The world of video games operates on rules that are very different from real life. In order to make these whimsical fantasy worlds or gritty war-torn ones work, it's necessary to bend a few rules. From unscientifically-backed magic to protagonists having inexplicable levels of superhuman strength, video games freely introduce their own version of reality to create a sense of wonder and immersion.
It's easy to lose oneself in the creative world-building of our favorite games, but what would happen if worlds were to collide and suddenly the fan-favorite weapons were to come to life? Would they be just as powerful as they were in their own world, or would they end up as a fancy living room centerpiece instead?
8 Overwatch - Rocket Hammer
Reinhardt Wilhelm is easily Overwatch's most famous tank character. Aside from his signature Barrier Field shield he uses to protect his team from enemy projectiles, Reinhardt also has a handy weapon to deal some damage as well.
Reinhardt may make swinging his massive Rocket Hammer easy, but the average human being would definitely not be able to make use of his weapon at all. The Rocket Hammer has a range of about five meters when swung and is likely to weigh hundreds of pounds!
Sure, Reinhardt's hammer may be powerful but without a person strong enough to actually use it, it remains as a simple art piece and not an actual, useable weapon.
7 Dead Space 2 - Hand Cannon
Despite being a secret weapon that can only be unlocked after beating the game on the hardest mode, the Hand Cannon is a big fan favorite in the Dead Space fandom.
Don't be fooled by its harmless appearance, it is actually one of the strongest weapons in the game. With infinite ammo, an unlimited clip size, and incredible range, the Hand Cannon sends necromorphs running every time they hear Isaac's little "bang bang," or "pew pew pew" as he fires.
There's no real explanation as to why it's so powerful, but outside of Isaac Clarke's hands, the Hand Cannon is literally a simple foam finger. Aside from being able to feebly slap a friend or poke them in the eye, the Hand Cannon wouldn't be capable of doing any real damage in the real world.
6 Final Fantasy 7 - Buster Sword
Cloud is definitely an incredibly strong protagonist, and it's not easy to rival him in strength (or in good looks thanks to his stylish hairdo). Cloud's trusty blade has become such an iconic weapon in the gaming community and can easily be recognized in an instant as Final Fantasy 7's legendary Buster Sword.
Cloud swings it around as if it weighs nothing but in reality, if his Buster Sword were real, it'd be far too heavy for even the strongest human being to use properly. Without Cloud's talent for wielding oversized weapons, the Buster Sword would be completely impractical in real life.
5 Mario - Shells
Mario is a capable protagonist and one of his favorite weapons of choice are shells. Throughout the games (from Super Mario to Mario Kart), Mario has been utilizing Koopa, Paratroopa, and Blue Shells (in addition to his power-ups) to make his way past enemies.
All it takes for Mario to get rid of his foes is a simple flick of his wrist and a shell flying their way. However, in real life, throwing a turtle shell at a person wouldn't exactly do any real damage aside from a stubbed toe or a minor bruise. In the end, the poor turtle would likely be the one sustaining the most damage!
4 Portal - Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device
The Portal Device may look like a "gun" in the sense that it is held and shot like one, but it doesn't actually do direct damage to a target. The Portal Device is more so a tool that can be used in order to eliminate enemies; like being used to help stealthily take down unsuspecting enemies or drop large objects on a target to incapacitate them.
However, the key to successfully using Portal's main piece of equipment is a viable surface. The best and most effective surface for the Portal Device to work on is moon rock; and without it, the Portal Device's capabilities would be incredibly limited. So unless the average person has easy access to moon rocks or a spaceship that can get some, the Portal Device wouldn't be very useful in real-life situations.
3 Genshin Impact - Luxurious Sea-Lord
Among the many amazing weapons seen throughout all of Genshin Impact, the Luxurious Sea-Lord is by far the one that stole everyone's attention. Despite not even being a five-star weapon with amazing stats, this claymore got Genshin fans everywhere excited for its release in the version 2.1 Moonlight Merriment event.
There's an obvious reason why fans were so obsessed with this claymore and that was because of its unusual appearance. The Luxurious Sea-Lord isn't forged out of steel, iron, or even carved out of wood; instead, it is simply a hilarious oversized fish that is swung around just like any other Genshin weapon. Unfortunately, the Luxurious Sea-Lord wouldn't hold up very well under real-life physics (literally). The glorious fishy claymore would likely flop around under real-life circumstances and probably wouldn't be worth carrying around due to the smell!
2 Halo - Type-1 Energy Sword
While Halo's Master Chief has used his fair share of guns and launchers, the Energy Sword is one of the few melee weapons seen in the series.
The Energy Sword may seem incredibly powerful at first, but its build is described as "two partially ionized blades of free moving electron-based gas" and poses a very real problem. The actual form of the sword is designed to not only extend into sharp blades at the end to slice up enemies but also come down toward the handle, around the user's hand. It's likely that without the heavy-duty armor that the Elites or Spartans have in the game, the user would sustain some sort of burn or wound from the close contact with the plasma from the blade. But even with the help of some protection, there's the issue of the sword not having infinite usage. After a few good slices, the Energy Sword will eventually deplete its battery power.
Unless the user has access to durable armor and a convenient USB-C Energy Sword charger, then this legendary weapon isn't much use in real-life.
1 Kingdom Hearts - Kingdom Key (Keyblade)
Perhaps one of the most iconic and unique weapons of all time is Kingdom Hearts' Keyblade. While there are a ton of different Keyblades seen throughout the series for Sora and friends to collect, the most famous rendition is the very first Keyblade Sora gets in the first game: the Kingdom Key.
Fans may be better off making a real-life Keyblade a statement piece for their living room rather than trying to use it in a fight as it's a completely blunt sword. It is used and wielded exactly like a sword when used in game but is only truly useful against specific kinds of enemies. Unless the user is going head-to-head with hoards of Heartless, Nobodies, Unversed, or Dream Eaters, then this "blade" won't really do much good at all under real-world circumstances.
Bonus: Metal Gear Solid- Cardboard Box
While Snake's beloved cardboard box isn't quite a weapon, he equips and uses it just like any other tool or weapon in the game and surprisingly gets a lot done with it. Thanks to Snake's legendary cardboard box, players are able to penetrate some of the highest levels of security no matter where; all it takes is hiding under an empty box and pretending it was there the entire time. Guards in-game are baffled by this simple tactic but in real life, there's absolutely no way it would ever be that easy.
While this may work just fine for Snake in the world of Metal Gear Solid, in reality, sneaking out of the house past midnight or quietly slipping out of class with nothing but a cardboard box would be a recipe for a mission failed.