Half-Life 2

Half-Life 2 is the 2004 sequel to Half-Life developed by Valve Software. It was followed by two episodic sequels, Episode One and Episode Two, released in 2006 and 2007, respectively. In 2020, 13 years after the release of Episode Two, a prequel known as Half-Life: Alyx was released as a VR exclusive.
Approximately 20 years after the events of the first game, the world is under the oppressive rule of an interdimensional empire known as the Combine. Gordon Freeman, having been put into stasis by the G-Man at the end of Half-Life, is awakened and placed on a train headed for City 17, an Eastern European city serving the Combine's capital, where he quickly becomes involved in the resistance movement.
In September 2003, a year before the game's release, a hacker stole an unfinished build from Valve's servers which was later leaked onto the internet. The firearms featured only in this leaked version are detailed at the bottom of this page in the "Cut Weapons" section. This page also includes Episode One and Episode Two.
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=Handguns=
==Heckler & Koch USP Match==
Named the "9mm Pistol" in-game, the Heckler & Koch USP Match is the standard issue sidearm of the Combine's "Civil Protection" police force. It is first seen wielded by a guard in the train station and is soon after used against Gordon as he flees across the rooftops in the chapter "Point Insertion". Later, at the beginning of "Route Kanal", one can be taken from a slain CP and then used throughout the game. Compared to the Glock from the first game, it is noticeably less accurate, but its fire rate is no longer restricted, being able to fire as fast as the player can tap the fire button. Although it becomes largely obsolete against most enemies after the first few chapters, its decent accuracy, rate of fire, and high capacity make it suitable for a variety of applications, such as attacking weak but difficult to hit enemies like Headcrabs and Manhacks and setting explosive barrels on fire from a distance. Despite it using standard 15-round magazines (with finger-rest floorplates like in the picture below), it holds 18 rounds like the extended magazines that are meant to be used in conjunction with H&K's "jet-funnel" extended mag-wells. Oddly, while it can be found in many supply caches and beside civilian corpses, Resistance members are never actually seen using it.
Early versions of the game had a bug which allowed the player to "charge" a shot by holding down both the primary and secondary fire buttons at once, resulting in a shotgun-like spread of multiple bullets; this was fixed in Episode Two and in the May 26th, 2010 update for the base game and Episode One.
==Colt Anaconda==
Though the ".357 Magnum" has the HUD icon and markings of a Colt Python Elite, the gun is actually modelled after the Colt Anaconda. It is first acquired in a Civil Protection outpost in the chapter "Water Hazard". It's powerful, accurate, and can kill Civil Protection units in one shot and Overwatch Soldiers and Elites with a well placed shot to the head. Its accuracy makes it effective at long range if the suit zoom is utilized: simply zoom in on an enemy's head, quickly zoom out, and fire. However, ammunition is very limited at only two spare cylinders' worth, and resupply is relatively infrequent, which means it can only be used sparingly.
==Alyx Vance's pistol==
Alyx Vance (voiced by Merle Dandridge) wields a custom, unnamed pistol in Half-Life 2 and its following episodes. The pistol does not appear to be based on any known firearm, but it is implied that it is the same pistol that appears in Half-Life: Alyx, which is a Para-Ordnance LDA; however, there are multiple differences between the two, such as it lacking most of the upgrades from that game and is equipped with an extended magazine, which was explicitly cut from Alyx. It uses the same sound effects as the USP Match, but it was given unique sounds in Episode One; this was not changed in the base game.
Originally, it had the ability to change into an SMG and a carbine - the rear of the pistol's top would extend out backwards to form a stock, and the forend would extend forwards and have a foregrip unfold from it. When changing from SMG to rifle, the barrel shroud would form a barrel extension and the stock would extend even further. While this feature was cut, the animations can still be found in the game's files.
While not intended to be used by the player, PC players can use the console command "give weapon_alyxgun" to acquire it. The weapon lacks a viewmodel and uses the world model instead, as evidenced by the model constantly clipping through the player's view or changing the "viewmodel_fov" with a higher increment than the default. It has a 30 round magazine and can switch between fully-automatic and semi-automatic modes; the semi-auto mode sounds like a 3-round burst, but still only fires 1 shot.
=Submachine Guns=
==Heckler & Koch PDW==
The second Heckler & Koch PDW prototype is the main weapon for Resistance members and most Combine Soldiers, and is also issued to Civil Protection teams in volatile situations. Gordon can first acquire the gun from CP officers wielding the SMG in "Route Kanal". It is modeled with no fire selector, two protruding barrels, and a full top rail which has fitted on an unusable Hensoldt prototype RSA red dot sight. The in-game MP7 holds 45 rounds per magazine, even though the real MP7 only comes with 20, 30 and 40-round magazines, and the in-game weapon is not modeled with an extended magazine.
The MP7 comes with a secondary fire capability, which allows it to fire explosive grenade rounds. 3 grenade rounds can be carried at once, and there is no reload animation between firing, the weapon apparently carrying the entire grenade ammo pool at once and able to fire them semi-automatically. The MP7's model does not feature any mounted grenade launcher; instead, the grenades seem to be fired out of the second barrel above the normal gun barrel, which itself is also smaller in diameter than the grenades it fires. The MP7 itself is also too small to plausibly contain a launcher, let alone storage for three grenades and a semi-automatic feed system for them.
These abilities are uncharacteristic of the MP7, but are characteristic of the XM29 OICW (which was originally the Combine's standard issue automatic weapon, the role the MP7 now fills). Given the correlation, it can be surmised that when the developers opted to use the MP7 as the generic automatic weapon, they grafted the OICW's grenade launcher capability onto it to make it more useful, as well as to create a connection to the previous game's MP5SD.
=Shotguns=
==Franchi SPAS-12==
The Franchi SPAS-12 without a stock is used by the Combine Overwatch and some Resistance members. It is first given to the player by the crazed Ravenholm preacher Father Grigori in the chapter "We Don't Go To Ravenholm...". It is very useful in close-quarters combat, particularly against Headcrab Zombies and Antlions. One soldier in each Combine squad is equipped with the SPAS-12. It is also used by some major characters on occasion.
Just like in the original Half-Life, it has the unrealistic ability to fire two shells at the same time. The magazine tube is mistaken for a second barrel, and both "barrels" can be fired at once for the secondary fire mode; the game even gives an on-screen hint calling this ability "fire both barrels". It is also still reloaded by inserting shells through the heat shield instead of the actual loading port. Gordon correctly does not cycle the shotgun's action after refilling a partially empty tube; making the SPAS-12 the only in-game weapon with a partial reload animation.
In Half-Life 2, like many other games, the player can only use the SPAS-12 in pump-action mode, while the real one can be switched between semi-auto and pump-action; NPCs appear to use the weapon in semi-auto mode, however. It only holds six shells like the short-barreled variant, although the in-game model shows the full-size version which should hold eight instead.
=Rifles=
==Overwatch Standard Issue Pulse Rifle==
The Overwatch Standard Issue Pulse Rifle (also known as the AR2, in reference to its internal name) is a fictional weapon mainly used by the Combine. It fires powerful pulse energy rounds from 30-round pulse plugs. Its secondary fire mode is a dark energy orb launcher, which launches orbs of dark energy that can disintegrate enemies. While more powerful and accurate than the MP7, it has very high recoil during sustained fire, necessitating short bursts to maintain accuracy.
The rifle has an interesting loading system. The magazine hanging off to the side holds 2 pulse plugs (a stat based on the in-game reserve ammo count of 60 rounds), and when the gun is reloaded, a little insect leg-like manipulator grabs a new pulse plug and inserts it into the chamber; the magazine is never reloaded with more pulse plugs. As for dark energy orbs, three can be carried at a time as well, though there is no reload animation for it; like with the MP7's secondary fire, the gun appears to hold the entire secondary reserve ammunition pool at once. NPCs reload the OSIPR by visibly replacing a magazine and pulling a nonexistent left-side charging handle; this is a remnant of the OICW, which was originally meant to be the AR2.
The model is recycled from a cut weapon known as the "Incendiary Rifle", essentially a 5-round repeating flare gun, which explains its weird loading system.
===Emplacement Gun===
A machine gun variation of the OSIPR known as the "Emplacement Gun" can be found in various points throughout the game as, predictably enough, an emplaced machine gun. It has infinite ammunition and a faster rate of fire than the OSIPR. It also seems to lack any sort of trigger mechanism.
==Winchester Model 1886==
The Winchester Model 1886 is the main weapon of Father Grigori. While the model is very low-detail, it can be identified as an 1886 by the loading gate. In the leaked beta for Half-Life 2, Grigori's Winchester had a longer barrel and magazine tube. However, this was shortened for the final product. In what is likely another case of mistaking the magazine tube for a barrel, the rifle in-game only holds two rounds, despite its real life counterpart holding up to 9 rounds in the tubular magazine; it is also internally coded to fire .357 Magnum, which the Winchester 1886 is not available in. It is referred to in the game's files as "Annabelle", although it is never directly referred to in-game.
Like Alyx's pistol, Annabelle can be spawned through the developer's console using the code "give weapon_annabelle", or by using some glitches. Because it wasn't intended to be usable, the view model is identical to the SPAS-12's and the animations are riddled with errors.
=Explosives=
==MK3A2 Offensive Hand Grenade==
While "M83 FRAG" is written on them in-game, the hand grenades in Half-Life 2 are closely based on the MK3A2 concussion grenade, but emit a red LED light and a beeping sound when armed as they are made by the Combine Overwatch for its soldiers. Five grenades can be held at once.
==Saab Bofors Dynamics AT4==
The "RPG" in Half-Life 2 is based on the Saab Bofors Dynamics AT4, albeit backwards (the launcher's muzzle is actually the AT4's rear in real life) and with an FIM-92 Stinger-like gripstock assembly. It is quite frequently used by the Resistance members to take down Striders and Gunships. Like the modified Armbrust ATW from Half-Life, it is laser-guided; while rather slow, the weapon's rockets are extremely sophisticated (with instantaneous mid-flight corrections being achieved by simply pointing the launcher at a different target), highly maneuverable, and never run out of fuel. Unlike the Armbrust from the previous game, the laser guidance cannot be turned off with the secondary fire key, though pre-release builds of the game had this feature.
none|thumb|400px|Saab Bofors Dynamics AT4 - 84mm
==ATK SLAM==
The SLAM was originally cut from Half-Life 2, but was later reimplemented in Half-Life 2: Deathmatch. It has two modes of operation - as a laser tripmine to set up ambushes, or a remotely detonated explosive, essentially taking on the roles of the Satchel Charges and Laser Tripmines from the original Half-Life. The player can carry a total of 5 SLAMs at once.
=Mounted Weapons=
==Hunter-Chopper Gun==
The turret mounted on the Hunter-Chopper is mostly fictional, but appears to be loosely based on a KPV heavy machine gun. Unlike the Combine's other pulse-firing weapons, the Hunter-Chopper gun has a charge time.
===Airboat Gun===
While the game claims that the gun mounted on the Airboat is the same as the one on the Hunter-Chopper, they are clearly different, both aesthetically and functionally. The one mounted on the Airboat appears to be inspired by a Browning M2HB, and does not require charging. It has an ammo reserve of 100 shots that recharges over time.
Concept art for the Jet Ski, the predecessor to the Airboat, showed it with a mounted M60.
==Overwatch Sniper Rifle==
The rifle used by Combine snipers is a rather odd pivot-mounted rifle that bears a resemblance to the Walther WA 2000. While snipers appear in all the Half-Life 2 games, the rifle itself is only seen in Episode Two. It is very powerful, capable of killing Resistance members and most enemies in one shot. Snipers can only be taken out with explosives such as grenades.
In the original game, its sound effects were held over from the cut LAR Grizzly Big Boar, with snipers audibly working a bolt and chambering a round; in the Episode games, the sound was changed to an electronic chargeup type sound. This was retroactively changed in the original game through a patch.
==PKT==
A machine gun based on the PKT is mounted on Combine APCs as its secondary armament. It fires pulse energy (like many of the Combine's weapons) and has infinite ammunition despite not having any visible source of it.
=Cut Weapons=
The following weapons were included in the leaked build of Half-Life 2, but did not appear in the final game:
==AKM==
The AKM, known in the game as "AR1" was to be given to many of the Rebels. It lacks a muzzle brake, and has the narrower handguard and wider front sight of an AK-47. The in-game AKM holds 30 rounds and has 5 different firing modes, ranging from fastest to slowest, the faster modes being weaker, and the slower firing modes dealing more damage per shot.
==Heckler & Koch GR9S==
The Heckler & Koch GR9S, known as the "HMG1", was supposed to be a portable machine gun in the game and was to be carried by Overwatch soldiers. It features two firing modes, fully automatic and 3-round-burst, and the scope was not a usable feature. The rounds fired also dealt incredible damage.
thumb|none|400px|Heckler & Koch GR9S - 5.56x45mm NATO
thumb|none|400px|The GR9S's view model.
==Heckler & Koch MP5K==
The Heckler & Koch MP5K was originally planned to be the "SMG1" in Half-Life 2, prior to being replaced with the stylised MP7 seen in the final game. It is the world model for the MP7 in the Half-Life 2 leaked alpha, the first-person model having been replaced before the leak. Based on unused sound effects included within the build, the MP5K featured two firing modes, fully automatic and burst fire, and would've been able to be suppressed.
==Heckler & Koch MP7 Prototype==
Different to the final MP7 (which is also present in the leaked build), a more realistic model appears in the leak as the "SMG2". Also unlike the retail submachine gun, this PDW has a more suitable reload animation where Gordon properly disposes of the magazine after working its release. The PDW prototype is modelled with a 20-round magazine, but incorrectly holds triple that amount. It can fire in full-auto or strangely, in 3-round bursts.
==Heckler & Koch XM29 OICW==
The XM29 OICW was to be the standard weapon of the Combine forces. It was replaced with the OSIPR following a brush-up on consistency with weapon standards and themes relevant to the game. It features a functional scope which increases accuracy and lowers the rate of fire; as seen in the leaked E3 2002 trailer, it had the ability to fire grenades like the real weapon, but this was later removed and the grenade launcher function was placed onto the SMG.
The in-game weapon's textures were based on the reference image below.
==LAR Grizzly Big Boar==
Early versions of the game included a .50 caliber LAR Grizzly Big Boar sniper rifle with a thumbhole stock. The rifle was incredibly powerful and had two zoom levels, a non-working muzzleflash effect which took up the entire screen, and a long reload time as it was single shot only. It is used by the Combine Snipers in early versions and was replaced in the final released game with a crossbow that fired super-heated pieces of rebar.
==Orion Flare Gun==
The 25mm Orion flare gun is another cut weapon that was supposed to be used by Combine soldiers and guards at Nova Prospekt. It is an older pre-1995 model of the Orion 25mm signal launcher made from metal and standard plastic grips. The one in the leaked build has blue grips, but textures for an earlier revision with red grips exist in the files. In-game, the Orion can fire flares normally or has an alternate fire that allows it to launch flares underwater (although they do not travel very far).
 
In the retail game and its episodes, Combine soldiers are scripted to fire a flare in some dark areas the player is in, though the soldiers firing the round have intentionally been hidden to hide the lack of actual flare gun model. The cut Orion's firing sound has been reused for this, and the flare projectile beneath the bright light effects are incorrectly of the entire 25mm cartridge (which itself uses a completely different case model from the flare rounds in the leaked builds).
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