From Haunted House on the Atari to the The Devil in Me on PS5, horror games are one of the biggest genres in gaming. Games have tackled all sorts of horror tropes, including ghosts,zombies, and the confines of deep space.
Throughout these games, players have wielded a wide range of weapons, including pump actionshotguns, spears, and teddy bears. Not all weapons in horror games are born alike, though; some are nothing short of iconic. These weapons were born in flashes of brilliance, and when asked to think back on these games, you likely have fond - or nightmarish - memories of using them.
Updated on July 04, 2025, by Dominic Allen:The two best video game genres out there with the best weapons have to be FPS and horror. When fighting the undead, demons, ghosts, or other supernatural beings, you want a good arsenal, and horror games have you covered. Horror has plenty of great, unique, unlockable weapons, but also standard ones that have become iconic in the world of gaming. High-quality replicas of some of these weapons go for good money, which just shows how iconic and meaningful they actually are.
12Whip
Castlevania
Before survival horror hit big on the PS1, there were many retro 8 and16-bit horror games, and Castlevania was the best series out there. 2D sidescrolling action at its finest, the series also had the most iconic horror game weapon before the PS1 days: the whip.
A straight line that’ll hit anything in its path, it worked perfectly for the 2D action Castlevania offered. In certain titles, like Super Castlevania 4, the whip was debatably one of the greatest weapons of the 16-bit era, being usable in eight directions. This made it a total beast, and the whip remains an iconic weapon of retro gaming.
11Great Knife
Silent Hill 2
The famous weapon wielded by Pyramid Head in Silent Hill 2, the Great Knife can also be used by James himself, and it’s a blast to play with. The Great Knife has so much weight to it that moving around is incredibly slow, but the weapon itself packs a huge punch.
It’s a great option for one boss fight near the end of the game, and it’s very satisfying to use as the killing blow for the final boss. Unfortunately, the remake doesn’t include the Great Knife as a standalone weapon, despite one brief moment wielding it, which is a crying shame.
10Chicago Typewriter
Resident Evil 4
The Chicago Typewriter (which is really not a typewriter) in Resident Evil 4 might be an unlockable weapon, but it’s a particularly good one. Boasting both unlimited ammunition and substantial damage, the typewriter can take down whole groups of enemies.
It can be unlocked after you beat the Assignment Ada mini-game on the GameCube version, while on the other versions, it is unlocked after beating Separate Ways. The weapon is part of Leon’s mobster assemble. In a bizarre touch, each time you unload the unlimited ammunition weapon, Leon performs a new hat trick.
9The Machete
Friday The 13th: The Game
The faster you are as a player in Friday the 13th: The Game, the more likely you are to proceed through it. The game memorably lets you choose to play as either the camp counselor or as Jason. Unlike the other weapons on this list, this is the only entry that involves a weapon utilized by a potential antagonist.
If you’re playing as Jason, you absolutely need to give thought to grabbing the machete, which is the fastest melee weapon and one of the best in the game if you need to leave a locked room quickly. The weapon becomes even stronger when you play as a Jason with incredible weapon strength and durability. If you choose to be this game’s bad guy, the machete can make all the difference.
8Slicecycle
The Dead Rising series features a whole host of weapons that players likely never saw in another game, let alone a horror-themed one. There are lawnmowers, gumball machines, shower heads, and excavators, among other bizarre weaponry.
Dead Rising 2 tells the story of Chuck Greene, a former motocross champion, and in this game, Chuck has a bike for the ages in the form of the Slicecycle. While it might sound strange, the Slicecycle is a motorcycle equipped with chainsaws on either side, making it ideal for ripping through crowds of zombies. Is there anything more memorable about the Dead Rising series than cutting through zombie hordes on a motorcycle with dual chainsaws?
7Flashlight
Silent Hill 2 And 3
A few games have used flashlights to notable effect, but Silent Hill 2 and 3 are the games best remembered for jump-starting the use of flashlights in games. Due to clipping and fog, the game also revolves heavily around what players can and cannot see.
In both games, monsters are drawn to sound and light; this is why monsters prey on creatures that require light. The Flashlight, while not exactly a weapon, becomes a critical tool for survival. Heck, in some games, like Silent Hill: Origins, turning the flashlight off can let you skip by most enemies. Good luck, though, with how dark Origins is.
6Plasma Cutter
Sometimes just referred to as cutters, this is actually a jerry-rigged weapon used by Isaac Clarke against Necromorphs. The strength of the plasma cutter is that it acts as a compliment to gameplay. The weapon helps to cut off limbs, assists in precision shooting, and is a really good default weapon.
It’s so good, in fact; you can blast through the entirety of Dead Space exclusively using the plasma cutter, and it’s a good idea, too. On the harder difficulties, ammo is so sparse that it’s a good ideato use only the plasma cutter, as the ammo drops consist of weapons you already have, and the plasma cutter can be used in virtually every scenario out there.
5Sword
Alone In The Dark
Alone in the Dark is an influential horror game that directly inspired Resident Evil. Its combination of fixed camera angles over static backgrounds ended up influencing countless horror games.
The game’s best weapon is its sword, which is the only weapon that can harm the Ezechiel Pregzt, a ghoul and the game’s main enemy. Unlike most other weapons in Alone in the Dark, the sword does not easily break and is continuously used. It is also the game’s deadliest melee weapon and can be used in various ways to fight enemies.
4Flamethrower
Until Dawn
One of the reasons Until Dawn works so well is that the game pulls a mid-play switch in who the antagonist is. Once you learn about the Wendigos, you are already deep in the second act.
While Until Dawn lets you utilize an array of weapons, the most memorable one in the game is the flamethrower that the stranger uses when fighting off hordes of the monsters. While it might not be the most helpful weapon in the game, it’s certainly the most deadly, and the sequence in which it’s used is one of the game’s most memorable moments.
3Grenade Launcher
The Left 4 Dead series takes a fun, frantic approach to zombie killing. Making its debut in the series' second game, the grenade launcher takes action and explosiveness to a whole new level. Featuring a long reload time and one shell at a time, it’s not an easy weapon to use.
However, if used probably and on specific enemies, itcan make the difference between life or death. You can even upgrade to its ammo type to make it more destructive. Be warned that if you’re playing on Expert, do not fire it near friendlies because the blast can cause an instant knockdown.
