BioShock has very rich gameplay that's centered around Jack, who uses Plasmids- the super mutagenic serum to take out enemies. The game provides twelve plasmids in total. The game's small but valuable weapon selection makes those Plasmids all the more worthwhile. The game has a total of 7 weapons that offer different playstyles to help players on their plot-driven journey.
- RELATED: Best Single Player Shooters
All the weapons besides the wrench are upgradeable. Some weapons are not as powerful as others, but this article gives players a list of the best weapons in the game. All weapons mentioned will be ranked based on how they work early in the game and when fully upgraded.
7 7/7 Machine Gun
The Machine Gun in BioShock is a lot of fun to use at earlier stages in the game. It has the potential to spray down a lot of weak enemies at once. The value of having something for crowd control is essential when a player is in a tight spot. As the game progresses, Plasmids do a better job at this, and the gun becomes mostly useless.
Of course, it's still a lot of fun to pull out and spray down enemies with the Machine gun, but even the upgrades don't do much for this gun. It's also one of the only guns to have a completely useless upgrade. Its recoil reduction can be all around skipped by a player while spray firing instead of holding down the fire button.
6 6/7 Shotgun
The Shotgun is a mighty weapon initially as well as late in the game. It is also one of the most powerful weapons early on because it lands tremendous damage when used on enemies from a close range. The Shotgun also has good damage at a medium range, making it even more effective. However, the weapon does feel weak when you move further in the game.
When fully upgraded, the Shotgun deals four times the damage. The 00 Buck can also cause devastating damage, especially when combined with the Plasmid that freezes enemies. The weapon does not exactly become terrible, but it does not hold up later in the game, mainly because of its extremely low reload rate.
5 5/7 Pistol
The Pistol is a weapon that deserves more praise from the community. It's one of the first guns players possess early in the game, but it is certainly not the best. The headshot damage is excellent, though, as it has a 4x damage multiplier on Splicers. The biggest hindrance of this gun is the clip size. Later, the gun can receive a 300% clip size upgrade and 25% damage upgrade. Then, this gun is no joke to anyone taking a hit to the dome.
The rounds at high levels also make it amazing to use. Armor-piercing pistol rounds are rare but can do high amounts of damage to the game's most formidable enemies. Anti-personnel rounds also outmatch the Machine Gun, making the Pistol one of the best primary weapons in Bioshock.
4 4/7 Grenade Launcher
The Grenade Launcher in Bioshock, like Grenade Launchers in any other game, does enormous damage to enemies. This weapon can take out all enemies with one well-placed shot. Upgrading it will make players immune to its splash damage, allowing them to land considerable damage to enemies up close and personal. There is also a 25% damage increase, a significant upgrade since the Grenade launcher already deals big damage in its base form.
Players figuring out which way to use this on their journey is part of the joy this weapon brings. The different types of ammo are combined with all sorts of Plasmids to deal damage to Splicers and Big Daddies in interesting ways.
3 3/7 Chemical Thrower
The Chemical Thrower is, without a doubt, the weakest early weapon in this game. Its initial range is terrible, and the weapon can also damage the players, so they must be very careful with it. The damage dealt is not impressive initially, but that changes after the upgrade.
- RELATED: Most Beautiful Games
When fully upgraded and used with the right tonics, the weapon can land massive damage. It is feasible for players to use the Chemical Thrower in place of Plasmids during greater difficulties. This weapon can be used as one of the primary weapons to take out enemies when it's been fully upgraded. In short, it teaches players not to judge guns before their upgrades.
2 2/7 Wrench
The Wrench is one of the game's most powerful weapons, but many Bioshock players don't realize this. Yes, it certainly looks weak with its wrench-like qualities. However, if a player takes enough time to stack up all the different bonuses, they will see the damage output of the Wrench.
Wrench deals a steady 190 damage if a player gets both the Wrench Jockey upgrades and the Research Camera bonus. On top of that, the damage boosts up to 945 on enemies that don't spot the players. It also gets wild when players get Splicers shocked with the Electro Bolt. If shocked and unaware, it can bring the damage up to 3,780!
1 1/7 Crossbow
Players get the Crossbow in one of the best levels in BioShock, Fort Frolic. It has some of the highest damage capabilities in the game and unholy kill potential. The potential of the Crossbow is much greater than any other weapon in the game. It has ammo that works like trip wires that'll electrocute enemies and others, eventually lighting them on fire.
On lower difficulties, players can kill elite Big Daddies with one Incendiary Bolt once they've been fully researched. The shots also deal a lot of damage on harder difficulties. Regular Steel-Tip Bolts can take out Splicers in 1 hit as headshots have a 10x multiplier. A well-placed headshot on Splicers with an Incendiary bolt can deal up to 6000 damage. The upgraded crossbow reduced Bolt breakage. Players can use that upgrade and telekinesis to instantaneously grab a fired bolt and reload it back into the Crossbow.
- NEXT: Best Platformer Games