It's not a zombie apocalypse if you don't have weapons on you. Which weapon is right for which job, though? Well, take a gander at this list to find out as I rank the best weapons from the early to late stages of the game .
10. G19 (Early)
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Classic starter pistol
The G19 is the 1st weapon that you acquire in the game. It is taken off the corpse of a police officer in the opening sequence (after Jill escapes a horde and Brad is bitten). Being the starter pistol, it isn’t anything to write home about. Its average firepower, focus speed, and accuracy will do just enough to get you through the earliest stages of the game, but outside of that, this gun shouldn’t see much use outside of very niche scenarios.
What we like about the G19:
Large ammo pool. Ammo for this gun is the most plentiful in the game. It’s not an infinite well (like some other weapons on this list), but it’s the most abundant regular resource in the game.
Double tap. If you’ve downed an enemy but don’t want to waste another shotgun shell or grenade round to check if it’s actually dead, you can safely use this gun to peck at it. It only takes 1 bullet to rouse a zombie playing possum, after all.
Inanimate objects. This sounds silly at first glance, but you really don’t want to be going around wasting shots from more powerful guns on things like crates and bobbleheads. This gun is perfect for collecting those little extra bonuses the game gives you without compromising your ammo pool for the more powerful weapons.
The G19 isn’t winning any awards for its lethality any time soon. Even regular zombies on the standard difficulty will take 7-9 shots to put down, and tougher enemies make this gun almost useless (outside of challenge runs). It’s upgradeable, but it doesn’t make up the distance between the other weapons on this list.
Stats:
15 bullet magazine
Single-Fire
Upgradeable
Lethality Score: 60/100
9. Infinite MUP Handgun (Early)
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The slightly better starter pistol
The MUP Handgun is a weapon that you can acquire from the item shop after completing your 1st playthrough of the game. It costs 8000 points to buy. This is the G19 but marginally better. The stats don’t differ at all; you simply have more bullets to fire.
What we like about the Infinite MUP Handgun:
Infinite ammo. This is the 1st of the infinite ammo weapons on the list. You still have to reload, but you will never run out of bullets.
Good accuracy. The MUP is good for when you want to hit precise shots on enemies (though you don’t want it to be your primary means of retaliation in later stages).
Trash mob enemies. This is the best gun to just mindlessly waste ammo on weaker enemies with. Using something like the rocket launcher or RAI-DEN (yes, that’s a weapon’s name in this game) is pointless on enemies that will go down easily anyway.
Like I said earlier, this is just the G19 with infinite ammo. Same damage, range, everything. Just infinite ammo to shoot at things.
Stats:
15 bullet magazine
Single-Fire
Infinite Ammo
Lethality Score: 60/100
8. Infinite CQBR Assault Rifle (Early-Mid)
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Get used to the word “Infinite”
The Infinite Assault Rifle is another shop weapon that you can purchase like the MUP Handgun. It costs 28400 points to buy. An assault rifle being better than pistols isn’t all that shocking. What is shocking is just how expensive this weapon is (the 2nd most expensive in the game) compared to how good it is. It unloads rounds like there’s no tomorrow with high magazine capacity, but it takes a lot more bullets to put enemies down as well.
What we like about the Infinite Assault Rifle:
Infinite ammo. Like the previous weapon, this weapon holds infinite ammo. Unlike the previous weapon, however, its magazine is much larger (64+ bullets to 15).
It’s fully automatic. This is the gun you want to use if you want to go full Rambo.
Staggering. This gun will cripple enemies quickly due to its high rate of fire. Simply aim for an arm or the legs, and let it rip.
Compared to its price point, this gun isn’t the most bang for your buck, but it’s still serviceable. It actually takes more bullets on average to put enemies down than some of the pistols, but you’ll hardly feel that with its mag count and rate of fire.
Stats:
64 bullet magazine
Full-auto
Infinite Ammo
Lethality Score: 65/100
7. RAI-DEN (Late)
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Insert Mortal Kombat joke
The RAI-DEN is yet another shop weapon with (you guessed it) infinite ammo. It costs 12000 points to unlock. This weapon deals absolutely massive damage when it hits targets, but there’s a caveat. If you don’t hit enemy weak points (the head, most of the time), it will do no damage at all.
What we like about the RAI-DEN:
Infinite ammo. Another day, another infinite ammo weapon.
Silver medal in damage. This is the 2nd most damaging weapon in the game if you’re skilled enough to get consistent value out of it. One-shots galore if you have good aim.
Hitting bigger enemies. Bigger enemies like Hunters have bigger hitboxes, so it makes hitting crit shots much easier than on smaller enemies like bugs or normal zombies.
This weapon would be much higher if it had more than damage going for it. As it is, though, its harder to get value out of than most other weapons. When you do, though, the value is immense.
Stats:
2 Inventory Slots
Single-Fire
Infinite Ammo
Lethality Score: 70/100
6. Samurai Edge (Early-Mid)
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Classy Carnage
The Samurai Edge is Jill’s own personal, customized pistol. It’s a shop weapon that costs 5600 points. Befitting Jill’s hyper-efficient (almost obsessive) nature, this works like a charm for popping zombie skulls. It has increased damage and focus from the earlier pistols, making it good for a longer period of time into the game than the MUP or the regular starting pistol.
What we like about the Samurai Edge:
Focus time. The Samurai Edge’s crosshairs will zoom in faster than other weapons’, allowing for cleaner, quicker shots.
Good damage for a pistol. This weapon will drop zombies in half the time the previous pistols will.
Higher crit rate. This gun has a higher chance of getting critical shots on enemies than the previous pistols.
This is probably the most solid, all-around weapon in the game. It does good damage (kills zombies in 4-5 shots), has fast crosshair focus, and shares the large ammo pool with most of the other pistols. Topped off with its high critical hit-rate, it's viable up to the midgame.
Stats:
15 bullet magazine
Single-Fire
Higher crit-rate
Lethality Score: 80/100
5. G18 Burst Model (Late)
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Upgraded, fresh out the box
The G18 burst model is a gun found by Jill after she wakes up in the hospital. It fires in 3-round bursts instead of the single-fire that all the other pistols have. It is the only weapon in the game that comes fully upgraded by default (there is a normal G18, but it’s wielded by Carlos instead of Jill). It fires in bursts of 3 and has an extended magazine.
What we like about the G18 Burst Model:
Extended mag. There are 33 bullets in the magazine as opposed to the 15 (or 16) that most pistols hold normally.
Burst shots. The G18 shoots 3 bullets at once, so it outputs more damage per second than some of the other pistols.
It’s good for the final boss fight. This weapon is particularly good for shooting at the fleshy weak spots of the final boss and bursting them in one go.
The G18 is basically the older sibling of the G19 in almost every way. It outputs 9 bullets where most other guns get out 3, and it’s marvelous for targeting weak points on enemies because of that. It also has relatively low recoil, making the aiming smoother.
Stats:
Extended mag (33 bullets)
Burst Rounds
Low Recoil
Lethality Score: 85/100
4. Shotgun (Early-Late)
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Nothing like a good shotty
The shotgun is a Jill-exclusive weapon that’s found early in the game. It is located in the Kite Bros subway building just outside the Donut Shop. Let’s be honest, it’s a shotgun. It blows things to bits and giblets. High damage, high carnage, and high satisfaction are a given with this weapon in almost any game… especially if it’s upgradeable like it is here.
What we like about the Shotgun:
Damage. This will kill most enemies in 1 or 2 shots except the boss(es) and one particularly annoying, regenerating enemy later in the game.
Consistency. The shotgun is good at any point in the game save certain parts of boss fights, and only becomes more so when you upgrade it.
Upgrades. The shotgun has the best upgrades in the game. There’s a shell holder (that increases the reload speed), a tactical stock (increases accuracy by decreasing recoil), and a semi-auto barrel (increases firing rate).
The shotgun is almost the perfect weapon. It has damage, upgradeability, is easy to find, and is consistent. The only thing holding it back is its lack of range, rendering it ineffective in portions of the boss fights.
Stats:
4 bullet magazine (Can upgrade to 6)
Single-Fire (Can upgrade to Semi-auto)
Upgradeable
Lethality Score: 90/100
3. Grenade Launcher (Early-Late)
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A nade' a day keeps em in their grave
The grenade launcher is a special weapon that you can find in the sewer section of the game. If you miss it, you can also find it in the passage you take right before the 2nd boss fight. It holds four different types of rounds, all with their own properties and uses. The four are flame rounds, acid rounds, explosive rounds, and mine rounds.
What we like about the Grenade Launcher:
Utility. The grenade launcher has four different types of rounds that can help out in a multitude of situations. Flame, acid, mine, and explosive rounds are all present for different situations.
Horde clearing. Most of the rounds will clear out a horde of enemies very well and give you room to operate and move around.
Special enemies. The grenade launcher is good at dealing with the tougher enemies in the game, from Hunters to Nemesis himself. The four different types of rounds are good for killing them or otherwise softening them up.
The grenade launcher is a good, all-around weapon that provides a lot of utility for different situations. It kills normal enemies near instantly, and tougher enemies get softened up if not outright killed relatively quickly as well. The reload time and fall-off over distance are the only big downsides here.
Stats:
6 cartridges per ammo type
4 ammo types
Switchable
Lethality Score: 95/100
2. Lightning Hawk (Late)
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THE pistol
The Lightning Hawk is a Jill-exclusive pistol that you can find in the hospital after you regain control of her. It is found in the hospital courtyard after crawling through some debris and jumping out a window as Jill. It is modeled after the real life Desert Eagle and packs the punch to back it up. It doesn't matter what this is up against, it’ll kill it or otherwise cripple it for easy pickings.
What we like about the Lightning Hawk:
Damage. While not the actual most damaging weapon (that honor goes to the number 1 weapon on this list), it is very close, and doesn't have the tradeoff that the RAI-DEN does for it's damage.
Piercing damage. Each bullet can penetrate right through several enemies and kill them all at once.
Upgradeable. You can upgrade this already insane gun and have it have less recoil (thus, more accuracy).
The godfather pistol and the 2nd best weapon in the game, this gun does its job and then some. Enemies go down in no more than two shots typically, and its power and range are things to be feared. It is somewhat slow, though, and doesn’t hold a lot of ammo, but that’s what the upgrade and the crafting companion are for.
Stats:
8 bullet magazine
Single-Fire
Piercing damage
Lethality Score: 100/100
1. Infinite Rocket Launcher (Early-Late)
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The Great Equalizer
The Rocket Launcher is a shop weapon. It costs 62400 points to unlock, and it is the most expensive item in the game to purchase. The price is completely justified, though. This weapon trivializes the game and essentially makes you invincible if used right (or even if not used right). It’s got everything you want and need, and is not only helpful for completing the story, but is great for farming challenges as well.
What we like about the Infinite Rocket Launcher:
One-shotting. This is the most powerful weapon in the game, bar none. It kills everything in one shot but the boss, and the boss still goes down with a few more.
Splash damage. There’s a huge radius of splash damage that will also kill pretty much anything in its path.
Infinite ammo. You’re basically turning on god mode at this point.
Range. This can be fired from any and all ranges, and will always do huge amounts of damage no matter where you shoot it from.
The rocket launcher, as per Resident Evil tradition, is the undisputed king of the weapons in any game it's in. There are no downsides to it. It costs a large amount of points, but the havoc you can wreak with it is unrivaled. With it, you become the boss character.
Writing for over a decade and gaming for twice that, I've poured countless hours into all things video games. Shooters, sports, fighters, you name it... just don't ask me to cook!
Gamer Since:
2001
Currently Playing:
Overwatch, Resident Evil 3 Remake, Final Fantasy 7 Remake
