6. The R8 Revolver – Counter Strike: Global Offensive
We don’t usually cover much PC content here at AllGamers, but such an egregious example of an OP gun simply couldn’t go unchecked. Plus, CS:GO technically released on Xbox 360 and PS3, though the less said about that travesty the better. Counter Strike is a game built entirely around its high skill-ceiling. As an FPS, CS:GO rewards fast reactions, precise aim, and above all else, headshots. Back in 2015 however, someone at Valve clearly had other ideas, and in the Winter Update on December 8th, the R8 Revolver was introduced.
A new alternate to the popular Desert Eagle, the R8 was dealt insanely high damage, and was capable of killing armored players in a single shot to the chest or lower body at a healthy range. It was accurate while on the move and also had a high bullet penetration, allowing players to pull of ridiculous shots through walls. To put this in perspective, the R8 cost just $850 to buy, and the only other weapon capable of killing armored opponents in a single shot (excluding point blank shotguns) was the famous AWP sniper rifle, which weighs in at a whopping $4750. In fact, the gun was so broken on release that you could even fire it while defusing the bomb — how about that for multitasking? The R8 Revolver proved so controversial that esports tournament organisers were quick to ban the weapon from use.
If the R8 Revolver does not see a balance update by Monday night, we will remove the gun from Pug/Scrims until they have a chance to update.
— Brett Sheffield (@fewowns) December 10, 2015
Valve was swift in both nerfing the R8 and fixing its many bugs, but anyone who was around at the time will remember the update with fondness, fury or some ungodly mix of the two. For a few short days, CS:GO matches became a spaghetti western in which everyone played as a busted version of Overwatch’s McCree.
7. Cerebral Bore – Turok 2: Seeds of Evil
Turok 2 was renowned for its gruesome weaponry, but the Cerebral Bore took the blood-stained crown when it came to horrific ways to kill. Firing a homing shot that would track its target, the now-infamous bore would embed itself in the head of an opponent, drilling directly into their skull for a few seconds before exploding. An instant kill, it was incredibly gory, causing a fountain of blood and viscera to spurt from the juddering victim’s head. In the game’s campaign, the weapon was so terrifying that some AI enemies would even flee in terror.
Though footage is hard to come by, the effect was eerily similar when applied online, as players would raced around the arena, desperately trying to escape the deadly source of that high pitched whine. Even from max health, the Cerebral Bore was a one-hit kill, meaning the only way to survive it was to run and never look back.
