I haven't seen a thread dedicated to this topic yet, so I figured I'd start this one. Well, I suppose to start off this discussion, perhaps we could break it down into 2 general requirements. A weapon either is used by you to kill others or is used by others to kill you. Therefore a overall fun weapon must
1) Be fun to use.
2) Be fun to be killed by.

For example, I think most of us can agree that the BW lightning gun for UT2004 is generally fun to use. I consider the UT3 rocket launcher very satasfying to use becasue blowing people into giblets is quite fun. I have the same opinion on the impact hammer for similar reasons. Likewise, the RS lightning gun for UT3 is quite fun to use becasue of its use of various visual effects and tossing people around is generally great fun. Likewise for the HL2 grav gun.

Now, on to the second requirement about a weapons being fun: having fun being killed by it. While nobody plays a game and looks forward to getting pwnd. I always enjoy getting pinned up on the wall by the UT3 stinger (but I enjoy pinning up others more). Also, to make dying fun, you must be convinced that your death was fair enough. If I take a rocket at 100 health and die, I can be convinced that a rocket should kill a person. Likewise, when a godlike bot is dancing around me as I try to peg it with a flak cannon and get an impact hammer in the back, I could say that my death was fair and I should try a lower skill level. There is already a billion page long thread about the RS lightning gun for UT2004 balance in the game, but I think it is safe to say that there are some people who exist in the same plane of existance as me who dislike the lightning gun becasue being killed by it is not fun. While I do acknowledge that there are some people who consider it fair while other consider it unfair. Perhaps there was some trait of the lighting gun that made it more frusterating to be killer by than fun, especially when the same people may consider a rocket-induced death OK. Now, let's not get too specific about that so a moderator doesn't have to lock this thread, but I would argue that the RS lightning gun and Flamethrower for UT2004 were fun to use, but not quite as fun to get killed by as the other weapons, mainly due to the fact that you can't see anything when getting hit. However, if I get hit by a rocket or Flak cannon and don't die from it, I can quickly look around to see who's feeling lucky. Again, just opinion, so let's not get this thread as locked up as an overloaded Win95 OS.

For me to enjoy using a weapon It has to sound awesome, feel weighty and powerful, and knock people of their feet

eg:
Half life 2 shotty
half life 2 plasma rifle
ut3 shock rifle
runestorm pitbull shotgun
most cod4 weapons

what i do not like are weedy sounding weapons that, are weedy, or are to powerful to have such a weedy sound, or a weedy weapon with a powerful sound.

eg:
UT3 enforcer
most stalker soc weapons
most ut2004 weapons

just my 2 cents

Oh yeah, they also have to look good!

It must look pretty. And shoot pretty stuff. And not do too much damage.

Most important though: even if it sounds and looks great, shoots the most beautiful projectile known to man, and is fun to use and be killed by; it has to have a decent level of ammo. Too much and it will feel cheap to kill with it and too little and it will frustrate you when others steal it and you might only get a few shots with it.

oh yes the ammo thing is a must!

Good sound & visuals that are synchronized with each other is all I need to like a weapon.

Look Pretty, booming sounds, and easy to use.


My Fave weapons

Cyber Rifle (UT1- Apocalypse Weapons)

Minigun (UT1)

Sniper Rifle (UT1)

D49 (UT2- BW)

R78A1 Sniper Rifle (UT2- BW)

Hacker (UT3- Parser)

Pitbull (UT3- Runestorm)

Sentinels (UT3- Mr. Evil)

Laser rifle (CnC Renegade)

ViPER (BW)

RazorJack (Unreal)

Grenade launcher (Unreal 2)

Laser carbine (FEAR)

Pulse rifle (UT99)

The pulse rifle in HL2 is possibly my all time favorite weapon in any game. Looks great, has a crazily satisfying sound - that repeats many times a second, and is of course deadly in close and medium-range combat.

To kill WITH:

The HV Magnetic Plasma Cannon from Sarge's pack is so fun. Direct hit? Fried corpse. Splash hit? They get sent flying at extreme speed from plasma tendrils!!!

The flamethrower. BURN, BABAY, BURN!!! Burn!!! Burn!!! BUUUURRRN!!! *Torches above poster*

To be killed BY:

Hmm. Umm, I'd say that pretty much any death that results in/consists of ridiculous deaths and physics and was preceded by a good fight is fun in my book, so long as I'm not getting annihilated.

Personally, I think making a weapon require skill makes it a lot more fun in my books.

Take the Spartan Laser of Halo 3 for example.

You shoot someone who's at the apex of a man cannon launch in Val Halla, it means something. You pull it off with a Spartan Laser? Its Legendary.

And if you get killed by it, I don't feel very bad at all. It probably means the person who killed truly is skilled and did not kill me with some cheap sniper rifle.

Another example is again from Halo 3, the Plasma Pistol.

Having a Juggernaut or take coming straight your way, what do you do? Hit it with a charged blast. Stops the tank dead in its tracks and leaves the Juggernaut vulnerable to a finishing melee strike. Classic.

I find sound to be very important. I replaced the M806 fire sound with a sound from a similar gun in another game and it feels completely different now.

I personally like guns that feel and sound powerful.

I made my SM-AT/AA so it sounds and feels like a cannon pulled right off a tank.