Top Ten Most Badass Weapons in Gaming History – # 3 The Gravity Gun
There are many definitions for the word weapon. According to dictionary.com, it can be “any instrument or device for use in attack or defense in combat, fighting, or war, as a sword, rifle, or cannon”. Or, “anything used against an opponent, adversary, or victim”. Kirkland, Washington developer Valve clearly prefers the latter classification.
When the creators of Half-Life 2 invented the Zero-Point Energy Manipulator (or Gravity Gun) they transformed every loose piece of material in the game into a weapon, no matter how unassuming. It not only made for some amazing puzzles and showed off the Havok physics engine, but it also opened that Pandora’s Box that hides all our most sinister intensions. Players asked themselves, what is the most interesting method I can use to kill this guy?
And there was a lot of intriguing debris to choose from, because City 17 was practically a cornucopia of litter. For most citizens these pieces of rubbish might have been an annoyance, but for Gordon Freeman it was all just ammunition.
Paint cans, barrels, saw blades, lumber, pipes, washing machines, cars, tires, rocks, grates, fans and even people– anything was fair game when using the Gravity Gun. And the results of launching this refuse at Combine soldiers and other foes were rewarding, disturbing, and at times absolutely hilarious.
Hurtling exploding barrels into Antlions, or flinging detached rotary blades through the abdomens of mumbling Headcrabs, are the priceless moments that every gamer savors.
Thank you, Valve, for finally putting Sir Isaac Newton’s theories concerning physics and gravitation to good use in the field of zombie combat. If only more sciences catered towards discovering new and interesting ways to dismember our enemies.
Top Ten Most Badass Weapons List: 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1
