and it works well both in and out of battle. That's more than I can say for a lot of other video game weapons.
I've babbled about this set of games endlessly. I'm sure my readers know my love of both games by now. But really, the portal gun is probably the coolest and most useful video game weapon of all time. The ability to open portals to pass from one area to the next doesn't sound like much, but coupled with the superb level design, the portal gun becomes a blast to use. And who wouldn't want one in real life? Everything would be much easier if I had a portal to the kitchen right from my room. Lazy? Sure, but I wouldn't turn the idea down.
The portal gun wins because it's useful, integral to gameplay elements, fun, and unique. There is nothing like it in any other game ever made before and (so far) after.
Note: Those of you angry that your favorite weapons didn't make the cut, have no fear! I intend to do a volume II to this article because there are plenty of other awesome weapons I wanted to mention but simply couldn't fit in.
- Kharlo -
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